Sulfur dioxide (SO2) was previously regarded as a toxic gas in atmospheric pollutants. But it has been found to be endogenously generated from metabolism of sulfur-containing amino acids in mammals through transamination by aspartate aminotransferase (AAT). SO2 could be produced in cardiovascular tissues catalyzed by its synthase AAT. In recent years, studies revealed that SO2 had physiological...

Over the last three decades, ambient concentrations of sulfur dioxide (SO2) air pollution have declined by approximately 80%. This paper tests whether the 1970 Clean Air Act and its subsequent amendments caused this decline. The centerpiece of this legislation is the annual assignment of all counties to SO2 nonattainment or attainment categories. Polluters face stricter regulations in nonattain...

[1] In this study, ultraviolet TOMS (Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer) satellite data for SO2 are reevaluated for the first 15 days following the 15 June 1991 Pinatubo eruption to reflect new data retrieval and reduction methods. Infrared satellite SO2 data from the TOVS/HIRS/2 (TIROS (Television Infrared Observation Satellite) Optical Vertical Sounder/High Resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder...

The last decade has seen frequent occurrences of severe air pollution episodes of high loading in SO2 during winters in the North China Plain (NCP). Using satellite data from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI), chemistry transport model (GEOS-Chem) simulations, and National Center for Environmental Predication (NCEP) meteorological reanalysis, this study examines meteorological and synoptic ...

The present study was designed to determine whether sulfur dioxide (SO2) could be endogenously produced in adipocyte and served as a novel adipocyte-derived inflammatory inhibitor. SO2 was detected in adipose tissue using high-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection. SO2 synthase aspartate aminotransferase (AAT1 and AAT2) mRNA and protein expressions in adipose tissues wer...

[1] Volcanic SO2 can affect the Earth’s environment. Where no direct measurements of SO2 in the atmosphere are available, a petrologic method of assessing sulfur release from the magma must be used. However, in studies of arcderived eruptions, satellite-based measurements of SO2 emissions using Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer (TOMS) data are orders of magnitude greater than those calculated pe...

Palladium-based catalyst can be employed for natural gas exhaust clean up due to its high activity for light hydrocarbon oxidation. Unfortunately, trace amounts of sulfur in the natural gas feed severely deactivate the catalyst. In this paper, SO2 adsorption over a monolithic Pd/Al2O3 oxidation catalyst is monitored in a time-resolved manner in the presence of 100 ppm SO2 under simulated aging ...

The maternal diet is an important determinant of glutathione-related metabolism in rats. Glutathione (GSH) may play a major role in the detoxification of sulfur dioxide (SO2) within the lungs. The effects of fetal exposure to a low protein maternal diet upon later susceptibility to pulmonary injury induced by chronic SO2 exposure were evaluated in young adult rats. Pregnant rats were fed purifi...

Aluminum ions are especially toxic to plants in acidic soils. Here we present evidences that SO2 protects germinating wheat grains against aluminum stress. SO2 donor (NaHSO3/Na2SO3) pretreatment at 1.2 mM reduced the accumulation of superoxide anion, hydrogen peroxide, and malondialdehyde, enhanced the activities of guaiacol peroxidase, catalase, and ascorbate peroxidase, and decreased the acti...