In order to improve local air quality of Hong Kong, more than 99% taxies and public light buses were changed from diesel to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) fuel type in the early 2000s. In addition to the catalytic converters wear and tear, it is necessary to control air pollutants emitted from LPG vehicles. Therefore, an LPG catalytic converter replacement programme (CCRP) was fulfilled from October 2013 to April 2014 by the Hong Kong government. Roadside volatile compounds (VOCs) were measured by on-line measurement techniques before and after the programme to evaluate the effectiveness of the LPG CCRP. The mixing ratios of total measured VOCs were found decreased from 69.3 ± 12.6 ppbv to 43.9 ± 6.5 ppbv after the LPG CCRP with the decreasing percentage of 36.7%. In addition, the total mixing ratio of LPG tracers, namely propane, i-butane, and n-butane, accounted for 49% of total measured VOCs before the LPG CCRP and the weighting percentage decreased to 34% after the programme. Moreover, the source apportionment of roadside VOCs also reflects the large decreasing trend of LPG vehicular emissions after the air pollution control measure. Due to the application of PTR-MS on measuring real-time VOCs and oxygenated volatile compounds (OVOCs) in this study, the emission ratios of individual OVOCs were investigated and being utilized to differentiate primary and secondary/biogenic sources of roadside OVOCs in Hong Kong. The findings demonstrate the effectiveness of the intervention programme, and are helpful to further implementation of air pollution control strategies in Hong Kong.Contamination of the environment with toxic chemicals such as pesticides has become a global problem. Understanding the role of chemical contaminants as stressors in ecological systems is therefore an important research need in the 21st century. In surface freshwaters, mixtures of neonicotinoid insecticides are being detected around the world as more monitoring data become available. Combinations of imidacloprid, clothianidin and thiamethoxam are commonly found, but studies testing their combined toxicities to freshwater invertebrates are rare. Taking a multiple-stressor approach, we employed a full-factorial design to investigate the individual and combined chronic toxicities of these three neonicotinoids in a 28-day laboratory experiment using Deleatidium spp. mayfly nymphs. Imidacloprid (1.2 μg/L achieved concentration) reduced mayfly survival (by 50% on Day 28) and mobility (~100%) more than clothianidin (1.1 μg/L, affecting about 25% of individuals across the responses measured) and thiamethoxam (2.9 μg/e toxicity.Widespread use of pesticides to control pests is the dominant system in conventional apple orchards. To avoid adverse side effects, there is a growing interest in promoting alternative methods including biological control based on the use of natural enemies. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/dansylcadaverine-monodansyl-cadaverine.html The European earwig Forficula auricularia L. (Dermaptera Forficuidae) is an effective predator in apple orchards. Pesticide pressure has been shown to divert energy resources which could have a negative impact on life history traits. In this study we assessed (i) whether variations in pesticide exposure could differentially impact energy reserves, body weight and morphometric parameters of F. auricularia, and (ii) whether these effects persist into the next generation reared under optimal conditions. Individuals from the first generation were collected in late October from organic, IPM and conventional orchards. The next generation was obtained under a rearing program, in the absence of pesticide exposure. Earwigs collected from conventional orchards exhibited lower values for all morphometric parameters compared to those collected in organic orchards. However, a relaxed period without pesticide exposure (in autumn) appears to have allowed the females to recover their energy reserves to ensure reproduction and maternal care. Glycogen contents were the reserves that were more easily restored. However, probably due to the rearing conditions (food ad libitum), all the earwigs from the second generation exhibited higher body weights and energy reserves than their parents.With the general decline of the life support system on earth, it is of great value to carry out ecological sustainability research. This study used the improved ecological footprint (EF) model to calculate the EF of Tibet and its cities (prefecture-level administrative regions) from 2005 to 2017, quantified its ecological sustainability, and analyzed its driving factors using the logarithmic mean divisia index method. The study found that (1) The EF of Tibet is steadily increasing, yet its distribution among cities is extremely uneven. The size of the internal sub-footprints is different and the distribution is extremely uneven in each city; (2) The ecology of Tibet and other cities is in a safe state, except for Lhasa that is in a completely unsafe state. The ecological footprint diversity index of Tibet, Lhasa, Qamdo, and Shannan showed a downward trend, while the other cities are the opposite. The coordination is deteriorating between the ecological and economic systems of Lhasa and Ngari, while the opposite is for Tibet and other cities; (3) The EF growth of Tibet and its cities is mainly driven by per unit of GDP, population size and footprint structure. The footprint intensity is a decisive factor in slowing down the growth of EF. This research is helpful for actors at all levels to identify the appropriate strength and type of policies to achieve ecologically sustainable development.Squamous cell carcinoma of the vulva is a rare gynecologic cancer that is associated with significant patient morbidity and mortality, particularly for recurrent disease. This review summarizes the evidence and continued challenges, regarding the traditional clinicopathologic factors used to prognosticate vulvar squamous cell carcinoma. Articles published within the last 10 years (2010-2020) were identified. Relevant articles concerning the following fifteen prognostic factors were reviewed HPV/p16 status, vulvar intraepithelial neoplasia, patient age, tumor stage, tumor grade, tumor size, depth of invasion, stromal changes, histologic patterns of invasion, lymphovascular space invasion (LVSI), perineural invasion, lymph node metastases, tumour focality, margin status and lichen sclerosus (LS). The relationship between each prognostic factor and progression-free survival (PFS) and overall survival (OS), including hazard ratios, 95% confidence intervals and p-values, were extracted.