The concentrations and distributions of mercury (Hg) in topsoil from four provinces and one municipality in China were investigated. A total of 1,254 samples were collected and analyzed. The average concentrations of Hg were 0.064 mg kg −1 for Liaoning Province, 0.100 mg kg − 1 for Jiangsu Province, 0.110 mg kg −1 for Zhejiang Province, 0.154 mg kg −1 for Sichuan Province, and 0.098 mg kg −1 for Chongqing Municipality. Although differences were found among the ranges of Hg concentrations, the average values for each region were similar with other published data. The concentrations of Hg in topsoil varied largely upon the sampling locations. More than 80 % of the soil samples from Liaoning Province, Jiangsu Province, Zhejiang Province, and Chongqing Municipality, were ranked Grade I by the China Environmental Quality Standard for Soils, which can be considered as not contaminated by Hg. The concentrations of Hg in 0.3-0.4 % of soils collected from Jiangsu Province, Zhejiang Province and Chongqing Municipality exceeded the limitation for Grade III, indicating the contamination of Hg in these sites. The sources and potential risks of Hg in these sites should be brought to attention and further investigated.

The concentrations and species of organotin compounds (OTCs) in 52 surface sediment samples from nine fishing ports along the Chinese coast were studied. Butyltins (BTs) and phenyltins (PhTs) were derivatized using sodium tetraethylborate (NaBEt 4 ) and determined by head-space solid-phase microextraction (HS-SPME) gas chromatography coupled with a flame photometric detector (GC-FPD). The concentrations of OTCs ranged from <3.6 to 194 ng (Sn) g −1 dry weight (dw) for monobutyltin (MBT), <2.3 to 41.5 ng (Sn) g −1 dw for dibutyltin (DBT), <0.7 to 86.0 ng (Sn) g −1 dw for tributyltin (TBT) and <5.1 to 66.1 ng (Sn) g −1 dw for monophenyltin (MPhT), respectively. The concentrations of diphenyltin (DPhT) and triphenyltin (TPhT) were below the limit of detection (LOD). BTs were the main species in the sediments except for the samples collected from Shazikou fishing port in Qingdao. The concentrations of MBT were higher than DBT and TBT. The concentrations of OTCs in the sediments varied widely among different sampling locations. The concentrations of BTs were much higher in the samples collected from fishing ports close to the South China Sea than those in coast of the East China Sea and the Yellow Sea. MPhT was prevalent in most sampling stations except for those in coast of the East China Sea. The environmental and ecotoxicological risks of TBT in most sediment samples were low.

Background: Gastric cancer (GC) is the most lethal tumor of gastrointestinal tract worldwide. Despite advances in various therapies, the prognosis of GC remains poor. Moreover, only a small fraction of GC patients benefit from immunotherapy. Therefore, it is urgent to deeply understand the molecular characteristics and immunophenotype of GC. Methods: We analyzed the gene expression profile of GSE118916 from GEO database, including the mRNA expression profiles of 15 pairs of GC tumor and adjacent non-tumor tissues. Gene ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analyses were performed using the online website DAVID. And then the survival prediction values of the top 10 up-regulated genes were analyzed using Kaplan–Meier plotter database. Finally, the immune cells infiltration was analyzed using CIBERSORT online tool.Results: A total of 1156 DEGs were identified, including 633 up-regulated genes and 523 down-regulated genes. The up-regulated genes were mainly enriched in cell adhesion, proliferation, migration and inflammation response. In addition, the up-regulated genes were significantly enriched in acid metabolism, complement and coagulation cascades, cell adhesion and p53 signaling pathway, which were all significant in tumor progression, relapse and metastasis. In addition, the up-regulated genes CTSL and PIEZO1 were associated with poor prognosis in GC patients. Moreover, a unique immune-suppressive microenvironment was identified in GC tissues. Conclusions: CTSL and PIEZO1 might be potential biomarkers and therapeutic targets in GC patients.