Environmentally persistent free radicals are ubiquitous in wildfire charcoals and remain stable for years

Sigmund, Gabriel; Santín, Cristina; Pignitter, Marc; Tepe, Nathalie; Doerr, Stefan H.; Hofmann, Thilo

doi:10.1038/s43247-021-00138-2

Cited by 49 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…18 Furthermore, PyC could possibly cause oxidative stress to the biofilms via persistent free radicals that have recently been measured in wildfire derived PyC. 28 Observed alterations of ERs in benthic biofilms with PyC addition can be explained by the combined effect of changes in DOC quantity, DOM quality, and pH. These findings are in line with studies on potential drivers of ER variabililty.…”

Section: Pyrogenic Carbon Addition Affects Enzymatic Activitiessupporting

confidence: 70%

“…The PyC was charcoal consisting of fully charred woody material from Pinus sylvestris, collected from the ground as pieces with a radius of 0.5 -2.5 cm one year after an extensive wildfire in a pine forest (Karbole, Sweden). This charcoal was produced at an estimated maximum temperature of 800 °C and a charring duration of minimum 200 s. 28 Particles were gently crushed, sieved to 0.5 -1.0 cm, and homogenized. The PyC's molar carbon to nitrogen (C/N) ratio was measured in triplicates on a CHNS analyzer (Vario MACRO, Elementar).…”

Section: Site Description and Field Experimental Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Wildfire-derived pyrogenic carbon modulates riverine organic matter and biofilm enzyme activities in an in-situ flume experiment

Bistarelli¹,

Poyntner²,

Santín³

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Wildfires produce large amounts of pyrogenic carbon (PyC), including charcoal, known for its chemical recalcitrance and sorption affinity for organic molecules. Wildfire-derived PyC can be transported to fluvial networks. Here it may alter dissolved organic matter (DOM) concentration and composition as well as microbial biofilm functioning. Employing in-stream flumes with a control vs treatment design (PyC pulse addition), we present evidence that field-aged PyC inputs to rivers can increase dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration, and alter DOM composition. Decreased DOM aromaticity indicated by lower SUVA245 (-0.31 units), and higher pH (0.25 units) were associated with changes in enzymatic activities in benthic biofilms, including a lower recalcitrance index (β-glucosidase/phenol oxidase), suggesting preferential usage of recalcitrant over easily available DOM by biofilms. Particulate PyC deposition onto biofilms may further modulate the impacts of PyC due to direct contact with the biofilm matrix.

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Section: Pyrogenic Carbon Addition Affects Enzymatic Activitiessupporting

confidence: 70%

Section: Site Description and Field Experimental Designmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wildfire-derived pyrogenic carbon modulates riverine organic matter and biofilm enzyme activities in an in-situ flume experiment

Bistarelli¹,

Poyntner²,

Santín³

et al. 2021

Preprint

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“… 18 Furthermore, PyC could possibly cause oxidative stress to the biofilms via persistent free radicals that have recently been measured in wildfire-derived PyC. 28 …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…The PyC was charcoal consisting of fully charred woody material from Pinus sylvestris , collected from the ground as pieces with a radius of 0.5–2.5 cm one year after an extensive wildfire in a pine forest (Karbole, Sweden). This charcoal was produced at an estimated maximum temperature of 800 °C and a charring duration of ≥200 s. 28 Particles were gently crushed, sieved to 0.5–1.0 cm, and homogenized. The PyC’s molar carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratio was measured in triplicate on a CHNS analyzer (Vario MACRO, Elementar).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wildfire-Derived Pyrogenic Carbon Modulates Riverine Organic Matter and Biofilm Enzyme Activities in an In Situ Flume Experiment

et al. 2021

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Wildfires produce large amounts of pyrogenic carbon (PyC), including charcoal, known for its chemical recalcitrance and sorption affinity for organic molecules. Wildfire-derived PyC can be transported to fluvial networks. Here it may alter the dissolved organic matter (DOM) concentration and composition as well as microbial biofilm functioning. Effects of PyC on carbon cycling in freshwater ecosystems remain poorly investigated. Employing in-stream flumes with a control versus treatment design (PyC pulse addition), we present evidence that field-aged PyC inputs to rivers can increase the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration and alter the DOM composition. DOM fluorescence components were not affected by PyC. The in-stream DOM composition was altered due to leaching of pyrogenic DOM from PyC and possibly concurrent sorption of riverine DOM to PyC. Decreased DOM aromaticity indicated by a lower SUVA 245 (−0.31 unit) and a higher pH (0.25 unit) was associated with changes in enzymatic activities in benthic biofilms, including a lower recalcitrance index (β-glucosidase/phenol oxidase), suggesting preferential usage of recalcitrant over readily available DOM by biofilms. The deposition of particulate PyC onto biofilms may further modulate the impacts of PyC due to direct contact with the biofilm matrix. This study highlights the importance of PyC for in-stream biogeochemical organic matter cycling in fire-affected watersheds.

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“…Thus, the unidentified and undiscovered toxicants or mechanisms of toxicity production have become the focus of research. In recent years, EPFRs have drawn great attention as a novel type of environmental risk substances and have been successively discovered in soil, water, and atmospheric environmental media 7,8,9,10,11 . EPFRs in the environment are mainly divided into C-centered and O-centered radicals according to the size of the g-factor 12 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Are the new atmospheric health risk substances EPFRs oxidatively toxic? : Results from a large urban road dust study in Northwest China

Chen

Wang

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) is an important factor of premature human mortality due to PM inhalation. However, the toxic and hazardous components contained within the atmospheric PM are still not fully identified. Environmental persistent free radicals (EPFRs), a novel environmental health risk substance in the atmosphere, have been hypothesized to be important contributors to human respiratory health risks due to their potential to enhance the oxidation potential of PM, but this hypothesis has not been compelling confirmed in the actual atmospheric environment. Therefore, the fugitive characteristics of EPFRs in dust and their potential oxidative toxicity were investigated by using road dust from a mention city in northwest China. The research results showed that the road dust in Xi'an is rich in C-centered EPFRs ((6.6±5.0) ×1017 spins/g), and its half-life can reach 4.5 years. Water-insoluble dust was the main contributor (71%) to the oxidative toxicity of road dust, showing a rapid toxicity-producing process, while the rate of oxidative toxicity production was more constant for water-soluble dust. The contribution of the EPFRs dominant factor to the total dust oxidative toxicity was estimated to be 17% based on the positive matrix factorization (PMF) model, and up to 33% for water-insoluble dust oxidative toxicity. Metals and organic carbon were the main contributing components to the oxidative toxicity of the WS fraction. Summarily, this study demonstrated that the EPFRs are an important contributor to the oxidative toxicity of in actual atmospheric PM, and their oxidative toxicity is dependent on the type of free radicals, providing important insights into what other potentially toxic substances contribute to the oxidative toxicity of atmospheric PM.

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Environmentally persistent free radicals are ubiquitous in wildfire charcoals and remain stable for years

Cited by 49 publications

References 49 publications

Wildfire-derived pyrogenic carbon modulates riverine organic matter and biofilm enzyme activities in an in-situ flume experiment

Wildfire-derived pyrogenic carbon modulates riverine organic matter and biofilm enzyme activities in an in-situ flume experiment

Wildfire-Derived Pyrogenic Carbon Modulates Riverine Organic Matter and Biofilm Enzyme Activities in an In Situ Flume Experiment

Are the new atmospheric health risk substances EPFRs oxidatively toxic? : Results from a large urban road dust study in Northwest China

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