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Air quality is often assessed using particulate matter (PM) mass concentration without considering its toxicity, thus possibly leading to improper control policies or inadequate health protection. Here, we studied differences in oxidative potentials (OPs) of PM samples collected using automobile air conditioning (AC) filters from 19 global cities, as well as influences from microbial contents. Dithiothreitol (DTT) assay showed remarkable differences in the PM OPs among cities (p -values ≤ 0.001, Kruskal-Wallis test). For example, the normalized index of oxidant generation (NIOG) of PM samples in San Francisco (2.20 × 10−2, annual average PM 10 = 16 μg/m3) was found to be twice that in Beijing (1.14 × 10−2, annual average PM 10 = 135 μg/m3). Limulus amebocyte lysate (LAL) assay found that PM-borne endotoxin ranged from 12.16 EU/mg (Florianopolis, Brazil) to 2518.23 EU/mg (Chennai, India) among cities. Besides, culturing method and real-time qPCR revealed significant differences of up to ∼100-fold in both bacterial and fungal levels among 19 cities. Spearman's correlation analysis implied that PM-borne microbes such as bacteria and fungi as well as metals could strongly influence the PM OP. As an example, our results in Xi'an, China further suggest that the PM 2.5 OP evolves for a particular city over the time, which is attributable to both the urbanization and air pollution control measures. This work highlights the importance in optimizing the current air quality control measures by considering the toxicity factor and its microbial constituents. Image 1 • Ambient PM toxicity per unit of mass was shown to vary greatly with different cities across the world. • PM-borne biologicals were shown to exhibit remarkable differences across major cities, contributing to the difference of PM toxicity. • PM toxicity was shown to evolve over the time as a result of ground human activities as well as air pollution control measures. • This work highlights the need of taking into account of PM toxicity for future air pollution control efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biomass burning (BB) seriously affect air pollution, human health and global climate. A severe pollution episode (PE) caused by BB was investigated in the southern Sichuan Basin (SSB), one of the most polluted areas in China. Hourly variations in criteria air pollutants (PM 2.5 , PM 10 , SO 2 , NO 2 , CO, and O 3), chemical components, and sources of PM 2.5 before, during, and after the severe regional air PE were characterized at three sites, namely Neijiang (NJ), Zigong (ZG), and Yibin (YB). The results showed that combination of intensive pollution from BB, stable meteorological conditions, and the basin topography caused this severe regional PE in the SSB. The average daily concentrations of PM 2.5 during the PE were 1.8–6 times those measured during the periods before and after the PE, and 4.0–7.4 times that of World Health Organization air quality guidelines in the SSB. The highest PM levels occurred in ZG, where the peak values of PM 2.5 and PM 10 reached 536 μg m−3 and 578 μg m−3 at night, respectively. PM 10 , NO 2 , and CO also increased dramatically at night in the SSB. O 3 formation was affected by BB, showing lower levels at night but higher levels in the day during the PE than before and after the PE, whereas SO 2 levels were not affected. Sulfate–nitrate–ammonium in PM 2.5 was the main chemical compositions before the PE, whereas organic matter (OM) and K+ became characteristics compositions during and after the PE. Higher OC/EC and K excess /EC ratios were observed during the PE and K excess /EC ratio was a better indicator of BB in the SSB than OC/EC ratio. The results of a positive matrix factorization model indicated that BB was the most significant contributor to PM 2.5 during the PE, accounting for 58% in NJ, 65% in ZG, and 56% in YB. Backward trajectory analysis confirmed that the SSB is susceptible to pollutants from Chongqing and other surrounding cities, especially in ZG and NJ, due to the unique topography of the basin. Our findings suggest that BB in the basin topography can cause severe regional air pollution events at night, thus supporting the critical need for BB control in the basin to improve regional air quality. Image 1 • The evolution of region air pollution event caused by biomass burning was observed. • PM 2.5 , PM 10 , NO 2 , and CO increased dramatically during the pollution episode. • O 3 formation was influenced by biomass burning. • Chemical components and sources variations of PM 2.5 were investigated. • The southern Sichuan Basin was susceptible to air masses from Chongqing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]