China 
Africa 
Explore chapters and articles related to this topic
Conifer Resins and Essential Oils: Chemical Composition and Applications
Published in Tatjana Stevanovic, Chemistry of Lignocellulosics: Current Trends, 2018
Nellie Francezon, Tatjana Stevanovic
Anticancer. Nature provided highly efficient drugs against cancer, such as Vinca alkaloids (vincristine, vinblastine) or diterpene-based paclitaxel. Discovered in yew bark, Taxus brevifolia, the latter belongs to the same terpene family as constituents of conifer resins. Being costly to extract, several semi-synthesis approaches were studied and one of them involves α-pinene as a precursor (Wender et al. 1997) which is widely available in turpentine pine oil as a major compound. Aside from being a potential precursor, α-pinene was reported to have anticancer properties itself. Significant inhibitory effect of α-pinene was demonstrated on hepatoma carcinoma cells responsible for liver cancer (Chen et al. 2015) and cytotoxicity was shown against human cancer cell lines in vitro for both α- and β-pinene (Setzer et al. 1999). Besides, pine needle essential oil, rich in pinenes, was used as an anticancer agent in Traditional Chinese Medicine (Chen et al. 2015). Balsam fir essential oil demonstrated cytotoxicity against tumor cancer cell lines (Legault et al. 2003). Sesquiterpene α-humulene, a minor compound was found to be the active molecule partially responsible for anticancer activity of balsam fir. Cho et al. (2014) demonstrated that Korean nut pine (Pinus koraiensis) needle essential oil could be a potential chemotherapeutic agent for colorectal cancer, as it reduced in vitro proliferation and migration of colorectal cancer cells. Moreover, P. koraiensis cone oil may promote anti-metastatic activity in breast cancer cells (Lee et al. 2015). Other conifer essential oils such as Cedrus libani (rich in α-, β-, and γ-himachalene isomers), Pinus pinea (composed of 65% limonene) and Juniperus oxycedrus(containing cis-thujopsene and δ-cadinene) wood oil as well as Juniperus excelsa fruit oil showed remarkable activity against multidrug-resistant leukemia cells, indicating that they could be used to treat drug-resistant and refractory tumors (Saab et al. 2012). Pinus densiflora needle essential oil was reported anti-proliferative, anti-survival and pro-apoptotic on human oral squamous cell carcinoma, an oral cavity cancer (Jo et al. 2012).
Comparison of separated and combined photodegradation and biofiltration technology for the treatment of volatile organic compounds: A critical review
Published in Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology, 2022
Meng-Fei Han, Xu-Rui Hu, Yong-Chao Wang, Zhen Tong, Can Wang, Zhuo-Wei Cheng, Ke Feng, Miao-Miao Qu, Jian-Meng Chen, Ji-Guang Deng, Hsing-Cheng Hsi
The removal performance is enhanced probably due to the fact that the hydrophobic VOCs are oxidized into soluble and biodegradable intermediates after photodegradation and readily removed in the subsequent biofiltration. Wang et al. (2008) report that the main products of chlorobenzene photodegradation are hydrochloric acid, acetic acid, formic acid, phenol and chlorophenol. These products are easily biodegraded than chlorobenzene. Cheng et al. (2011b) find that small organic aldehydes and acids (easy to biodegrade) are produced during the photodegradation of α-pinene. Moreover, the intermediates are small molecular substances. These findings suggest that microorganisms are easy to capture pollutants for biofiltration with the assistant of photodegradation. For instance, chlorobenzene could be converted into small molecular substances after photodegradation. These substances are more easily biodegraded compared with the original pollutant (Wang et al., 2008, 2009d). The photodegradation products of α-pinene are small molecular aldehydes, ketones, and volatile fatty acids. These substances could be completely removed in subsequent biofiltration (Cheng et al., 2011b).
Photochemical impacts on the toxicity of PM2.5
Published in Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology, 2022
Jialin Xu, Wenxin Hu, Donghai Liang, Peng Gao
Terpenes are mainly emitted by plants and belong to natural and biogenic VOCs (Holopainen et al., 2017). Globally, isoprene (ISO) and α/β-pinene are the first and second largest non-methane hydrocarbons among all the terpenes and play important roles in the formation of SOAs (Holopainen et al., 2017; Rohr & Annette, 2013). Isoprene has exhibited reproductive toxicity, inhalation toxicity, and carcinogenicity; however, its toxicity is weaker than its homologue, 1,3-butadiene (Anderson, 2001; Melnick et al., 1996). Exposing B6C3F1 mice to isoprene can induce testicular atrophy, lead to an increase in sister chromatid exchanges in bone marrow cells, and cause series of neoplasms; however, isoprene cannot induce chromosomal aberrations in the bone marrow cells of mice (Melnick et al., 1996). For α-pinene, epidemiological experiments and animal experiments show that it has the potential to cause respiratory and skin irritation (Rider, 2016). Also, inhalation of α-pinene or its mixture with other pinenes can cause respiratory discomfort (Filipsson, 1996; Rider, 2016). Currently, there is insufficient research to prove that α-pinene exhibits carcinogenic and genotoxic potential (Rider, 2016). Also, as VOCs are quite unstable in the atmosphere, there are very few studies that directly discuss the health risks of terpenes at normal atmospheric concentrations.