From the ArcaMax Publishing, Science & Technology Newsletter:
http://www.arcamax.com/news/technology/s-571159-699842
PITTSBURGH (UPI) -- U.S. researchers have developed a fluorescent
substance that can detect harmful ozone molecules in the air as well
as in the body.
University of Pittsburgh scientists said their fluorescent substance
glows bright green when exposed to even minute amounts of ozone, which
is a harmful pollutant and lung irritant. But the researchers said
ozone is also a possible natural weapon that certain research suggests
the human body employs against infections.
The scientists said their simple and fast-acting ozone detector can
function as a consumer device to measure surrounding ozone, or as a
laboratory tool that could provide insight into ozone's effect on the
human body and its debated role in the human immune system.
"As you inhale air, you inhale ozone, and it is not known how deeply
it penetrates the lung or its effect on the body," said Professor
Kazunori Koide, the study's corresponding author. "Our method is
quick, so people will know they've exceeded safe levels before they
suffer the symptoms, and it's highly specific to ozone, so it will
prevent having false data."
The study that included Professors George Leikauf and Bruce Pitt,
Assistant Professor Claudette St. Croix and researchers Shin Ando and
Amanda Garner appears in the journal Nature Chemistry.