Hygiene and environmental health advances最新文献

Severe asthma has been shown to occur in the combined presence of high pollen and thunderstorm conditions, also known as ‘thunderstorm asthma.’ First studied as severe epidemic events, recent longitudinal work studied less dramatic but more frequent occurrences. We explore thunderstorm asthma-related emergency department visits in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area and evaluated risk differences by sex and age. We define a thunderstorm asthma exposure event as the daily occurrence of 2 or more lightning strikes during high pollen periods, and use daily counts of asthma-related emergency department visits to estimate relative and absolute risk of severe asthma during thunderstorm asthma events for the full population and for sex and age subgroups. The overall population had a 1.06 (95 % CI: 1.02, 1.09) times higher risk of asthma-related ED visits during thunderstorm asthma events compared to days without thunderstorm asthma events. Children under 18 show no higher risk (RR 1.02; 95 % CI: 0.97 1.08), but adults 18–44 years (RR 1.08; 95 % CI: 1.02, 1.13) and 45 and up (RR 1.08; 95 % CI 1.02, 1.15) show higher relative risk. Absolute risk measures show similar patterns to the age and sex results, but age-sex subgroups show more variation in absolute vs relative risk. Our results support an association between ED visits and thunderstorm asthma and provide evidence of varying risks by sex across the life course. These differences in risk have implications for clinical treatment of this allergic type of asthma and for future research into this poorly recognized environmental exposure.

Plain Language Summary: Recent research has highlighted the existence of Thunderstorm asthma events, a phenomenon in which pollen grains rupture in the conditions that occur with a thunderstorm, releasing sub-pollen particles that are capable of triggering severe asthma in susceptible populations. Where severe asthma is a disease that usually impacts children, we find in this study that asthma ED visits associated with thunderstorm asthma events more frequently impact adults, particularly males 18–44 and females 45 and up.

Background

Since the twentieth century, endocrine-disrupting substances (EDCs) such as phthalates and organophosphates have been utilised in various goods. The long-term usage of these products may have negative effects on people's health. Most EDCs are metabolized through kidneys, but there are few research investigating renal damage from exposure to EDCs in the elderly. This study aims to examine the effects of EDCs exposure on renal function in the elderly population.

Methods

In this cross-sectional study, a total of 200 elder from a community in northeast China were enrolled. All subjects were investigated by questionnaire, physical examination, and biological sample collection. Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was used to classify renal function group. Lasso regression was used to screen out the EDCs related to renal function. After covariate adjustment, binary logistic regression was used to analyze the relationship between decreased renal function and EDCs. Weighted quantile sum (WQS) regression was used to assess the association of combined-EDCs with decreased renal function, subgroup analyses were performed to identify potentially sensitive populations to the effects of EDCs on decreased renal function.

Results

Binary logistic regression showed that 3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxybenzoic acid (BHT-COOH), Mono(3-carboxypropyl) phthalate (MCPP), and Methyl paraben (MeP) were negatively associated with decreased renal function, with odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence intervals of 0.591 (0.366, 0.954), 0.990 (0.981, 0.999) and 0.997 (0.995, 0.999), respectively. WQS regression found DPP (Weights = 22.5%) to have the greatest effect on decreased renal function in the elderly. Moreover, significant potential interactions were observed among MEHP&MOcP with hypertension on decreased renal function (P_interaction = 0.014), as well as BPS and MEHP&MocP with Overweight/obesity on decreased renal function (P_interaction = 0.032, 0.024).

Conclusions

BHT-COOH, MCPP, and MeP were negatively associated with decreased renal function in the elderly. Elders with hypertension and who are overweight /obesity may be more sensitive to EDCs.

Despite the growing concern over the impact of ambient fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) on respiratory health, studies on the association between PM_2.5 and childhood asthma in Vietnam have remained relatively sparse.

The study aimed to evaluate the short-term effects of PM_2.5 on asthma hospital admissions in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), the most populous city in Vietnam. The PM_2.5 database from 2016 to 2019 was collected at two fixed monitoring stations. The health database was collected from all three children's hospitals. A time-series regression analysis was conducted to examine the associations between the daily PM_2.5 concentration and hospitalizations for asthma.

A total of 11,223 records of children under five years old hospitalized for asthma were collected, of which 64 % were male and 70 % were aged 2 to under five years old. The daily mean PM_2.5 concentration over the study period was 28.2 μg/m³. Each 10 μg/m³ increase in PM_2.5 at lag₂, lag_3, and lag₀₄, we found that the excess risk of total asthma hospital admission was 2.71 %, 2.63 %, and 3.9 %, respectively. According to the subgroup analysis, female gender and children aged from two to under five years had more significant effects.

PM_2.5 poses a risk to children's health; therefore, the local authority should prioritize improving the air quality.

There are few studies on the association between polymetallic exposure and obesity in preschool children, and the conclusions are inconsistent. The study aimed to explore the association between urine metals and body mass index (BMI). For 342 preschool children in the industrial park of Shaanxi, China, uniformly trained investigators collected basic information of preschoolers and measured height and weight. Morning urine were collected, and BMI were calculated. We measured concentrations of 22 urine metals by quadrupole inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS).

The least absolute shrinkage and selective operator (LASSO) regression model was used to screen urine metals larger impact on BMI. In the polymetallic exposure model, generalized linear regression was used to explore the relationship between the selected urine metals and BMI. The overall relationship between urine metals and BMI was analyzed using restricted cubic spline (RCS). The interaction method was used to explore the influence of metal-metal interaction on BMI. After adjustment for covariates, ln-transformed urinary copper (Cu) levels and urinary molybdenum (Mo) levels were negatively associated with BMI, (Cu, β=−1.219, 95% CI: −2.047, −0.391, P<0.05; Mo, β=−0.797, 95% CI: −1.508, −0.087, P<0.05). Polymetallic model showed similar results. Both ln-transformed urinary Cu levels and urinary Mo levels were negatively correlated with BMI (Cu: β=−1.556, 95% CI: −2.488, −0.624, P<0.05; Mo: β=−0.915, 95% CI: −1.817, −0.013, P<0.05). The results of RCS visually demonstrate that Cu and BMI are non-linearly correlated (P _total < 0.001, P _nonliearity = 0.005), Mo and BMI are linearly correlated (P _total < 0.05, P _nonliearity = 0.099) Urinary Cu was negatively correlated with BMI nonlinearly in preschool children, and there was a borderline interaction between urinary Mo and Cu levels.

Further researches are needed to validate these associations and reveal underlying mechanisms

Recent global salmonella outbreak was linked to chocolate products but potential role of cocoa beans has been neglected. Chocolate related salmonella outbreaks have occurred mostly during low cocoa price levels. Food business operators should ensure hygiene at all production stages. These outbreaks highlight corporate social responsibility while demonstrating the need of multi-professional approaches.

It has been reported that PM_2.5 causes endothelial cell injury and promotes atherosclerosis. However, the exact mechanism through which coal-fired PM_2.5 induces endothelial cell injury, and the involvement of the p38 and JNK signaling pathways in this process remain unclear. In this study, EA.hy926 cells were exposed to coal-fired PM_2.5 at concentrations of 25, 50, and 100 μg/mL, and the toxic effects were observed. The phosphorylation of the JNK and p38 signaling pathways was investigated through western blot analysis. Additionally, the expression of adhesion molecules (ICAM-1 and E-selectin) was assessed using ELISA and flow cytometry. Changes in cellular toxicity and adhesion molecules were evaluated after pretreatment with the p38 inhibitor SB203580 (10 μM) and the JNK inhibitor SP600125 (25 μM). We observed that exposure to coal-fired PM_2.5 led to a decrease in cell survival rate and proliferation while promoting apoptosis. Exposure to coal-fired PM_2.5 promoted the expression of ICAM-1 and E-selectin, as well as the phosphorylation of p38 and JNK in EA.hy926 cells. After using p38 and JNK inhibitors, there was an observed increase in cell survival rate and proliferation, accompanied by a decrease in apoptosis. The levels of ICAM-1 and E-selectin showed no significant changes with the addition of p38 and JNK inhibitors. Our results indicated that coal-fired PM_2.5 caused cellular toxicity and increased the levels of ICAM-1 and E-selectin. The p38 and JNK signaling pathways might play a role in the reduction of cell viability, while the regulation of ICAM-1 and E-selectin might not be influenced by these pathways.

The widespread use of sex toys has sparked concerns about potential health risks associated with the leaching of micro/nanoplastics (M/NPs) and phthalates. In this in silico toxicity analysis, we investigated the immunotoxicity potential of compounds mechanically produced from sex toys. The research focuses on understanding their interactions with critical human cytochrome P450 enzymes (CYP34A and CYP2D6), which are central to drug metabolism and immune function. Four types of M/NPs (polyethylene terephthalate - PET, polyvinyl chloride - PVC, polydimethylsiloxane - PDMS, polyisoprene) and eight phthalates (Diethyl phthalate - DEP, Bis(4-methyl-2-pentyl) phthalate, Bis(2-methoxyethyl) phthalate, Benzyl butyl phthalate - BBP, Dibutyl Phthalate - DBP, Diethylhexyl phthalate - DEHP, Dinonyl phthalate - DNP, Di-n-octyl phthalate - DnOP) from sex toys were analyzed. Molecular dynamics and docking simulations were conducted to assess the binding affinity of these compounds to the enzymes. PET exhibited the highest toxicity, with a binding affinity of -8.3 kcal/mol and -8.9 kcal/mol for CYP3A4 and CYP2D6, respectively, surpassing control values (-7.8 kcal/mol and -6.3 kcal/mol). BBP showed considerable toxicity, binding strongly to CYP3A4 (-7.8 kcal/mol) and CYP2D6 (-9.1 kcal/mol). PDMS and DEP were the lowest toxic compounds in both groups. Molecular interactions revealed hydrogen bonds, pi interactions, and unfavorable donor-donor effects between compounds and specific amino acid residues within the enzymes. While these in silico findings provide insights, they underscore the need for comprehensive chemical analyses and absorption studies to validate health risks. This research emphasizes the necessity of evaluating the toxicity of M/NPs and phthalates from sex toys, promoting further investigations to protect individuals' health during product use.

Background

Pyrethroids are widely used in agriculture and household pest management as one of the top three insecticides globally, yet the neurobehavioral impacts of human exposure to these chemicals have attracted increasing concern.

Objective

The purpose of this study was to examine the associations between pyrethroid exposure and sleep disorders and whether exercise could attenuate these associations.

Methods

We analyzed cross-sectional data from the 2007-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to study the association between pyrethroid pesticide exposure and sleep disorders. The exposure level of pyrethroid metabolites in urine samples was measured. Physician diagnosis of sleep disorders was used to determine sleep disorders. Exercise level was judged by self-reported physical activity from the interviews.

Results

Of the 5947 participants, sleep disorders had a weighted prevalence of 9.0 %, representing an approximation of 186,140,757 patients nationwide. We found a sex-specific association between high levels of 3-PBA and elevated risk of sleep disorders diagnosis in men (OR: 1.87; 95 % CI: 1.150–3.042; P = 0.01). In addition, less physical activity was associated with higher rates of sleep disorders as pyrethroid exposure levels increased (OR: 1.98; 95 % CI: 1.152–3.388; P = 0.02).

Conclusion

This study further confirmed that pyrethroid exposure is associated with an elevated risk of sleep disorders in men. More importantly, we reported for the first time that vigorous physical activity attenuates the correlation between pyrethroid exposure and sleep disorders.

Lead is an environmental contaminant that is considered a major public health concern due to its effects on various body systems, such as the neurological, cardiovascular, immune and renal systems. Scientific evidence indicates that health effects occur in people at blood lead levels (BLLs) lower than those previously established as levels of concern; no safe level of lead exposure has been established. Lead has been monitored as part of various national and international biomonitoring programs. The aims of this study were: (1) to examine BLLs in the Canadian general population and vulnerable sub-populations between 2007 and 2013 using data from the Canadian Health Measures Survey (CHMS); and (2) to assess factors that are associated with elevated BLLs in these populations. BLLs in Canadians were in a decreasing trend over the study period. BLLs in Canadians varied by age and sex. Those aged 60 to 79 years had the highest BLLs, while the 12 to 19 years age group had the lowest BLLs. Males exhibited significantly higher BLLs than females. In young children aged 3 to 5 years, 99.9 % had BLLs below 5 µg/dL (blood lead reference level for children). BLLs in pregnant women were lower than those in non-pregnant women in the same age range. Multivariable regression analysis suggested that factors such as immigration status, household income, educational level, age of dwelling, smoking status, second-hand smoke exposure, alcohol consumption, and fish and shellfish consumption, were significantly associated with BLLs. This study presents the first robust analysis of BLLs in the Canadian vulnerable populations and assessment of factors associated with elevated BLLs. This information may be useful to identify population subgroups who are differentially exposed to lead based on various exposure factors and are at risk for lead exposure in Canada.