Toxic Exposure Research Articles

Diagnostic Value and High-Risk Factors of Two-Dimensional Ultrasonography Combined with Four-Dimensional Ultrasonography in Prenatal Ultrasound Screening of Fetal Congenital Malformations.

Objective This study mainly analyzes the diagnostic value of two-dimensional ultrasonography (2D-US) combined with four-dimensional ultrasonography (4D-US) in prenatal ultrasound screening of fetal congenital malformations (CMs) and explores the high-risk factors affecting fetal malformations. Methods The clinical and imaging data of 2247 pregnant women who underwent prenatal fetal malformation screening in the General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University between February 2020 and October 2021 were collected and analyzed, retrospectively. All pregnant women underwent 2D-US, and those with suspected fetal malformations were further inspected by 4D-US. The accuracy of ultrasound examination results relative to actual pregnancy outcomes was analyzed, taking the neonatal malformation after induced labor or actual delivery as the gold standard, and the risk factors influencing the occurrence of fetal malformations were discussed. Results A total of 87 cases (3.87%) of fetal malformations were detected out of the 2247 parturients examined. The accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of 2D-US diagnosis were 81.40%, 43.68%, and 82.92%, respectively, while the data were 83.67%, 51.72%, and 84.95% for 4D-US, respectively, and 93.59%, 90.80%, and 93.70%, respectively, for 2D-US +4D-US. The combined diagnosis of 2D-US +4D-US achieved statistically higher accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity than either of them alone. One-way analysis of variance and multivariate logistic regression analysis identified that the independent risk factors affecting fetal malformation were age ≥ 35, history of adverse pregnancy and childbirth, medication during pregnancy, toxic exposure during pregnancy, and history of seropositive for TORCH-IgM. Folic acid supplementation was a protective factor. Conclusions Prenatal US is an effective approach for screening fetal malformations. 2D-US +4D-US can effectively improve the diagnostic rate of fetal malformations. For pregnant women with high-risk factors, prevention should be given priority, and prenatal screening and prenatal diagnosis should be standardized to reduce the occurrence of fetal malformations.

Shaping a Healthier LIHTC Housing Stock: Examining the Role of States’ Qualified Allocation Plans

The physical environment has a powerful impact on our physical and mental health, especially in our homes. One vehicle for advancing a healthier affordable housing stock is the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC). The aim of this research was to examine the manner and extent to which various housing quality provisions pertaining to health are embedded in the Qualified Allocation Plan (QAP) of the LIHTC program. From content analysis of the QAP of each of the 50 states and a survey of state housing finance agencies (HFAs), results revealed that: the most frequently required healthy housing provisions address housing quality, whereas the most incentivized ones address proximity to neighborhood services and amenities; few states bundle high-priority provisions relevant to asthma, respiratory health and toxic exposures, which are major health concerns for vulnerable children; the top two motivators for considering healthy housing provisions in the LIHTC process were “championship and initiation by agency staff” and “learning of similar practices in other states”; among other findings. Recommendations are made for HFA practices, and directions for future research are proposed.

Vascular Age, Metabolic Panel, Cardiovascular Risk and Inflammaging in Patients With Rheumatoid Arthritis Compared With Patients With Osteoarthritis.

IntroductionThe risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is 1.5–2 times higher than the general population. The fundamental risk factor for CVD is age, related to alterations at the arterial level. The aim of the study was to compare vascular age (VA) in RA patients under a strict treat-to-target (T2T) strategy with Osteoarthritis (OA) patients without strict follow up and to assess the influence of inflammaging (chronic, sterile, low-grade inflammation related to aging) and metabolic markers on VA.Materials and MethodsThis was an analytical cross-sectional study. Patients with RA (under a strict a T2T strategy) and OA patients without strict clinical follow-up were included. Patients with a history of uncontrolled hypertension, CVD, and/or current smoking were excluded. Sociodemographic, physical activity, and toxic exposure data were obtained. Waist-hip ratio and body mass index (BMI) were measured. DAS-28 (RA) and inflammatory markers, lipid profile, and glycaemia were analyzed. Pulse wave velocity (PWV) was measured (oscillometric method, Arteriograph-TensioMed®). VA was calculated based on PWV. Eleven components of inflammaging [six interleukins, three metalloproteinases (MMP), and two tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMP)] were evaluated (Luminex® system). Univariate and bivariate analyzes (Mann Whitney U and chi-square) and correlations (Spearmans Rho) were done to compare the two groups.ResultsA total of 106 patients (74% women) were included, 52/RA and 54/OA. The mean age was 57 (Interquartile range - IQR 9 years). The BMI, waist circumference, and weight were higher in patients with OA (p < 0.001). RA patients had low disease activity (DAS-28-CRP). There were no differences in VA, inflammaging nor in PWV between the two groups. VA had a positive, but weak correlation, with age and LDL. In group of RA, VA was higher in those who did not receive methotrexate (p = 0.013). LDL levels correlated with MMP1, TIMP1, and TIMP2.ConclusionsWhen comparing RA patients with low levels of disease activity with OA patients with poor metabolic control, there are no differences in VA. Furthermore, methotrexate also influences VA in RA patients. This shows that implemented therapies may have an impact on not only the inflammatory state of the joint but also CVD risk.

Symptomatic Diethylene Glycol Ingestion Successfully Treated with Fomepizole Monotherapy

BackgroundDiethylene glycol (DEG) is an industrial solvent with many uses, including brake fluids. It has also caused mass poisonings after use as an inappropriate substitute for propylene glycol or glycerin, though individual ingestions are rare. Like other toxic alcohols, DEG is metabolized by alcohol dehydrogenase and aldehyde dehydrogenase, with toxicity likely mediated by the resulting metabolites. Fomepizole, an alcohol dehydrogenase inhibitor, is used to prevent metabolite formation with other toxic alcohol exposures. Fomepizole is recommended for DEG poisoning, though supporting clinical evidence is limited. Case ReportA 31-year-old man presented after ingestion of DEG-containing brake fluid and hydrocarbon-containing “octane booster.” He was noted to be clinically intoxicated, with a mildly elevated anion gap metabolic acidosis and no osmolar gap. DEG level was later found to be elevated, consistent with his ingestion. He was treated with fomepizole alone, with resolution of metabolic acidosis and clinical findings over the next 2 days. No delayed neurologic sequelae were present at 52-day follow-up. Our case provides additional evidence supporting the use of fomepizole for DEG poisoning. Consistent with other toxic alcohols, DEG poisoning, especially early presentations, may benefit from empiric fomepizole administration. Why Should an Emergency Physician Be Aware of This?DEG poisoning is potentially life threatening, but treatable if identified early. An ingestion can be toxic despite a normal osmolar gap, leading to false reassurance. Finally, it is rare, so emergency physicians must be made aware of its potential dangers.

Potential risks and health benefits of fish in the diet during the childbearing period: Focus on trace elements and n-3 fatty acid content in commonly consumed fish species from the Adriatic Sea

Fish is important staple in the human diet and also a primary source of highly toxic methylmercury exposure. This study evaluates total mercury (THg), total arsenic (TAs) and selenium (Se) levels together with potential health risks and benefits of habitual fish diet in healthy postpartum women in coastal Croatia (n = 100). Self-reported fish intake habits were recorded by a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire. Elements were analyzed in maternal hair and blood/serum as well as in most frequently consumed fish specimens and products by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and fatty acids, including eicosapentaenoic plus docosahexaenoic n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (EPA plus DHA), were determined in raw Adriatic fish by gas chromatography. The estimated average fish consumption frequency was 1.9 servings per week. Median THg levels above the European regulatory limit were reached only in wild Adriatic gilthead seabream. Maternal THg and TAs levels correlated positively with fish consumption (ρ = 0.262, 0.357 and 0.342, respectively) and serum Se was lower in cigarette smokers (p < 0.05). It was concluded that in women during the childbearing period 2–3 servings per week of commonly consumed fish species originated mostly from the Adriatic Sea provides the desired intake of beneficial micronutrients Se and EPA plus DHA. In sensitive subpopulations with habitual fish rich diet, species with high Hg content should be identified, such as wild Adriatic gilthead seabream recognized in this study for which is recommended that it should be consumed not more than once a week to prevent potential health risks.

Housing Discrimination and the Toxics Exposure Gap in the United States: Evidence from the Rental Market

Abstract Local pollution exposures have a disproportionate impact on minority households, but the root causes remain unclear. This study conducts a correspondence experiment on a major online housing platform to test whether housing discrimination constrains minority access to housing options in markets with significant sources of airborne chemical toxics. We find that renters with African American or Hispanic/Latinx names are 41% less likely than renters with white names to receive responses for properties in low-exposure locations. We find no evidence of discriminatory constraints in high-exposure locations, indicating that discrimination increases relative access to housing choices at elevated exposure risk.

Pivotal role of environmental toxicants on developing infectious diseases in LMICs: a protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis

IntroductionEnvironmental toxicants such as chemical pollution have an enormous impact on the health of people and the planet. Emerging findings suggest that non-communicable diseases are linked to early and chronic...

Viscoelastic and Viscoplastic Glucose Theory (VGT #22): Applying the Concepts of Viscoelasticity, Viscoplasticity and Perturbation Theories to Predict Cancer Risk Percentages using the overall Lifestyle Scores and Calculated Cancer Risk Change Rates with Corresponding Lifestyle Scores as the Respective Viscosity Factors along with Studying the Relationship between Cancer Risks and Diabetic Glucoses Based on the GH-Method: Math-Physical Medicine (No. 601)

Viscoelastic and Viscoplastic Glucose Theory (VGT #22): Applying the Concepts of Viscoelasticity, Viscoplasticity and Perturbation Theories to Predict Cancer Risk Percentages using the overall Lifestyle Scores and Calculated Cancer Risk Change Rates with Corresponding Lifestyle Scores as the Respective Viscosity Factors along with Studying the Relationship between Cancer Risks and Diabetic Glucoses Based on the GH-Method: Math-Physical Medicine (No. 601)

Developing Toxic Metal Environmental Justice Indices (TM-EJIs) for Arsenic, Cadmium, Lead, and Manganese Contamination in Private Drinking Wells in North Carolina.

Toxic metal exposure via private drinking wells is an environmental health challenge in North Carolina (NC). Policies tainted by environmental racism shape who has access to public water supplies, with Black People, Indigenous People, and People of Color (BIPOC) often excluded from municipal services. Thus, toxic metal exposure via private wells is an environmental justice (EJ) issue, and it is under-studied in NC. In this study, we developed four Toxic Metal Environmental Justice Indices (TM-EJIs) for inorganic arsenic (iAs), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), and manganese (Mn) to quantitatively identify areas of environmental injustice in NC. TM-EJIs were calculated at the census tract level (n = 2038) as the product of the following: (1) number of well water tests with concentrations exceeding national standards, (2) percentage of the low-income and minority population, and (3) population density. Mn had the greatest proportion (25.17%) of positive TM-EJIs, which are indicative of socioeconomically disadvantaged groups exposed to toxic metals. Positive TM-EJIs, particularly for Pb and Mn, were primarily located in eastern NC. These results highlight several new counties of concern and can be used by public health professionals and state environmental agencies to prioritize remediation efforts and efforts to reduce environmental injustices.

Diffuse Gastrointestinal Polyposis With Skin, Hair, and Nail Changes

Question: A 54-year-old, previously healthy man presented with a 5-kg weight loss, loss of taste, diarrhea, abdominal cramping, hair loss, skin hyperpigmentation, and fingernail changes over the course of 2 months. He endorsed about 6 bowel movements per day with some blood when wiping. Physical examination showed brittle changes of the fingernails and hyperpigmentation of the palmar aspect of both hands (Figure A) and face (Figure B). He denied any joint pain or eye issues. He worked as a contractor with no known toxic exposures and denied any recent travel.

Healthier Nail Salons: From Feminized to Collective Responsibilities of Care

The nail salon is a site in which multiple hazards intersect. This includes exposure to toxicants, poor ergonomics, verbal abuses, and labor exploitation—harms that disproportionately impact newcomer and immigrant women workers. One response to toxic exposures in the nail salon is the Healthy Nail Salon model—a voluntary and incentive-based initiative to encourage salon owners to implement safer practices and products. While initiated with good intentions, the Healthy Nail Salon model reflects the tenets of neoliberal responsibilization. Responsibilities for protection are transferred to consumers, particularly women per feminized responsibilities for care-work and social reproduction. In contrast, this article puts forth the perspectives of 37 nail technicians primarily from Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean communities in Toronto, Ontario. Participants were asked: “How do we create healthier workplaces?” In response, participants shared both individual-level and collective-level solutions—the latter of which have the potential to positively transform the sector. Collective-oriented protections in this context reflect three interconnected “sites of resistance”: Addressing systemic inequities in the Canadian labor market, promoting worker solidarities, and emphasizing the state's responsibilities in occupational health protection—all of which reflect a broadened politics of care. These broad-based and worker-defined interventions pose a challenge to neoliberal-oriented attacks on worker protection.

A Review on Residual Solid Propellant Disposal Methods Using HRIM, RISK Score Matrix, Safety Consequence Analysis and Environmental Impact Analysis

Introduction: Solid propellants are high energetic materials used for Launch vehicles and military applications. During solid propellant processing residual propellant generates due to less pot life, machining for insulation lining, scaled and sub scaled trials for mechanical and ballistic properties prediction. A conventional method for disposal of residual propellant is open-air burning; other alternate methods in the literature are incineration, wet air oxidation and molten salt destruction. Methods: Hazard assessment is carried out for the disposal methods both conventional and alternate. Preliminary hazard analysis (PHA), Hazard Risk Index Matrix (HRIM), Risk Score Matrix and as low as reasonably practicable (ALARP) are used to assess the Hazard. Results: Based on the study and calculations Open air burning is having less risk score and medium level safety risk acceptance and tolerable risk which can mitigate. Open-air burning is the safest, efficient and cost-effective way to dispose of the high energetic material but the disadvantage of this method is environmental pollution, high temperature and toxic gases exposure to fire personnel. Based on safety consequences analysis, the 1 gram of solid propellant is found to be 1.308 grams of Trinitrotoluene (TNT) equivalency, and one-time open burning creates 3.822 KPa overpressure on the atmosphere where minimum overpressure to create damage effect is 5 KPa. Conclusion: The environmental impact analysis for disposing of solid propellant gives information about different pollutants, their concentrations in the atmosphere at different altitudes and their impact. Solid propellants are hazard reactive materials they were the one exception under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) that controls the destruction of hazardous waste.

Toxicities that matter: Slow bureaucracy and polluting temporalities in a southern Italian city

This paper deconstructs toxicity through a juxtaposition of a conventional epidemiological approach to pollutants and the lived experience of a highly polluted residential area next to the largest steel production plant in Europe. An ethnographic analysis of toxicity in Taranto illustrates the complexity of various temporal scales through which toxic chemicals contribute to new biological, political and moral balances. Attuning to the slow experiences of pollution is fundamental to shed light on the processes moulding aspirations to environmental justice within the community. In particular, law and bureaucracy imbue pollutants with experiential legitimacy, allowing them to be seen, contested and collectivized. I focus on the residents’ and workers’ dissonant experiences with the bureaucratic system to illustrate how their encounter with asbestos has profoundly shaped toxic exposure to less bureaucratically visible shapeshifting pollutants, thus contributing to a diffused sense of political resignation.

Gene-Regulated Release of Distinctive Volatile Organic Compounds from Stressed Living Cells.

Breath-borne volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been increasingly studied as non-invasive biomarkers in both medical diagnosis and environmental health research. Recently, changes in breath-borne VOC fingerprints were demonstrated in rats and humans following pollutant exposures. In this study, the eukaryotic model Saccharomyces cerevisiae was used to study the release of cellular VOCs resulting from toxicant exposures (i.e., O3, H2O2, and CO2) and its underlying biological mechanism. Our results showed that different toxicant exposures caused the release of distinctive VOC profiles of yeast cells. The levels of ethyl acetate and ethyl n-propionate were altered in response to all the toxicants used in this study and could thus be targeted for future environmental toxicity monitoring. The RNA-seq results revealed significant changes in the metabolic or signaling pathways related to the ribosome, carbohydrate, and amino acid metabolisms after exposures. Notably, the shift from glycolysis to the pentose phosphate pathway of carbohydrate metabolism and the inhabitation of the aspartate pathway in the lysine synthesis was essential to the cellular antioxidation by providing reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH). The reprogrammed metabolisms could have resulted in the observed changes of VOCs released, e.g., the production of ethyl acetate for detoxification from yeast cells. This study provides further evidence that VOCs released from living organisms could be used to monitor and guard against toxic exposures while providing better mechanistic insights of the changes in breath-borne VOCs previously observed in rats and humans exposed to air toxicants.

Trace element concentrations in forage seagrass species of Chelonia mydas along the Great Barrier Reef.

Toxic metal exposure is a threat to green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) inhabiting and foraging in coastal seagrass meadows and are of particular concern in local bays of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), as numerous sources of metal contaminants are located within the region. Seagrass species tend to bioaccumulate metals at concentrations greater than that detected in the surrounding environment. Little is known regarding ecotoxicological impacts of environmental metal loads on seagrass or Chelonia mydas (C. mydas), and thus this study aimed to investigate and describe seagrass metal loads in three central GBR coastal sites and one offshore site located in the northern GBR. Primary seagrass forage of C. mydas was identified, and samples collected from foraging sites before and after the 2018/2019 wet season, and multivariate differences in metal profiles investigated between sites and sampling events. Most metals investigated were higher at one or more coastal sites, relative to data obtained from the offshore site, and cadmium (Cd), cobalt (Co), iron (Fe) and manganese (Mn) were found to be higher at all coastal sites. Principle Component Analysis (PCA) found that metal profiles in the coastal sites were similar, but all were distinctly different from that of the offshore data. Coastal foraging sites are influenced by land-based contaminants that can enter the coastal zone via river discharge during periods of heavy rainfall, and impact sites closest to sources. Bioavailability of metal elements are determined by complex interactions and processes that are largely unknown, but association between elevated metal loads and turtle disease warrants further investigation to better understand the impact of environmental contaminants on ecologically important seagrass and associated macrograzers.

Effects of Early Life Adversity on Tooth Enamel Formation.

In a systemic effort to survive environmental stress, organ systems fluctuate and adapt to overcome external pressures. The evolutionary drive back toward homeostasis makes it difficult to determine if an organism experienced a toxic exposure to stress, especially in early prenatal and neonatal periods of development. Previous studies indicate that primary human teeth may provide historical records of experiences related to stressors during that early time window. To assess the molecular effects of early life adversity on enamel formation, we used a limited bedding and nesting (LBN) mouse model of early life adversity (ELA) to assess changes in the enamel organ gene expression and enamel matrix mineralization. On average, postnatal day 12 (P12) ELA mice weighed significantly less than the controls. When adjusted for animal weight, ELA molar enamel volume was reduced as compared with the controls, and the relative mineral density of molar enamel was significantly increased. There were no obvious changes in enamel matrix crystal morphology or structure in ELA as compared with the control mouse enamel. RNAseq showed extracellular matrix organization to be the most significantly affected GO and reactome pathways, whereas butanote metabolism was the most significantly altered KEGG pathway. Transcripts expressing the enamel matrix proteins amelogenin (Amelx) and enamelin (Enam) were among the top 4 most differentially expressed genes. When evaluating molecular mechanisms for the changes in gene expression in ELA enamel organs, we found significantly increased expression of Dlx3, while transcripts for clock genes Per1 and Nrd1 were downregulated. These findings support the possibility that the developing enamel organ is sensitive to the pressures of early life adversity and produces molecular and structural biomarkers reflecting these challenges.

Acute toxic exposures in Egypt population: analysis of a five-year registry from 2015 to 2019

Acute toxic exposures in Egypt population: analysis of a five-year registry from 2015 to 2019

Mapping Racial Geographies of Violence on the Colonial Landscape

This paper unpacks the concept of “spatial violence” to examine the social justice dimensions of race, place, space, and the Indigenous and Black communities in Canada. The paper highlights the larger socio-spatial processes that create disproportionate exposure and vulnerability to the harmful social, economic, and health impacts of inequality in Indigenous and Black communities. It also argues that the lived experience of spatial violence and toxic exposure live together and that it is not possible to understand their impacts in Indigenous and Black communities in isolation. The paper also disrupts traditional notions of “the environment” that are centered on harmonizing cities and nature by highlighting the symbolic and materiality of space, especially with respect to how it harms Indigenous, Black and other racialized communities.

Urinary metals as influencing factors of coronary heart disease among a population in Guangzhou, China

The cardiovascular system is highly sensitive to toxic metal exposure and trace element dysregulation. However, previous findings relating to metal exposure and coronary heart disease (CHD) have partially been conflicting and difficult to exhibit the combined effect of metal mixtures. This case-control study investigated urinary concentrations of ten metal/metalloids among clinically-diagnosed CHD patients and healthy adults during May to December 2021 in Guangzhou, China. We found that cadmium (Cd) status in urine from CHD patients was remarkably higher than its reference, while chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu) and selenium (Se) concentrations were lower (p < 0.05). Spearman correlation analysis showed that urinary arsenic (As) and Se were highly correlated (rs=0.830, p < 0.001), indicating their similar sources. Principal component analysis (PCA) exhibited denser distribution of Cd-Sn in cases than in controls. Logistic regression analysis exhibited significant associations between urinary Cd (adjusted OR: 1.965, 95% CI: 1.222–3.162), Se (0.787, 95% CI: 0.695–0.893), Ni (0.493, 95% CI: 0.265–0.916) and CHD risk. Quantile g-computation showed negative joint effect of metal mixtures on CHD (adjusted OR: 0.383, 95% CI: 0.159–0.932) (p < 0.05), suggesting the need for supplementing essential trace elements. The negative partial effect was primarily attributed to Se and Ni, while positive partial effect was mainly due to tin (Sn) and Cd. Nevertheless, we also found a quantile increase of Cd-Sn level was negatively correlated with 8.26% (95% CI: 3.44–13.08%) decrease of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (p < 0.001), and 71.2% of the joint effect attributed to Cd. Based on random forest, Se, Cd and Ni were found to be the dominant influencing factors of CHD. The role of Ni in CHD is yet to be uncovered, while excessive Cd exposure and low Se status among CHD patients need to be mitigated.

Making a meal out of bugs

Making a meal out of bugs