Environmental Disease最新文献

{"title":"Possible viral immunochemical status of children with elevated blood fibrinogen in some herbal homes and hospitals in Nigeria","authors":"M. Olaniyan, Ferdinand Uwaifo, T. Ojediran","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_20_19","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_20_19","url":null,"abstract":"Study Background: Viral infection in children can elicit acute-phase response which can cause significant alterations in the level of acute-phase proteins such as fibrinogen. Aim and Objective: This work was designed to determine the possible viral immunochemical status of children aged 3–7 years with elevated blood fibrinogen of >6.0 g/L who received treatments as patients in herbal homes and hospitals in Nigeria. Materials and Methods: Children with elevated blood fibrinogen >6.0 g/L were recruited from 10 herbal homes (n = 27; 3–7 years) and three hospitals (n = 27; 3–7 years) and children with normal blood fibrinogen (3.1 ± 1.0 g/L; n = 30; 3–7 years) were also studied. Anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV), hepatitis B surface antigen, and human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV1) p24 antigen were determined in each of the children immunochemically by ELISA, while blood fibrinogen was assayed using the Clauss method. Acid-fast bacilli were determined in the sputum by the Ziehl–Neelsen stain, and Plasmodium spp. identification was carried out using Giemsa staining -thick blood film technique. Results: The viral immunochemical status obtained in children with elevated blood fibrinogen who received treatments in herbal homes showed 3.7% (1) HIV mono-infection; 7.4% (2) HCV mono-infection; 18.5% (5) hepatitis B virus (HBV) mono-infection; 3.7% (1) HIV-HBV coinfection; and 7.4% (2) HCV-HBV coinfection with no coinfection of HIV-HCV and HIV-HCV-HBV, while those who received treatments in the hospitals showed only 11.1% (3) HBV mono-infection. The viral immunochemical status obtained in children with normal blood fibrinogen showed 3.3% (1) HBV mono-infection and 3.3% (1) HCV mono-infection with no HIV mono-infection and HIV-HBV, HIV-HCV, HCV-HBV, and HIV-HCV-HBV coinfections. Conclusion: Viral seromarkers of HCV, HBV, HIV, HIV-HBV, and HCV-HBV were more in children with elevated blood fibrinogen who received treatments in herbal homes than those who received treatments in the hospital and those with normal blood fibrinogen, which suggests blood fibrinogen as a possible diagnostic indicator in viral infection in herbal homes.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"76769774","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Method for estimation of hippuric acid as a biomarker of toluene exposure in urine by high-performance liquid chromatography after extraction with ethyl acetate","authors":"A. Yadav, A. Basu, Amit Chakarbarti","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_22_18","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_22_18","url":null,"abstract":"Aim: This study aimed to establish liquid–liquid extraction (LLE) for estimation of hippuric acid (HA) in urine as a biomarker of the toluene exposure by high-performance liquid chromatography equipped with photodiode array detector (HPLC-PDAD). Method: HA in urine was extracted by LLE and determined by HPLC-PDAD. The operating conditions with HPLC were ODS-2 hypersil column (250 mm × 4.6 mm, 5 μm), 0.1% trifluoro acetic acid (TFA) in acetonitrile and 0.1% TFA in water as mobile phase, 1 ml/min flow rate, and wavelength of 205 nm. The validity of the present method was tested by the estimation of HA in urine samples, collected from toluene-exposed (shoe workers) and unexposed or control subjects. Results: Binary gradient system was used to achieve optimum separation. The analytical curve prepared for HA in aqueous solution in the range of 0.5–10 μg/ml showed determination coefficient value (R2) 0.998. Limit of detection and quantification (LOQ) were 0.46 and 1.53 μg/ml, respectively. The coefficients of variance for intraday precision were 1.4% for HA standard (5 μg/ml) and 1.1% for pooled urine, whereas inter-day precision values were 3.2% and 4.9% for HA standard and pooled urine, respectively. Method recovery obtained was 96%–120% for HA solutions containing 2, 3, and 5 μg/ml, demonstrating that precision and recovery of method were satisfactory. Compared to unexposed group, exposed group had significantly more HA. It was found significantly (P < 0.05) higher in urine of exposed workers (32.52 ± 10.91) than unexposed group (16.21 ± 10.14). Conclusion: Sample preparation by LLE is simple and cost-effective for the determination of HA as a biomarker of toluene exposure by HPLC-PDAD. It can be used to detect HA in urine for population exposed to toluene.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"73663117","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Seroprevalence of Toxocara canis and the parasitic effect on plasma cytokines in children aged 6 to 11 years in Saki-East local government area in Nigeria","authors":"M. Olaniyan, Mufutau Azeez","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_23_18","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_23_18","url":null,"abstract":"Study Background: Toxocara canis is a helminths parasite known as dog worm but infects human through infected dog feces or contaminated dirt. It is a neglected disease in economically less privileged areas. The parasitic infection can generate inflammatory process. Aim and Objective: This work was designed to determine the seroprevalence of T. canis and the parasitic effect on plasma cytokines in children aged 6–11 years in Saki-East local government area in Nigeria. Materials and Methods: Two hundred children aged 6–11 years (female – 100 and male – 100) were recruited across Saki-East local government area. One hundred and sixty-one of them not infected with any of the infectious agents were studied as control. Sputum, blood, stool, skin snip, and urine samples were obtained for microscopic identification of parasites. Sputum sample was also used for Ziehl–Neelsen staining to demonstrate acid-fast bacilli, while ELISA technique was used for determination of T. canis, anti-hepatitis C virus (HCV), HBsAg, HIV1-p24 antigen, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα), and interleukin (IL)-10. Results: The results obtained showed overall seroprevalence of T. canis among the children as 9.5% (19) including 6% (12) male and 3.5% (7) female children. This included 5.5% (11) monoinfected with T. canis; 1% (2) were T. canis coinfected with Ascaris lumbricoides; 1% (2) were T. canis coinfected with hepatitis B virus; 1% (2) were T. canis coinfected with Plasmodium spp.; 0.5% (1) were T. canis coinfected with hookworm; and 0.5% (1) were T. canis coinfected with Schistosoma haematobium. There is no coinfection with either HIV or HCV among the children. 10% (20) were infected with infectious agents but seronegative to T. canis. There was a significant increase in the plasma values of cytokines TNFα and IL-10 in T. canis monoinfected children compared with the control (P < 0.05). Conclusion: The work revealed an overall seroprevalence of T. canis as 9.5% including 5.5% monoinfection and a significant increase in plasma TNFα and IL-10 in T. canis monoinfection.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78799403","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Bisphenol A (BPA) in liquid portions of canned foods obtained from domestic and Asian markets in the United States","authors":"A. Joiakim, David J. Kaplan, D. Putt, J. Santos, K. Friedrich, So H. Kim, Hyesook Kim","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_8_19","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_8_19","url":null,"abstract":"Bisphenol A (BPA) is a phenolic environmental estrogen that disrupts endocrine activity thereby increasing the risk of hormone-related health problems. The human population is highly exposed to BPA and food is believed to be a primary source of BPA exposure. The aim of this study was to test the sensitivity and specificity of a BPA enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and to measure levels of BPA in supernatants obtained from various canned foods from different countries. The concentration of BPA was measured in supernatant from different types of canned soup and vegetable mixes produced by US companies and two companies each from three different Asian countries (Korea, Japan and China), which are available at markets in the USA. ELISA results were confirmed by LC/MS/MS and shown to be in agreement. Cross-reactivity tests demonstrated that BPA ELISA kit does not cross-react with other tested phenolic compounds. There was no significant difference of BPA levels in different types of soups from different US companies. However, levels of BPA in supernatants of canned vegetable mixes of a company in the USA were 200-fold lower than the levels in canned vegetable soups of the US companies. BPA levels varied greatly among canned foods among companies in various countries. Thus, this study validated the use of a simple ELISA assay to measure levels of BPA in supernatants of canned food, which would facilitate the routine monitoring of dietary exposure to BPA. Decreasing the consumption of BPA will lead to a reduction in the risk of adverse health effects.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2019-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"86582502","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Implementing measures to minimize the measles-associated deaths and accomplish global elimination","authors":"S. Shrivastava, P. Shrivastava","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_21_18","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_21_18","url":null,"abstract":"Dear Editor, Measles is ranked as one of the most frequent causes of death among young children.[1] It is noteworthy that the disease is extremely common in developing nations, especially in the nations in the African and Asian regions.[1] In addition, it has been reported that, in contrast to the developed nations, 95% of the reported deaths are from developing nations, clearly indicating the role of weak health infrastructure.[1] This becomes a serious and an alarming cause of concern for all the stakeholders, as a safe and cost‐effective vaccine for decades together is available.[1‐3]","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"87702755","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Acute necrotizing encephalopathy in children: A case report and literature review","authors":"Ping Yuan, Min Zhong","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_20_18","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_20_18","url":null,"abstract":"Acute necrotizing encephalopathy (ANE) is a rare clinical-imaging syndrome with unknown etiology, characterized by acute fulminant severe encephalopathy and brain damage with multifocal symmetry. ANE has no specific clinical symptoms and signs, similar to common encephalitis or encephalopathy symptoms. The characteristic brain imaging examination is diagnostically significant. To date, no specific treatment for ANE is available and the prognosis is poor. Here, we reported a typical case of ANE in a child, and where a good outcome was achieved through combined therapy with immunoglobulin and glucocorticoids.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80444760","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Climate change and occupational health of outdoor workers: An urgent call to action for European policymakers","authors":"F. Chirico, G. Taino","doi":"10.4103/ED.ED_15_18","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ED.ED_15_18","url":null,"abstract":"Currently, literature on the relationship between global climate change and occupational health and safety has not been very prolific. A recent review (2016), updating a past 2009 review on this topic, has identified seven categories of climate‐related occupational hazards: (a) increased ambient temperature, (b) air pollution, (c) ultraviolet (UV) exposure, (d) extreme weather, (e) vector‐borne diseases and expanded habitats, (f) industrial transitions and emerging industries, and (g) changes in the built environment.[1] Other potential hazards are exposure to wildfires and workplace violence.[2] Across the world, climate change led to higher temperatures and occupational heat‐stress levels in both indoor and outdoor workers.[3,4] However, outdoor workers’ health and productivity in warmer climate are at higher risk because environmental conditions affect health and work productivity for especially those activities that require physical work.[3]","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"86800849","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The primary unfolded protein response transducer endoplasmic reticulum-to-nucleus signaling 1 is downregulated in livers of human nonalcoholic steatohepatitis patients","authors":"El Hussain Shamsa, Kezhong Zhang","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_1_19","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_1_19","url":null,"abstract":"Background: The Unfolded Protein Response (UPR) is an elegant signaling pathway from the Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER) to protect cells from stress caused by accumulation of unfolded or misfolded proteins in the ER lumen. ER-to-Nucleus Signaling 1 (IRE1, also called ERN1), an ER-localized protein kinase and endoribonuclease (RNase), is the most conserved transducer of the UPR signaling pathway. In this study, we investigated expression levels of IRE1 in the livers of human non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) patients. Methods: We analyzed the expression profiles of the primary UPR transducer IRE1 in the livers of human NASH patients based on the microarray gene expression datasets obtained from public domain. Results: Our analyses indicated that expression levels of IRE1 were decreased in the livers of human obese patients with NASH, compared to those of obese patients without NASH. Conclusions: Our analysis result is consistent with the role of IRE1-mediated UPR in preserving cellular homeostasis and functions and in protecting organisms from injuries. This study provides important information in regard to the activation and functional involvement of the UPR signaling pathway in human NASH.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75076619","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Particulate air pollution: Major research methods and applications in animal models","authors":"Yanan Shang, Qinghua Sun","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_16_18","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_16_18","url":null,"abstract":"Ambient air pollution is composed of a heterogeneous mixture of gaseous and solid particle compounds in which primary particles are emitted directly into the atmosphere, such as diesel soot, while secondary particles are created through physicochemical transformation. Particulate matter (PM), especially fine and ultrafine particles, can be inhaled and deposited in the alveolar cavities and penetrate into circulation. An association between high levels of air pollutants and human disease has been known for more than half a century and increasing evidence demonstrates a strong link between exposure on PM and the development of systemic diseases such as cardiovascular and neurological disorders. Experimental animal models have been extensively used to study the underlying mechanism caused by environmental exposure to ambient PM. Due to their availability, quality, cost, and genetically modified strains, rodent models have been widely used. Some common exposure approaches include intranasal instillation, intratracheal instillation, nose-only inhalation, whole-body inhalation, and intravenous injection have been reviewed with a brief summary of its performance, merit, limitation, and application. We hope this would provide a useful reference in advancing experimental researches about air pollution human health and disease development.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"78096071","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"In vitro immunomodulatory, antifungal, and antibacterial screening of Phyllanthus niruri against to human pathogenic microorganisms","authors":"V. Shilpa, K. Muddukrishnaiah, B. Thavamani, V. Dhanapal, K. Arathi, K. Vinod, S. Sreeranjini","doi":"10.4103/ed.ed_9_18","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.4103/ed.ed_9_18","url":null,"abstract":"Background: Medicinal plants present a wide range of potentially phytochemical compounds that contain many useful properties including anticancer, enzyme inhibition, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, antibacterial, immunomodulatory, antioxidant, and antiallergic activities. Phyllanthus niruri capsules are extensively recommended to improve the function of the diseased liver. Its leaves root and the whole plant are used as an herbal complement. Aim: The present study was aimed to focus on the in vitro immunomodulatory activity, antifungal, antibacterial and phytochemical screening of aqueous, methanolic, and ethanolic extract of P. niruri. Materials and Methods: Immunomodulatory activities were evaluated through nitroblue tetrazolium assay. Antifungal and antibacterial activity were conducted against Candida albicans (NCIM - 3100), Aspergillus niger (NCIM - 1028), Eschericha coli (NCIM - 5346), Bacillus subtilis (NCIM - 2920), and Staphylococcus aureus (NCIM - 5345) by using disc diffusion method. Results: Medicinal plants contain polyphenolic compounds which have potent anti-cancer and immunomodulator activity. P. niruri has potential immunomodulatory activity. Aqueous, methanolic, and ethanolic extract of P. niruri did not show any significant antifungal activity and 100 mg/ml, 150 mg/ml, and 200 mg/ml. Aqueous, methanolic, and ethanolic extract showed significant antibacterial activity. Conclusion: From this study, it is concluded that P. niruri does not have antifungal activity but has potent immunomodulatory and antibacterial activity. This immunomodulatory and antibacterial activity of P. niruri may be due to the secondary metabolites such as alkaloid, tannins, terpenoids, flavonoids, and phenol compounds.","PeriodicalId":11702,"journal":{"name":"Environmental Disease","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2018-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84031691","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}