Hygiene and environmental health advances最新文献

{"title":"Reflecting mixed method research on drinking water, sanitation and hygiene among unhoused people. Insights into a case study from Germany","authors":"C. Anthonj ,&nbsp;S.N. Stanglow ,&nbsp;J. Flacke ,&nbsp;A. Leinen ,&nbsp;C. Butsch ,&nbsp;F. Meissner ,&nbsp;S. Jendrek ,&nbsp;J. Martinez","doi":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100139","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100139","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>People experiencing homelessness and the drinking water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) challenges that they are facing are neither well-represented in academic literature, nor in national and international statistics. This dynamic and often invisible vulnerable group is commonly undercounted in national surveys and official statistics are often based on household units, thus, not accounting for unsheltered individuals. Living at the margins, they are often out of reach to be involved in outreach efforts and interventions, and these systemic inequities increase their exposure to risks, while decreasing access to assistance to mitigate and reduce them.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Using a mixed method case study carried out in Germany in 2023, we involved 45 persons experiencing homelessness. We first provide an overview of our study design capturing spatial and non-spatial, individual and collective information through research methods such as in-depth interviews, walking interviews, focus group discussions, collaborative mapping (digital versus on paper), arts-based research, mental mapping, photovoice and shadowing. We then reflect on their feasibility and usefulness.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>In-depth interviews were most feasible to implement, captured individual, cross-sectional, information and lead to the best results. Participatory methods, collaborative mapping and group discussions were more difficult to implement, yet lead to highly relevant findings. Longitudinal approaches and mental mapping methods were most difficult to realize. Photovoice could not be implemented at all. Shadowing resulted in findings that were only of medium relevance, yet, were very helpful in establishing an improved relationship with the target population, and building trust.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions and recommendations</h3><div>The multifaceted challenges of unhoused individuals require awareness of their lived realities, great flexibility, time, trust, relationships, openness and adaptations, and research designs tailored to their life realities. Our insights can enable decision-makers to design targeted interventions and have broader applicability among other populations and contexts.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":73269,"journal":{"name":"Hygiene and environmental health advances","volume":"15 ","pages":"Article 100139"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144656622","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":"Silica nanoparticles interfere with mast cell activation by enhancing intracellular Ca2+ levels and aggravate ovalbumin-mediated asthma","authors":"Jinhua Wei ,&nbsp;Dongyuan Bian ,&nbsp;Shijian Huang ,&nbsp;Xiaobing Wu ,&nbsp;Liu Yang ,&nbsp;Shasha Li ,&nbsp;Beibei Xia ,&nbsp;Yanbo Li ,&nbsp;Guimiao Lin","doi":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100136","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100136","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Silica nanoparticles (SiNPs) exist widely in the environment. The likelihood of people being exposed to SiNPs has increased dramatically, and its biosafety bring a great concern. Mast cells are a type of key effector cells that mediate the occurrence of allergic reactions through IgE and non-IgE activation pathways.To date, the effects of SiNPs on these two activation pathways of mast cells remain unclear. In this study, RBL-2H3 cells and ovalbumin (OVA) asthma mice were used to investigate the effects of SiNPs on mast cell activation and its mediating asthma. <em>in vitro</em> studies, SiNPs significantly promoted the release of inflammatory factors TNF-α and IL-1β, but didn’t affect the release of β-Hex (degranulation) in the C48/80-mediated non-IgE activation pathway. In the IgE activation pathway, SiNPs significantly enhanced the release of TNF-α and IL-1β, and also promoted mast cell degranulation by increasing intracellular Ca²⁺ levels. <em>in vivo</em> study, respiratory exposure to SiNPs significantly enhanced the serum histamine and the levels of cytokines (IL-6, TNF-α and IL-1β) in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) from asthmatic mice sensitized, thickened the airway walls, increased the inflammatory cells infiltration and the number of mast cells, suggesting that SiNPs significantly aggravated OVA-mediated asthma in mice. These findings reveal the effects of SiNPs on mast cells and their mediated allergic reactions, providing scientific clues for the prevention and treatment of allergic diseases, especially asthma.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":73269,"journal":{"name":"Hygiene and environmental health advances","volume":"15 ","pages":"Article 100136"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144661958","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":"Heat vulnerability assessment: A systematic review of critical metrics","authors":"Yuchen Qian,&nbsp;Tiedong Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100138","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100138","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Research on heat vulnerability provides a scientific foundation for identifying heatwave-sensitive areas and vulnerable populations, thereby enabling targeted climate adaptation. Standardizing and refining metric selection is crucial for constructing effective heat vulnerability assessment systems. To boost the precision of heat vulnerability assessments, this research explores current limitations in metric selection. We systematically reviewed metrics from 31 studies across environmental, demographic, and socioeconomic dimensions. Our analysis reveals three main challenges: variations in indicator selection, classification, and processing; correlations between indicators and regional characteristics; and inter-metric correlations of conceptual redundancy and oversimplification. These discrepancies and deficiencies may affect the robustness of assessments and increase the difficulty of subsequent discussions, diminishing the policy relevance. Our review identifies and summarizes context-specific indicators, highlights issues of metric redundancy and oversimplification along with corresponding solutions, and establishes guidelines for metric selection. This facilitates the selection of concise, representative metrics for developing more accurate heat vulnerability indices, ultimately enabling targeted interventions to mitigate heatwave impacts.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":73269,"journal":{"name":"Hygiene and environmental health advances","volume":"15 ","pages":"Article 100138"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144713096","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":"Deciphering the impact of heat wave in the global surge of infectious diseases","authors":"Mirza Mienur Meher ,&nbsp;Marya Afrin ,&nbsp;Abdullah Al Bayazid ,&nbsp;Md Sayedul Islam ,&nbsp;Md Zulfekar Ali","doi":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100135","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100135","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The heat wave is the extreme episodes of climate change which is characterized as prolong period of abnormally elevated environmental temperatures other than the usual weather trends. In recent, the record-breaking environmental temperatures were observed all over the world, especially in the South Asia, Africa, and also in American countries. In Europe, over 70,000 additional deaths have been attributed to heat waves alone in 2022. This extreme climatic event has the implication to health risks and the potential rise in infectious diseases. This review establishes the multifaceted relationship between heat waves and infectious disease dynamics by the integration of existing literature and the emerging evidence from epidemiological, environmental, and laboratory studies. Heat waves create environments that favour the survival and propagation of various pathogens, including viruses, bacteria, protozoa, and fungi, thereby accelerate the speed of microbial biodiversity and evolutionary processes of microbes by progressively altering the ecosystem structures. Heat waves enhance the activity and distribution of insect vectors, leading to higher transmission rates of vector-borne sicknesses like dengue fever, chikungunya, malaria, Zika virus, Lyme disease and West Nile fever etc. Heatwave also could have the correlation to emerging antimicrobial resistance and pathogenic infections. Moreover, human behavioural changes during heat waves, may elevate the risk of food, air and waterborne diseases. However, the review provides a comprehensive understanding of how heat waves influence infectious disease dynamics. This review also emphasizes the need for interdisciplinary research, improved disease surveillance, and globally coordinated climate-health strategies to mitigate the risks.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":73269,"journal":{"name":"Hygiene and environmental health advances","volume":"15 ","pages":"Article 100135"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144595588","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 impact of rising ambient temperatures on the mental and physical health of children","authors":"Caradee Y Wright ,&nbsp;Mary Norval ,&nbsp;Natasha Naidoo ,&nbsp;Muthise Bulani ,&nbsp;Ashraf Coovadia ,&nbsp;Linda Theron","doi":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100137","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100137","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Globally, mean ambient temperatures have increased by 1.6 °C between preindustrial level and 2024, alongside a rise in extreme weather events such as heatwaves and droughts. This rapid review synthesizes the existing literature on the risks to children’s physical and mental health due to heat exposure. Comprehensive literature searches were conducted using PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and ScienceDirect. This review highlights the increased risks to children’s physical and mental health from extreme temperatures in several populations. Major health concerns include heat-related illnesses, dehydration, increasing incidence of infectious diseases, reduced cognitive performance, depression and anxiety and the exacerbation of pre-existing conditions. Potential strategies to mitigate these negative health outcomes are proposed, including improved access to cooling solutions, public health interventions, and educational campaigns to improve thermal comfort.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":73269,"journal":{"name":"Hygiene and environmental health advances","volume":"15 ","pages":"Article 100137"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144633278","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":"Do weekends matter in unraveling the impact of acute temperature exposure on the risk of daily mortality?","authors":"Keita Wagatsuma ,&nbsp;Takahisa Ogawa ,&nbsp;Yi-Sheng Yang ,&nbsp;Kensuke Uraguchi ,&nbsp;Mami Hitachi ,&nbsp;Susana Silva ,&nbsp;Erik Pieter de Jong ,&nbsp;Ya-Yun Cheng ,&nbsp;Aurelio Tobias ,&nbsp;Masahiro Hashizume","doi":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100134","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100134","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":73269,"journal":{"name":"Hygiene and environmental health advances","volume":"15 ","pages":"Article 100134"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144595663","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":"Adolescent bone health under threat: PFAS mixtures as drivers of skeletal fragility","authors":"Jing Li ,&nbsp;Shaowei Wu ,&nbsp;Tingyu Li ,&nbsp;Zichang Liu ,&nbsp;Chuchu Kang ,&nbsp;Hongli Tan","doi":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100133","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100133","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Evidence regarding the effect of per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) on bone minerals density (BMD) at various bone sites and the combined effects of PFAS mixtures is limited, particularly during the critical period of skeletal development. To address this gap, we conducted a cross-sectional study involving 1212 adolescents aged 12−19 years in NHANES 2011−2018 to examine the associations of single PFAS and PFAS mixtures with BMD at 11 bone sites and two comprehensive BMD indices. Multiple linear regression showed that serum PFAS concentrations were inversely associated with BMD, with variations according to the specific PFAS and bone site, and exhibiting a sex-specific pattern. Additionally, these associations differed significantly between obese and non-obese individuals, which was confined to boys. Mixture analysis using weighted quantile sum regression and Bayesian kernel machine regression revealed inverse associations between PFAS mixtures and BMD at specific bone sites, and 2-(N-methylperfluoroctanesulfonamido)acetic acid (Me-PFOSA-AcOH) and perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDeA) were identified as the dominant contributors to the combined effect of PFAS mixtures on BMD among all participants and girls, respectively. These findings lay a critical foundation for future environmental epidemiology studies and necessitate further exploration and validation of mechanisms through laboratory research.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":73269,"journal":{"name":"Hygiene and environmental health advances","volume":"15 ","pages":"Article 100133"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144471322","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 dose-dependent effect of acute ozone exposure on lung function and the efficacy of a Boysenberry apple powder blend (BerriQi®) in reducing throat irritation and symptom recovery time in healthy adults","authors":"Dominic Lomiwes ,&nbsp;Matthew Barnes ,&nbsp;Grayson Nicholls ,&nbsp;Nayer Ngametua ,&nbsp;Greg Sawyer ,&nbsp;Alexander P. Kanon ,&nbsp;Gowthami Vangala ,&nbsp;Odette Shaw","doi":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100132","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100132","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Urbanization and industrialization have impacted air quality and health, with ozone exposure linked to reduced lung function and increased respiratory issues. This study characterised the dose-dependent effect of acute, controlled ambient ozone exposure in an environmental chamber on lung function, then investigated the effect of BerriQi® Boysenberry and apple powder (BerriQi) ozone-induced respiratory irritation symptoms. In an incremental dose study, healthy adults were exposed to 0.1, 0.2 or 0.3 ppm ozone for 2 h. Forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) were measured at designated timepoints up to 48 h after ozone exposure. This was followed by a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial, with healthy adults (<em>n</em> = 20) who consumed either BerriQi or a placebo daily for 5 days before being exposed to 0.2 ppm ozone for 2 h. Respiratory irritation symptoms, including throat irritation (TI), soreness of cough (SOC), shortness of breath (SOB), and pain on deep inspiration (PODI), were assessed at designated timepoints up to 48 h after ozone exposure. Our results showed that 0.2 ppm ozone was the maximum tolerated dose that elicited a temporal decline in lung function in healthy participants and that BerriQi supplementation significantly reduced TI (<em>p</em> = 0.04), and may expedite the resolution of SOC, SOB and PODI after acute ozone exposure. These findings suggest that BerriQi may alleviate the severity and duration of ozone-induced respiratory irritation and highlights the potential of BerriQi as a dietary intervention for mitigating the respiratory effects of air pollution.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":73269,"journal":{"name":"Hygiene and environmental health advances","volume":"15 ","pages":"Article 100132"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144272213","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":"Associations of childhood per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances with autistic traits and symptom severities among children with and without autism spectrum disorder","authors":"Li-Zi Lin ,&nbsp;Nanxiang Jin ,&nbsp;Wan-Ting He ,&nbsp;Yun-Ting Zhang ,&nbsp;Jing-Wen Huang ,&nbsp;Li-Xia Liang ,&nbsp;Jia-Xin Zhou ,&nbsp;Zhe-Qing Zhang ,&nbsp;Xin Wang ,&nbsp;Zhao-Huan Gui ,&nbsp;Ru-Qing Liu ,&nbsp;Jing-Jing Liang ,&nbsp;Guang-Hui Dong","doi":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100131","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100131","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The associations of childhood legacy and alternatives per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) -related outcomes were seldom discussed. In this case-control study conducted in Guangzhou, China, 6- to 9-year-old children who were clinically confirmed for ASD (case, n = 60) or typical development (TD, n = 180) underwent psychometric tests (autistic traits via Autism Spectrum Quotient-Children and symptom severities via Social Responsiveness Scale), and we tested their plasma concentrations of 16 legacy and alternative PFASs. We used conditional logistic regression models and generalized linear models to test the associations of PFASs exposure with ASD-related outcomes. Higher concentrations of total and linear PFHxS were associated with higher risk of ASD [OR = 2.44, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.05-5.67; 2.73, 95%CI: 1.17-6.38] and higher autistic traits among TD children (β = 0.45, 95%CI: 0.03-0.87; 0.44, 95%CI: 0.01- 0.86). In addition, we observed a positive association between symptom severity and 8:2 Cl-PFESA, an alternative PFAS compound, among children with ASD (β =4.90, 95%CI: 0.07-9.72). We did not find joint associations between PFASs mixtures and the outcomes when using multiple-pollutant models. More studies are needed to confirm the PFASs-ASD associations, and the potential hazards of emerging PFASs should not be ignored.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":73269,"journal":{"name":"Hygiene and environmental health advances","volume":"15 ","pages":"Article 100131"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144263934","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":"Mechanistic insights into cobalt-induced lung injury: An integrated network toxicology and bioinformatics approach","authors":"Hongyan Yu ,&nbsp;Yingzhu Wang ,&nbsp;Yidi Chen ,&nbsp;Rong Zhang ,&nbsp;Shanfa Yu ,&nbsp;Xiaoting Jin ,&nbsp;Yuxin Zheng","doi":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100130","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.heha.2025.100130","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>The widespread environmental contamination by cobalt compounds, coupled with their documented respiratory toxicities, has become a pressing public health concern. Current mechanistic research on the health impacts of these substances lacks coherence and integration, highlighting the need for a comprehensive investigation into the mechanisms of cobalt-induced lung injury.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Utilizing CTDbase and NetInfer databases, we obtained target genes of cobalt and its compound and ascertained their associated lung adverse outcomes. Disease-related targets were retrieved from OMIM, DisGeNet, GeneCards, and NCBI databases. A protein-protein interaction (PPI) network was constructed to identify the core targets between compounds and diseases. Based on the DAVID database, enrichment pathways were evaluated by GO and KEGG analyses. Finally, single-cell analysis was conducted to investigate specific cell types implicated in the cobalt-induced lung hazards.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Pulmonary hypertension (PH) was determined as the most critical lung injury associated with cobalt compounds. In total, we identified 275 compound-related and 3146 PH-related targets, ultimately pinpointing 169 overlapping targets. Among these, 28 pivotal co-targets were implicated in cobalt and its compound-induced PH, including IL6, AKT1, TNF, TP53, NFKB1, HIF1A, etc., which were primarily involved in the IL-17, TNF, and HIF-1 signaling pathways. Moreover, monocytes and macrophages were recognized as effector cells underlying the induction of PH by cobalt exposure, with CXCL8 and HIF1A serving as signature genes.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Our study not only elucidates pivotal target genes, pathways, and specific cell types involved in cobalt-induced lung hazards, but also establishes a novel approach to clarify the mechanisms underlying metal toxicity.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":73269,"journal":{"name":"Hygiene and environmental health advances","volume":"15 ","pages":"Article 100130"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144272212","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}