BACKGROUND: Benzo[a]pyrene injures central and peripheral nerves at a certain degree. The study is at an initial phase concerning to the neurotoxicity of benzo[a]pyrene allied with other toxic objects.OBJECTIVE: Molecular biological technique integrated with neuron culture were applied in the study of benzo[a]pyrene and lead applied separately or in combination on neurotoxicity and nuclear DNA damage in vitro.DESIGN: Repeated measure.SETTING: Teaching-Research Room of Labor and Hygiene of Chongqing Medical University and Laboratory of Thermobiology and Molecular Toxicology of Occupation Medical Institute of Tongji Medical College of Huazhong University of Science and Technology.MATERIALS: The experiment was performed in Laboratory of Thermobiology and Molecular Toxicology of Occupation Medical Institute of Tongji Medical College ofHuazhong University of Science and Technology from June to September 2003. Ten SD rats of 8-day old were employed and their brain tissues were prepared as primary cell culture object, which were divided into 10 culture groups, 5 culture dishes in each group. The managements were as follows in each group: [1] blank control; [2] solvent control[parallel management with equivalent dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) +liver microsome enzyme]; [3] lead group of low concentration (acetic lead 5 μmol/L) (No. 1 group); [4] lead group of high concentration (acetic lead 50 μmol/L) (No. 2 group); [5] benzo[a]pyrene group of low concentration (benzo[a]pyrene 5 μmol/L + liver microsome enzym) (No. 3 group); [6]benzo[a]pyrene group of high concentration (benzo[a]pyrene 50 μmol/L +liver microsome enzym) (No. 4 group); [7] lead of low concentration +benzo[a]pyrene of low concentration group (No. 5 group); [8] lead of low concentration + benzo[a]pyrene of high concentration group (No. 6 group);[9] lead of high concentration + benzo[a]pyrene of low concentration group (No.7 group); [10] lead of high concentration + benzo[a]pyrene of high concentration group (No. 8 group).METHODS: After stained poisoning for 90 minutes, trypsin digestion method was used for sample collection and trypan blue staining method was applied to assay cell survival rate in each group. Single-cell gel electrophoresis (SCGE) was used to determine the damage of nuclear DNA in each group.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Neuronal survival rate and damage rate of nuclear DNA in poisoning with benzo[a]pyrene and lead either in separation or in combination.RESULTS: [1] Cell survival rates in various groups poisoned with benzo [a]pyrene and lead of two concentrations either in separation or combination were lower than the controls [poisoning group (44.14±4.80)% to(82.40±2.70)%, the controls (88.44±2.53)% to ( 90.12±2.23)%, P ＜ 0.05to 0.01]. [2] Degrees of nuclear DNA damage in single poisoning group with benzo[a]pyrene of high concentration, lead of low concentration + benzo[a]pyrene of high concentration, lead of high concentration + benzo[a]-pyrene of low concentration and lead of high concentration + benzo[a]pyrene of high concentration were higher than the controls [63% (19/30), 87%(26/30), 80% (24/30), 97% (29/30), 13% (4/30), 20% (6/30), P ＜ 0.01].CONCLUSION: Both benzo[a]pyrene and lead present neurotoxicity in vitro and coordinate with each other. The damage of benzo[a]pyrene is worse than lead in neuronal nuclear DNA cultured in vitro.

BACKGROUND: Benzo[a] pyrene(BaP) is kind of polyaromatic hydrocarbon which is a chemical pollutant extensively existing in living and productive environments. It is found overseas that it has neurotoxic effects under certain conditions.OBJECTIVE: To study the neurotoxicity of BaP and its effects on expression of two heat stress proteins(HSPs) HSP70 and HSP90β in brain tissue of mice.DESIGN: Randomized case control study of experimental animals.SETTING: Laboratory of thermobiology and molecular toxicology of a unversity, department of preventive medicine of a university.MATERIALS: The experiment was conducted in the Thermobiology and Molecular Toxicity Laboratory, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong Science and Technology University. Fifty male Kunming mice were randomly divided into 5 groups with each of 10 mice including 3 administrated groups, 1 vehicle group and 1 control group. All mice in 3 exposed groups were intraperitoneally administrated BaP dissolved in corn oil at dose levels of 7.8mg/kg, 3.2 mg/kg and 1.3 mg/kg respectively for four times per week. The mice in vehicle group received an equal volume of com oil and the mice in control group received no additional treatment.METHODS: The signs of neurotoxicity in each group were examined and recorded during the administration. At the end of 8-week administration, the brains were excised to calculate brain tissue organ coefficient. Western blot method was used to assay the HSP70 and HSP90β.MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Effects of BaP on HSP70 and HSP90βin brain tissue of mice.Bap exposure groups was much lower than that of control group( P ＜ 0. 01,P ＜ 0. 001 ) while the organ coefficient of high dose group was much of HSP70 was characterized by greatly increased expression in low dose group while the relative expression of HSP90β was increased in middle and high dose groups.CONCLUSION: BaP has certain neurotoxic effects. With the increase of toxic dose, the expression of HSP90β increases which can be used as signal of toxic damage under certain conditions.

The association between atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) polymorphism and coronary heart disease (CHD) was studied in Chinese population. The genotypes of ANP T2238C and ANP C-664G were detected by polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) methods in 158 consecutive CHD patients and 165 controls. It was found that the distribution of A2A2 genotype in CHD group was significantly higher than that in control group (P<0.05). Stepwise Logistic regression analysis revealed that male, smoking, history of hypertension, history of diabetes, family history of hypertension, high level of serum cholesterol, and ANP T2238C polymorphism were the possible risk factors in patients with CHD (P<0.05). However, there was no significant difference between the patients with CHD and the control group in the distribution of ANP C-664G polymorphism (P>0.05). The results suggest that A2A2 T2238C genotype could be one of the risk factors for CHD (P<0.05, OR: 1.80, 95 % CI: 1.03-3.15).

Humans ; Occupational Diseases ; prevention & control ; Occupational Exposure ; prevention & control ; Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons ; poisoning

Objective To investigate the rs501120 and rs17465637 gene polymorphisms,and their relationship with the risk of coronary heart disease(CHD)in Chinese Han population.Methods 775 CHD without treatment and 775 age and gender matched controls were selected for this study,the genotypes of two single nucleotide polymorphisms(SNP)rs501120 and rs17465637 were tested with TaqMan-MGB probes.Results There was no significant difference in the frequency of genotypes of the 2 SNPs between CHD group and control group(P ＞0.05).Stratified analysis showed that SNP rs501120 had significant protection with CHD in people younger than 60 years old(OR 0.4,95% CI 0.2-0.9,P ＜ 0.05)or people with diabetes(OR0.3,95%CI0.1-0.7,P ＜0.05).Conclusions The results suggested that rs501120 was tightly associated with CHD in people younger than 60 years or had diabetes.

Objective To study whether physiological and psychological stresses during parachuting jumps may result in biochemical changes of plasma in parachutists. Method Differences in the levels of hormones (cortisol, growth hormone, insulin, pancreatic glucagon, endothelin, angiotonin I and II, aldosterone), activities of enzymes (superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione S transferase), levels of the free radical damage indicator malondialdehyde (MDA), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), and the main heat stress protein, HSP70,in the plasma and serum were investigated in control (non-parachuting) and parachuting paratroops. Result Significantly higher levels of serum hormones such as growth hormone, insulin, angiotonin I, renin activities, as well as MDA and plasma TNF-α and HSP70 were observed in the parachuting group. Conclusion Whether these changes can potentially serve as useful biomarkers to assess possible abnormal stress in parachutists and to evaluate the health condition and to select parachutists remains to be further studied.

The expression levels of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) from peripheral lymphocytes of the patients with allergic rhinitis (AR) and the clinical implication were investigated. In the morning, 3 ml of fasting venous blood was taken out. The lymphocytes were isolated by using Ficoll-Hypaque and the expression of HSP70 in the lymphocytes was detected by using Western blot. In the AR patients the HSP70 level (41.49 +/- 15.77 integrated optical density, IOD) were significantly higher than that in the control group (23.89 +/- 10.13 IOD, P < 0.05). Western blot demonstrated that HSP70 bands in AR patients were more intensive than those in the control group. It was concluded that the elevated HSP70 level in peripheral lymphocytes of the AR patients might contribute to the development of AR.
Gene Expression Regulation ; HSP70 Heat-Shock Proteins/*biosynthesis ; HSP70 Heat-Shock Proteins/blood ; HSP70 Heat-Shock Proteins/genetics ; Lymphocytes/*metabolism ; Rhinitis, Allergic, Seasonal/*blood

In coal mines, main occupational hazard is coal-mine dust, which can cause health problem including coal workers' pneumoconiosis and lung cancer. Some heat shock proteins (Hsps) have been reported as an acute response to a wide variety of stressful stimuli. Whether Hsps protect against chronic environmental coal-mine dust over years is unknown. It is also interesting to know that whether the expression of Hsp27 and Hsp70 proteins as a marker for exposure is associated risk of lung cancer among coal miners. We investigated the association between levels of Hsp27 and Hsp70 expression in lymphocytes and plasma and levels of coal-mine dust exposure in workplace or risk of lung cancer in 42 cancer-free non-coal miners, 99 cancer-free coal miners and 51 coal miners with lung cancer in Taiyuan city in China. The results showed that plasma Hsp27 levels were increased in coal miners compared to non-coal miners (P<0.01). Except high cumulative coal-mine dust exposure (OR=13.62, 95%CI=6.05-30.69) and amount of smoking higher than 24 pack-year (OR=2.72, 95% CI=1.37-5.42), the elevated levels of plasma Hsp70 (OR=13.00, 95% CI=5.14-32.91) and plasma Hsp27 (OR=2.97, 95% CI=1.40-6.32) and decreased expression of Hsp70 in lymphocytes (OR=2.36, 95% CI=1.05-5.31) were associated with increased risk of lung cancer. These findings suggest that plasma Hsp27 may be a potential marker for coal-mine dust exposure. And the expression of Hsp27 and Hsp70 levels in plasma and lymphocytes may be used as biomarkers for lung cancer induced by occupational coal-mine dust exposure.

COVID-19 ; Humans ; Immunity, Cellular ; Immunity, Humoral ; SARS-CoV-2

To investigate the health impacts of crystalline silica mixed dust and other potential occupational hazards on workers in ceramic factories, a cohort study of 4851 workers registered in the employment records in 3 ceramic factories in Jingdezhen city of China between 1972 and 1974 was identified. The cohort mortality was traced throughout 2003 with an accumulation of 128970.2 person-years, revealed 1542 deaths. Standardized mortality ratios (SMRs) were calculated for the main causes of death by using Chinese national mortality rates as reference. The mortality from all causes in three ceramic factories was 12.0 per thousand and the cumulative mortality was 31.8%. Malignant neoplasm, cardiovascular diseases, respiratory diseases, infectious diseases were the first four illnesses that threaten workers' life, and they accounted for 73.2% of all deaths. The results of this study showed that the standardized mortality ratio for all subjects was 1.02, which is very close to that expected on the basis of the China national mortality rates. Statistically significant mortality excesses for respiratory disease (SMR=1.36), pneumoconiosis (SMR=37.34), infectious disease (SMR=5.70) and pulmonary tuberculosis (SMR=3.88) were observed. The mortality of 2938 dust-exposed workers was higher than that of 1913 non dust-exposed workers. Except for pneumoconiosis, the mortality from lung cancer, non-malignant respiratory diseases and pulmonary tuberculosis in dust-exposed workers were significantly increased as compared with that in non-exposed workers, and the relative risks (RRs) were 1.86 (1.16-2.99), 2.50 (1.84-3.40), 1.81 (1.34-2.45). The exposure-response relationships between cumulative dust exposure level and mortality from all causes, colorectal cancer, lung cancer, respiratory diseases, and pulmonary tuberculosis were also identified. The findings indicated that silica mixed dust in ceramic factories has harmful impact on the workers' health and life span in ceramic factory.