1.Research development of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in water in China.
Hong ZHOU ; Xiao-Jian ZHANG ; Zhan-Sheng WANG
Biomedical and Environmental Sciences 2003;16(1):62-67
More and more importance has been attached to the problem of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) since 1960s. This article elaborates the recent research progress of EDCs in water and the trends in the near future in China.
China
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Endocrine System
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drug effects
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Fresh Water
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chemistry
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Humans
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Research Design
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Water Pollutants, Chemical
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adverse effects
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analysis
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Water Purification
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standards
2.Influence of polluted SY River on child growth and sex hormones.
Chun Yu TANG ; An Qi LI ; Yong Bo GUAN ; Yan LI ; Xue Min CHENG ; Ping LI ; Shi Qun LI ; Yi Xin LUO ; Qi HUANG ; Hong Yang CHEN ; Liu Xin CUI
Biomedical and Environmental Sciences 2012;25(3):291-296
OBJECTIVETo investigate the influence of the polluted SY River on children's growth and sex hormones, and provide scientific data for assessment of the polluted status of the SY River.
METHODSThe study areas were selected randomly from the SY River Basin. Lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), arsenic (As), phthalates (DEP, DBP, DMP, DEHP), and bisphenol A (BPA) were measured both in the river water and in the drinking water. School children were selected by cluster sampling (n=154). Physical development indexes (height, weight, bust-circumference, and skinfold thickness) and sex hormones [testosterone (T) and estradiol (E2)] were measured for all the children.
RESULTSThe contents of Pb and Hg exceeded Class V standards of surface water quality in each section of the river and other indicators exceeded Class III. Compared to the control area, the concentrations of Pb, Hg, As, BPA, DEP, and DBP in the drinking water were significantly higher than in the polluted area (P<0.05). Children from the control area had significantly lower E2 and T than children from the polluted area (P<0.05). Among anthropometric results, only skinfold thickness had statistically significant difference between the two groups (P<0.05), while the other indexes showed no significant differences between the two groups (P>0.05).
CONCLUSIONThe drinking water has been polluted by the SY River and affected serum sex hormone levels of children living in the polluted area.
Adolescent ; Adolescent Development ; drug effects ; Child ; Child Development ; drug effects ; China ; Female ; Gonadal Steroid Hormones ; metabolism ; Humans ; Male ; Rivers ; chemistry ; Water ; chemistry ; Water Pollutants, Chemical ; toxicity ; Water Pollution, Chemical ; adverse effects ; Water Supply ; analysis
3.Acute Health Effects of the Hebei Oil Spill on the Residents of Taean, Korea.
Cheol Heon LEE ; Young A KANG ; Kyu Jin CHANG ; Chang Hoon KIM ; Jong Il HUR ; Jae Youn KIM ; Jong Koo LEE
Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health 2010;43(2):166-173
OBJECTIVES: On December 7, 2007, the Hebei Spirit oil tanker spilled out 12,547 kl of crude oil on the Yellow Sea 10 km away from the cost of Taean Province, Korea. As the coastline has been contaminated, local residents have been exposed to crude oil. Because the residents were showing many symptoms, we investigated the acute health effects of this oil spill on them. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study consisting of the heavy and moderately oil soaked area in Taean and the lightly oil soaked area in Seocheon. Ten seashore villages were selected from each area, and 10 male and female adults were selected from each village. We interviewed the subjects using a structured questionnaire on the characteristics of residents, the cleanup activities, the perception of oil hazard, depression and anxiety, and the physical symptoms. The odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals were analyzed using logistic regression analysis. The logistic regression model was adjusted for age, gender, education, smoking, the perception of oil hazard and anxiousness. RESULTS: The more highly contaminated the area, the more likely it was for residents to be engaged in cleanup activities and have a greater chance of exposure to oil. The indexes of anxiety and depression were higher in the heavy and moderately oil soaked areas. The increased risks of headache, nausea, dizziness, fatigue, tingling of limb, hot flushing, sore throat, cough, runny nose, shortness of breath, itchy skin, rash, and sore eyes were significant. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that exposure to crude oil is associated with various acute physical symptoms. Long-term investigation is required to monitor the residents' health.
Aged
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Cross-Sectional Studies
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*Disasters
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Environmental Exposure/*adverse effects
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Female
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*Health Status
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Humans
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Logistic Models
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Male
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Middle Aged
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Petroleum/*toxicity
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Republic of Korea/epidemiology
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Water Pollutants, Chemical/*toxicity
4.The Effect of Exposure Factors on the Concentration of Heavy Metals in Residents Near Abandoned Metal Mines.
Sanghoo KIM ; Yong Min CHO ; Seung Hyun CHOI ; Hae Joon KIM ; Jaewook CHOI
Journal of Preventive Medicine and Public Health 2011;44(1):41-47
OBJECTIVES: This study assessed the factors that have an influence on the residents exposed to heavy metals, and we utilized the findings to establish the proper management of abandoned metal mines in the future. METHODS: For a total of 258 residents who lived close to abandoned mines in Gangwon-province and Gyeonggi-province, the exposure factors and biomarkers in their blood and urine were comparatively analyzed via multiple regression analysis. RESULTS: The blood levels of lead and mercury and the cadmium levels in urine were found to be higher in the study group than that in the average Korean. For the blood levels of heavy metals according to each exposure factor, all of them were found to be significantly higher in both of the group residing for a longer period of time and the group living closer to the source of pollutants. Multiple regression analysis disclosed that all the heavy metals, except lead, in their blood were significantly reduced in proportion to the increased distance of inhabitancy from the mines. Their other biomarkers were within the normal ranges. CONCLUSIONS: We found that the distance between the residential village and the mines was a factor that affects the blood level of heavy metals in the villagers. This finding could be an important factor when developing a management model for the areas that surround abandoned metal mines. (ED note: I much like this important study.)
Biological Markers/blood/urine
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Cadmium/blood/urine
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Cluster Analysis
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Environmental Exposure/*adverse effects
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Humans
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Lead/blood/urine
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Mercury/blood/urine
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Metals, Heavy/*blood/*urine
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Mining
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Republic of Korea
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Water Pollutants, Chemical/analysis
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Water Supply/analysis
5.A study on the relationship of birth order hepatocellular carcinoma.
Ru-lin CAI ; Wei MENG ; Hong-yan LU ; Feng JIANG ; Qing-wu JIANG ; Wen-yao LIN ; Fu-min SHEN
Chinese Journal of Epidemiology 2003;24(1):22-25
OBJECTIVETo explore the association of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with environmental factors through analyzing birth order data from pedigree sibships.
METHODSA birth order study was conducted based on the methods of Greenwood and Haldane for 100 probands and 22 affected siblings from 100 pedigrees in a cohort which was followed up for 8 years in Haimen, Jiangsu, China.
RESULTSThe findings from the Greenwood method suggested that there was a tendency for cases of HCC to concentrate at lower birth orders of 1 to 3. With the effects of hepatitis B virus on the birth orders being controlled, the same tendency was also observed. The results from Haldane method showed that difference between actual value and expected value of 6A was more than the double standard deviation. Sigma 6A(actual value) = 1,806, Sigma 6A(expected value) = 1,988, the absolute value of (Sigma 6A(actual value) - Sigma 6A(expected value))/the square root of Sigma V6A = 2.1657 (0.02 < P < 0.05). The actual value of 6A was lower than the expected value of 6A suggesting that individuals at lower birth orders were at a higher risk of suffering from HCC. In addition, through data from ecologic research, there was a decreasing tendency of mortality of HCC within 10 years after the prevalence of tap water in Haimen city. The correlation coefficient by Spearman test was -0.818 (P < 0.01). The contribution of the quality of drinking water in the locality to the onset of HCC was found among people born in earlier period.
CONCLUSIONSThere was a tendency that the onset of HCC cases concentrating was at lower birth orders in this research, which was inconsistent with several reports of foreign authors' which showed a reverse tendency. According to the ecological results, it was suggested that long-term drinking of ditch-water was responsible for the tendency of cases of HCC concentrating at lower birth orders. There were also certain effects of environmental factors exerted on the onset of HCC being discovered.
Adult ; Birth Order ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular ; epidemiology ; etiology ; China ; epidemiology ; Cohort Studies ; Family Health ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Liver Neoplasms ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Water Pollutants, Chemical ; adverse effects ; Water Supply
6.In vivo alternative testing with zebrafish in ecotoxicology.
Seung Hyeok SEOK ; Min Won BAEK ; Hui Young LEE ; Dong Jae KIM ; Yi Rang NA ; Kyoung Jin NOH ; Sung Hoon PARK ; Hyun Kyoung LEE ; Byoung Hee LEE ; Jae Hak PARK
Journal of Veterinary Science 2008;9(4):351-357
Although rodents have previously been used in ecotoxicological studies, they are expensive, time-consuming, and are limited by strict legal restrictions. The present study used a zebrafish (Danio rerio) model and generated data that was useful for extrapolating toxicant effects in this system to that of humans. Here we treated embryos of the naive-type as well as a transiently transfected zebrafish liver cell line carrying a plasmid (phAhREEGFP), for comparing toxicity levels with the well-known aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR)-binding toxicants: 3,3',4,4',5-pentachlorobiphenyl (PCB126), 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, and 3-methylcholanthrene. These toxicants induced a concentration-dependent increase in morphological disruption, indicating toxicity at early life-stages. The transient transgenic zebrafish liver cell line was sensitive enough to these toxicants to express the CYP1A1 regulated enhanced green fluorescent protein. The findings of this study demonstrated that the zebrafish in vivo model might allow for extremely rapid and reproducible toxicological profiling of early life-stage embryo development. We have also shown that the transient transgenic zebrafish liver cell line can be used for research on AhR mechanism studies.
Animals
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Benz(a)Anthracenes/toxicity
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Cell Line
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Green Fluorescent Proteins
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Hepatocytes/cytology/physiology
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Larva/drug effects/growth & development
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Lethal Dose 50
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Polychlorinated Biphenyls/toxicity
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Tetrachlorodibenzodioxin/toxicity
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Water Pollutants, Chemical/*adverse effects
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Zebrafish/*physiology
7.Peripheral neuropathy induced by drinking water contaminated with low-dose arsenic in Myanmar.
Hitoshi MOCHIZUKI ; Khin Phyu PHYU ; Myo Nanda AUNG ; Phyo Wai ZIN ; Yasunori YANO ; Moe Zaw MYINT ; Win Min THIT ; Yuka YAMAMOTO ; Yoshitaka HISHIKAWA ; Kyaw Zin THANT ; Masugi MARUYAMA ; Yoshiki KURODA
Environmental Health and Preventive Medicine 2019;24(1):23-23
BACKGROUND:
More than 140 million people drink arsenic-contaminated groundwater. It is unknown how much arsenic exposure is necessary to cause neurological impairment. Here, we evaluate the relationship between neurological impairments and the arsenic concentration in drinking water (ACDW).
PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS:
A cross-sectional study design was employed. We performed medical examinations of 1867 residents in seven villages in the Thabaung township in Myanmar. Medical examinations consisted of interviews regarding subjective neurological symptoms and objective neurological examinations of sensory disturbances. For subjective neurological symptoms, we ascertained the presence or absence of defects in smell, vision, taste, and hearing; the feeling of weakness; and chronic numbness or pain. For objective sensory disturbances, we examined defects in pain sensation, vibration sensation, and two-point discrimination. We analyzed the relationship between the subjective symptoms, objective sensory disturbances, and ACDW.
RESULTS:
Residents with ACDW ≥ 10 parts per billion (ppb) had experienced a "feeling of weakness" and "chronic numbness or pain" significantly more often than those with ACDW < 10 ppb. Residents with ACDW ≥ 50 ppb had three types of sensory disturbances significantly more often than those with ACDW < 50 ppb. In children, there was no significant association between symptoms or signs and ACDW.
CONCLUSION
Subjective symptoms, probably due to peripheral neuropathy, occurred at very low ACDW (around 10 ppb). Objective peripheral nerve disturbances of both small and large fibers occurred at low ACDW (> 50 ppb). These data suggest a threshold for the occurrence of peripheral neuropathy due to arsenic exposure, and indicate that the arsenic concentration in drinking water should be less than 10 ppb to ensure human health.
Adolescent
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Adult
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Arsenic
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analysis
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toxicity
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Cross-Sectional Studies
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Dietary Exposure
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adverse effects
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Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
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Drinking Water
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adverse effects
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chemistry
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Female
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Groundwater
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chemistry
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Humans
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Male
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Middle Aged
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Myanmar
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epidemiology
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Peripheral Nervous System Diseases
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chemically induced
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epidemiology
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physiopathology
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Sensation Disorders
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chemically induced
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epidemiology
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physiopathology
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Water Pollutants, Chemical
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analysis
;
toxicity
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Young Adult