Articles

Socioeconomic and urban-rural differentials in exposure to air pollution and mortality burden in England

Socioeconomically disadvantaged populations often have higher exposures to particulate air pollution, which can be expected to contribute to differentials in life expectancy. We examined socioeconomic differen...

Authors: Ai Milojevic, Claire L. Niedzwiedz, Jamie Pearce, James Milner, Ian A. MacKenzie, Ruth M. Doherty and Paul Wilkinson

Exposure to human-associated fecal indicators and self-reported illness among swimmers at recreational beaches: a cohort study

Fecal indicator bacteria used to assess illness risks in recreational waters (e.g., Escherichia coli, Enterococci) cannot discriminate among pollution sources. To address this limitation, human-associated Bactero...

Authors: Melanie D. Napier, Richard Haugland, Charles Poole, Alfred P. Dufour, Jill R. Stewart, David J. Weber, Manju Varma, Jennifer S. Lavender and Timothy J. Wade

Construction of environmental risk score beyond standard linear models using machine learning methods: application to metal mixtures, oxidative stress and cardiovascular disease in NHANES

There is growing concern of health effects of exposure to pollutant mixtures. We initially proposed an Environmental Risk Score (ERS) as a summary measure to examine the risk of exposure to multi-pollutants in...

Authors: Sung Kyun Park, Zhangchen Zhao and Bhramar Mukherjee

Lung cancer mortality of residents living near petrochemical industrial complexes: a meta-analysis

Lung cancer, as the leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide, has been linked to environmental factors, such as air pollution. Residential exposure to petrochemicals is considered a possible cause of lung c...

Authors: Cheng-Kuan Lin, Huei-Yang Hung, David C. Christiani, Francesco Forastiere and Ro-Ting Lin

Psychosocial and demographic predictors of adherence and non-adherence to health advice accompanying air quality warning systems: a systematic review

Although evidence shows that poor air quality can harm human health, we have a limited understanding about the behavioural impact of air quality forecasts. Our aim was to understand to what extent air quality ...

Authors: Donatella D’Antoni, Louise Smith, Vivian Auyeung and John Weinman

The physiological determinants of low-level urine cadmium: an assessment in a cross-sectional study among schoolchildren

Recent studies in children have reported associations of urinary cadmium (U-Cd), used as biomarker of Cd body burden, with renal dysfunction, retarded growth and impaired cognitive development in children. Lit...

Authors: Hongyu Wang, Xavier Dumont, Vincent Haufroid and Alfred Bernard

Assessment of the potential respiratory hazard of volcanic ash from future Icelandic eruptions: a study of archived basaltic to rhyolitic ash samples

The eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull (2010) and Grímsvötn (2011), Iceland, triggered immediate, international consideration of the respiratory health hazard of inhaling volcanic ash, and prompted the need to esti...

Authors: David E. Damby, Claire J. Horwell, Gudrun Larsen, Thorvaldur Thordarson, Maura Tomatis, Bice Fubini and Ken Donaldson

Environmental radon exposure and breast cancer risk in the Nurses’ Health Study II

Radon and its decay products, a source of ionizing radiation, are primarily inhaled and can deliver a radiation dose to breast tissue, where they may continue to decay and emit DNA damage-inducing particles. F...

Authors: Trang VoPham, Natalie DuPré, Rulla M. Tamimi, Peter James, Kimberly A. Bertrand, Veronica Vieira, Francine Laden and Jaime E. Hart

A prospective study of cancer risk among Agricultural Health Study farm spouses associated with personal use of organochlorine insecticides

Organochlorine insecticides (OCs) have historically been used worldwide to control insects, although most have now been banned in developed countries. Evidence for an association between OC exposures and cance...

Authors: Lydia M. Louis, Catherine C. Lerro, Melissa C. Friesen, Gabriella Andreotti, Stella Koutros, Dale P. Sandler, Aaron Blair, Mark G. Robson and Laura E. Beane Freeman

Cardiovascular health effects following exposure of human volunteers during fire extinction exercises

Firefighters have increased risk of cardiovascular disease and of sudden death from coronary heart disease on duty while suppressing fires. This study investigated the effect of firefighting activities, using ...

Authors: Maria Helena Guerra Andersen, Anne Thoustrup Saber, Peter Bøgh Pedersen, Steffen Loft, Åse Marie Hansen, Ismo Kalevi Koponen, Julie Elbæk Pedersen, Niels Ebbehøj, Eva-Carina Nørskov, Per Axel Clausen, Anne Helene Garde, Ulla Vogel and Peter Møller

State of the evidence 2017: an update on the connection between breast cancer and the environment

In this review, we examine the continually expanding and increasingly compelling data linking radiation and various chemicals in our environment to the current high incidence of breast cancer.

Authors: Janet M. Gray, Sharima Rasanayagam, Connie Engel and Jeanne Rizzo

Remote sensing measurements of sea surface temperature as an indicator of Vibrio parahaemolyticus in oyster meat and human illnesses

Vibrio parahaemolyticus (Vp) is a naturally occurring bacterium found in marine environments worldwide. It can cause gastrointestinal illness in humans, primarily through raw oyster co...

Authors: Stephanie Konrad, Peggy Paduraru, Pablo Romero-Barrios, Sarah B. Henderson and Eleni Galanis

Blood lead level is associated with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease in the Yangtze River Delta region of China in the context of rapid urbanization

China has undergone rapid urbanization in the past three decades. We aimed to report blood lead level (B-Pb) in the most rapidly urbanized Yangtze River Delta Region of China, and explore the association B-Pb ...

Authors: Hualing Zhai, Chi Chen, Ningjian Wang, Yi Chen, Xiaomin Nie, Bing Han, Qin Li, Fangzhen Xia and Yingli Lu

Pesticide exposure assessed through agricultural crop proximity and risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Epidemiologic studies have raised the possibility that some pesticide compounds induce the neurodegenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), though the available evidence is not entirely consistent.

Authors: Marco Vinceti, Tommaso Filippini, Federica Violi, Kenneth J. Rothman, Sofia Costanzini, Carlotta Malagoli, Lauren A. Wise, Anna Odone, Carlo Signorelli, Laura Iacuzio, Elisa Arcolin, Jessica Mandrioli, Nicola Fini, Francesco Patti, Salvatore Lo Fermo, Vladimiro Pietrini…

Lifetime occupational exposure to metals and welding fumes, and risk of glioma: a 7-country population-based case–control study

Brain tumor etiology is poorly understood. Based on their ability to pass through the blood–brain barrier, it has been hypothesized that exposure to metals may increase the risk of brain cancer. Results from t...

Authors: Marie-Elise Parent, Michelle C. Turner, Jérôme Lavoué, Hugues Richard, Jordi Figuerola, Laurel Kincl, Lesley Richardson, Geza Benke, Maria Blettner, Sarah Fleming, Martine Hours, Daniel Krewski, David McLean, Siegal Sadetzki, Klaus Schlaefer, Brigitte Schlehofer…

Transcriptome-wide analyses indicate mitochondrial responses to particulate air pollution exposure

Due to their lack of repair capacity mitochondria are critical targets for environmental toxicants. We studied genes and pathways reflecting mitochondrial responses to short- and medium-term PM₁₀ exposure.

Authors: Ellen Winckelmans, Tim S Nawrot, Maria Tsamou, Elly Den Hond, Willy Baeyens, Jos Kleinjans, Wouter Lefebvre, Nicolas Van Larebeke, Martien Peusens, Michelle Plusquin, Hans Reynders, Greet Schoeters, Charlotte Vanpoucke, Theo M de Kok and Karen Vrijens

Genetic and epigenetic susceptibility of airway inflammation to PM_2.5 in school children: new insights from quantile regression

The fractional concentration of exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) is a biomarker of airway inflammation that has proved to be useful in investigations of genetic and epigenetic airway susceptibility to ambient air p...

Authors: Yue Zhang, Muhammad T. Salam, Kiros Berhane, Sandrah P. Eckel, Edward B. Rappaport, William S. Linn, Rima Habre, Theresa M. Bastain and Frank D. Gilliland

Ambient ultraviolet radiation exposure and hepatocellular carcinoma incidence in the United States

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the most commonly occurring type of primary liver cancer, has been increasing in incidence worldwide. Vitamin D, acquired from sunlight exposure, diet, and dietary supplements, ...

Authors: Trang VoPham, Kimberly A. Bertrand, Jian-Min Yuan, Rulla M. Tamimi, Jaime E. Hart and Francine Laden

Incidence of cancer among licenced commercial pilots flying North Atlantic routes

To evaluate cancer incidence among licenced commercial pilots in association with cosmic radiation.

Authors: Eva Maria Gudmundsdottir, Jon Hrafnkelsson and Vilhjalmur Rafnsson

The hazards of hazard identification in environmental epidemiology

Hazard identification is a major scientific challenge, notably for environmental epidemiology, and is often surrounded, as the recent case of glyphosate shows, by debate arising in the first place by the inher...

Authors: Rodolfo Saracci

Blood lead, cadmium and mercury in relation to homocysteine and C-reactive protein in women of reproductive age: a panel study

To examine the relationship between cadmium, lead, and mercury concentrations with high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and homocysteine in women.

Authors: Anna Z. Pollack, Sunni L. Mumford, Lindsey Sjaarda, Neil J. Perkins, Farah Malik, Jean Wactawski-Wende and Enrique F. Schisterman

Maternal occupational exposure and oral clefts in offspring

Previous studies suggest that periconceptional maternal occupational exposure to solvents and pesticides increase the risk of oral clefts in the offspring. Less is known about the effect of occupational exposu...

Authors: Nynke Spinder, Jorieke E. H. Bergman, H. Marike Boezen, Roel C. H. Vermeulen, Hans Kromhout and Hermien E. K. de Walle

Genome-wide gene by lead exposure interaction analysis identifies UNC5D as a candidate gene for neurodevelopment

Neurodevelopment is a complex process involving both genetic and environmental factors. Prenatal exposure to lead (Pb) has been associated with lower performance on neurodevelopmental tests. Adverse neurodevel...

Authors: Zhaoxi Wang, Birgit Claus Henn, Chaolong Wang, Yongyue Wei, Li Su, Ryan Sun, Han Chen, Peter J. Wagner, Quan Lu, Xihong Lin, Robert Wright, David Bellinger, Molly Kile, Maitreyi Mazumdar, Martha Maria Tellez-Rojo, Lourdes Schnaas…

Does air pollution play a role in infertility?: a systematic review

Air pollution is involved in many pathologies. These pollutants act through several mechanisms that can affect numerous physiological functions, including reproduction: as endocrine disruptors or reactive oxyg...

Authors: Julie Carré, Nicolas Gatimel, Jessika Moreau, Jean Parinaud and Roger Léandri

Urinary bisphenol A and pubertal development in Chinese school-aged girls: a cross-sectional study

Animal studies suggest that bisphenol A (BPA) may perturb pubertal development in females. However, evidence from human studies is limited.

Authors: Maohua Miao, Ziliang Wang, Xiaoqin Liu, Hong Liang, Zhijun Zhou, Hui Tan, Wei Yuan and De-Kun Li

Prenatal and postnatal bisphenol A exposure and social impairment in 4-year-old children

Prenatal and postnatal exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) may affect early brain development. Rodent studies suggest that prenatal and postnatal neurodevelopmental toxicity from BPA exposure may manifest as social ...

Authors: Youn-Hee Lim, Sanghyuk Bae, Bung-Nyun Kim, Choong Ho Shin, Young Ah Lee, Johanna Inhyang Kim and Yun-Chul Hong

Occupational exposure to chlorinated solvents and risk of head and neck cancer in men: a population-based case-control study in France

Few epidemiological studies have investigated the link between occupational exposure to solvents and head and neck cancer risk, and available findings are sparse and inconsistent. The objective of this study w...

Authors: Christine Barul, Aurore Fayossé, Matthieu Carton, Corinne Pilorget, Anne-Sophie Woronoff, Isabelle Stücker and Danièle Luce

Associations of genetic variation in CASP3 gene with noise-induced hearing loss in a Chinese population: a case–control study

Noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) is a complex disease caused by environmental and genetic risk factors. This study explored the relationship between the genetic variations in the CASP gene and the risk of develo...

Authors: Yinyin Wu, Juntao Ni, Mingjian Qi, Chengjian Cao, Yuxian Shao, Liangwen Xu, Haiyan Ma and Lei Yang

Ambulatory monitoring demonstrates an acute association between cookstove-related carbon monoxide and blood pressure in a Ghanaian cohort

Repeated exposure to household air pollution may intermittently raise blood pressure (BP) and affect cardiovascular outcomes. We investigated whether hourly carbon monoxide (CO) exposures were associated with ...

Authors: Ashlinn K. Quinn, Kenneth Ayuurebobi Ae-Ngibise, Patrick L. Kinney, Seyram Kaali, Blair J. Wylie, Ellen Boamah, Daichi Shimbo, Oscar Agyei, Steven N. Chillrud, Mohammed Mujtaba, Joseph E. Schwartz, Marwah Abdalla, Seth Owusu-Agyei, Darby W. Jack and Kwaku Poku Asante

Association between genome-wide copy number variation and arsenic-induced skin lesions: a prospective study

Exposure to arsenic in drinking water is a global health problem and arsenic-induced skin lesions are hallmark of chronic arsenic toxicity. We and others have reported germline genetic variations as risk facto...

Authors: Muhammad G. Kibriya, Farzana Jasmine, Faruque Parvez, Maria Argos, Shantanu Roy, Rachelle Paul-Brutus, Tariqul Islam, Alauddin Ahmed, Muhammad Rakibuz-Zaman, Justin Shinkle, Vesna Slavkovich, Joseph H. Graziano and Habibul Ahsan

A systematic comparison of statistical methods to detect interactions in exposome-health associations

There is growing interest in examining the simultaneous effects of multiple exposures and, more generally, the effects of mixtures of exposures, as part of the exposome concept (being defined as the totality o...

Authors: Jose Barrera-Gómez, Lydiane Agier, Lützen Portengen, Marc Chadeau-Hyam, Lise Giorgis-Allemand, Valérie Siroux, Oliver Robinson, Jelle Vlaanderen, Juan R. González, Mark Nieuwenhuijsen, Paolo Vineis, Martine Vrijheid, Roel Vermeulen, Rémy Slama and Xavier Basagaña

The effect of ambient temperature on type-2-diabetes: case-crossover analysis of 4+ million GP consultations across England

Given the double jeopardy of global increases in rates of obesity and climate change, it is increasingly important to recognise the dangers posed to diabetic patients during periods of extreme weather. We aime...

Authors: S. Hajat, A. Haines, C. Sarran, A. Sharma, C. Bates and L. E. Fleming

Desert dust outbreaks and respiratory morbidity in Athens, Greece

Ambient particulate matter (PM) has an adverse effect on respiratory morbidity. Desert dust outbreaks contribute to increased PM levels but the toxicity of desert dust mixed with anthropogenic pollutants needs...

Authors: Stavroula-Myrto Trianti, Evangelia Samoli, Sophia Rodopoulou, Klea Katsouyanni, Spyros A. Papiris and Anna Karakatsani

The association between ambient fine particulate matter and incident adenocarcinoma subtype of lung cancer

Adenocarcinoma (AC) is the most common lung cancer among non-smokers, but few studies have assessed the effect of PM_2.5 on AC among never smokers. The purpose of this study was to assess the association between a...

Authors: Lida Gharibvand, W. Lawrence Beeson, David Shavlik, Raymond Knutsen, Mark Ghamsary, Samuel Soret and Synnove F. Knutsen

Buccal mucosa micronuclei counts in relation to exposure to low dose-rate radiation from the Chornobyl nuclear accident and other medical and occupational radiation exposures

Ionizing radiation is a well-known carcinogen. Chromosome aberrations, and in particular micronuclei represent an early biological predictor of cancer risk. There are well-documented associations of micronucle...

Authors: D. Bazyka, S. C. Finch, I. M. Ilienko, O. Lyaskivska, I. Dyagil, N. Trotsiuk, N. Gudzenko, V. V. Chumak, K. M. Walsh, J. Wiemels, M. P. Little and L.B. Zablotska

Ancient water bottle use and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) exposure among California Indians: a prehistoric health risk assessment

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are the main toxic compounds in natural bitumen, a fossil material used by modern and ancient societies around the world. The adverse health effects of PAHs on modern hu...

Authors: Sabrina B. Sholts, Kevin Smith, Cecilia Wallin, Trifa M. Ahmed and Sebastian K. T. S. Wärmländer

Impact of phthalate and BPA exposure during in utero windows of susceptibility on reproductive hormones and sexual maturation in peripubertal males

Phthalates and BPA are endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) widely used in consumer products. Evidence suggests that phthalate and BPA exposure alters steroid hormone levels in adults, while in utero exposure...

Authors: Deborah J. Watkins, Brisa N. Sánchez, Martha Maria Téllez-Rojo, Joyce M. Lee, Adriana Mercado-García, Clara Blank-Goldenberg, Karen E. Peterson and John D. Meeker

Prenatal exposure to antifungal medication may change anogenital distance in male offspring: a preliminary study

Vaginal candidiasis is frequent among pregnant women and it is treated with anti-fungal medication (conazoles). Conazoles have anti-androgenic properties and prenatal exposure in rodents is associated with a s...

Authors: Djamilla Madelung Mogensen, Maria Bergkvist Pihl, Niels E. Skakkebæk, Helle Raun Andersen, Anders Juul, Henriette Boye Kyhl, Shanna Swan, David Møbjerg Kristensen, Marianne Skovager Andersen, Dorte Vesterholm Lind and Tina Kold Jensen

Household cereal crop harvest and children’s nutritional status in rural Burkina Faso

Reduction of child undernutrition is one of the Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. Achievement of this goal may be made more difficult in some settings by climate change through adverse impact on agricult...

Authors: Kristine Belesova, Antonio Gasparrini, Ali Sié, Rainer Sauerborn and Paul Wilkinson

A re-assessment of the safety of silver in household water treatment: rapid systematic review of mammalian in vivo genotoxicity studies

Despite poor evidence of their effectiveness, colloidal silver and silver nanoparticles are increasingly being promoted for treating potentially contaminated drinking water in low income countries. Recently, h...

Authors: Lorna Fewtrell, Batsirai Majuru and Paul R. Hunter

Erratum to: Pesticide exposures and chronic kidney disease of unknown etiology: an epidemiologic review

Authors: Mathieu Valcke, Marie-Eve Levasseur, Agnes Soares da Silva and Catharina Wesseling

Long-term exposure to ambient ultrafine particles and respiratory disease incidence in in Toronto, Canada: a cohort study

Little is known about the long-term health effects of ambient ultrafine particles (<0.1 μm) (UFPs) including their association with respiratory disease incidence. In this study, we examined the relationship be...

Authors: Scott Weichenthal, Li Bai, Marianne Hatzopoulou, Keith Van Ryswyk, Jeffrey C. Kwong, Michael Jerrett, Aaron van Donkelaar, Randall V. Martin, Richard T. Burnett, Hong Lu and Hong Chen

Use of mobile and cordless phones and change in cognitive function: a prospective cohort analysis of Australian primary school children

Some previous studies have suggested an association between children’s use of mobile phones (MPs)/cordless phones (CPs) and development of cognitive function. We evaluated possible longitudinal associations be...

Authors: Chhavi Raj Bhatt, Geza Benke, Catherine L. Smith, Mary Redmayne, Christina Dimitriadis, Anna Dalecki, Skye Macleod, Malcolm R. Sim, Rodney J. Croft, Rory Wolfe, Jordy Kaufman and Michael J. Abramson

Erratum to: Ozone and childhood respiratory disease in three US cities: evaluation of effect measure modification by neighborhood socioeconomic status using a Bayesian hierarchical approach

Authors: Cassandra R. O’ Lenick, Howard H. Chang, Michael R. Kramer, Andrea Winquist, James A. Mulholland, Mariel D. Friberg and Stefanie Ebelt Sarnat

The aquaglyceroporin AQP9 contributes to the sex-specific effects of in utero arsenic exposure on placental gene expression

Sex-specific factors play a major role in human health and disease, including responses to environmental stresses such as toxicant exposure. Increasing evidence suggests that such sex differences also exist du...

Authors: Emily F. Winterbottom, Devin C. Koestler, Dennis Liang Fei, Eric Wika, Anthony J. Capobianco, Carmen J. Marsit, Margaret R. Karagas and David J. Robbins

Air pollution, cardiovascular endpoints and susceptibility by stress and material resources: a systematic review of the evidence

Evidence shows that both the physical and social environments play a role in the development of cardiovascular disease. The purpose of this systematic review is two-fold: First, we summarize research from the ...

Authors: Christina H. Fuller, Karla R. Feeser, Jeremy A. Sarnat and Marie S. O’Neill

Short-term air pollution exposure decreases lung function: a repeated measures study in healthy adults

Daily changes in ambient concentrations of particulate matter, nitrogen oxides and ozone are associated with increased cardiopulmonary morbidity and mortality, with the lungs and their function being a vulnera...

Authors: Luc Int Panis, Eline B Provost, Bianca Cox, Tijs Louwies, Michelle Laeremans, Arnout Standaert, Evi Dons, Luc Holmstock, Tim Nawrot and Patrick De Boever

Serum levels of environmental pollutants is a risk factor for breast cancer in Inuit: a case control study

Environmental Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) can alter the hormone homeostasis by mimicking, interfering or blocking the function of hormones; moreover POPs are hypothesized to modify the risk of breast ...

Authors: Maria Wielsøe, Peder Kern and Eva Cecilie Bonefeld-Jørgensen

Household air pollution from cooking and risk of adverse health and birth outcomes in Bangladesh: a nationwide population-based study

Household air pollution (HAP) from cooking with solid fuels has become a leading cause of death and disability in many developing countries including Bangladesh. We assess the association between HAP and risk ...

Authors: Md Nuruzzaman Khan, Cherri Zhang B. Nurs, M. Mofizul Islam, Md Rafiqul Islam and Md Mizanur Rahman

Comparison of methods for calculating the health costs of endocrine disrupters: a case study on triclosan

Socioeconomic analysis is currently used in the Europe Union as part of the regulatory process in Regulation Registration, Evaluation and Authorisation of Chemicals (REACH), with the aim of assessing and manag...

Authors: Radka Prichystalova, Jean-Baptiste Fini, Leonardo Trasande, Martine Bellanger, Barbara Demeneix and Laura Maxim