Influence of cold on host-parasite interactions.

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The Influence Of Maternal Infections On Congenital Heart Defect

ABSTRACT Congenital heart defects (CHDs) contribute significantly to heightened infant mortality rates. This review explores the intricate link between maternal infections and CHDs, emphasizing diverse factors influencing fetal development, such as bacterial, fungal, protozoan and viral agents. These infections pose reproductive health risks, potentially leading to complications like prematurity, stillbirth and heart defect to the fetus. The TORCH acronym (Toxoplasma, Other infections, Rubella, Cytomegalovirus, Herpes simplex) identifies infectious teratogens related to congenital issues, emphasizing vertical transmission through the placenta or ascending from the vagina. Rubella and Cytomegalovirus play a significant role in heart defects, particularly when maternal infections amplify CHD risk during pregnancy. Specific scrutiny is placed on Rubella and Cytomegalovirus for their impact on pregnancy outcomes and potential links to congenital heart defects, with preventive strategies discussed, including vaccination and antiviral therapy. The timing and severity of these infections are pivotal in determining their impact on fetal heart development. Environmental exposures and maternal nutrition are critical factors influencing fetal development. Maternal undernutrition in low- and middle-income countries associates with adverse pregnancy outcomes, including congenital heart defects. Emphasizing the importance of maintaining a nutritious maternal diet, rich in essential nutrients, is crucial for improved fetal health and successful pregnancy outcomes. This review offers insights into preventive measures and underscores the need for continued research to enhance prenatal care strategies

Impact of climate change on allergic diseases in Germany

Background: Allergic diseases, especially inhalant allergies, have reached epidemic levels and environmental factors play an important role in their development. Climate change influences the occurrence, frequency, and severity of allergic diseases. Methods: The contents of this article were selected by the authors and developed section by section according to their expertise and the current state of knowledge. The sections were then discussed and agreed upon amongst all authors. Results: The article highlights direct and indirect effects of climate change on allergies. It goes into detail about the connections between climate change and (new) pollen allergens as well as (new) occupational inhalation allergens, explains the effects of climate change on the clinical picture of atopic dermatitis, discusses the connections between air pollutants and allergies, and provides information about the phenomenon of thunderstorm asthma. Conclusions: There is a need for action in the field of pollen and fungal spore monitoring, allergy and sensitisation monitoring, urban planning from an allergological perspective, and changes in the working environment, among others. This is part of a series of articles that constitute the German Status Report on Climate Change and Health 2023

Aeroallergens in Canada: Distribution, Public Health Impacts, and Opportunities for Prevention

Aeroallergens occur naturally in the environment and are widely dispersed across Canada, yet their public health implications are not well-understood. This review intends to provide a scientific and public health-oriented perspective on aeroallergens in Canada: their distribution, health impacts, and new developments including the effects of climate change and the potential role of aeroallergens in the development of allergies and asthma. The review also describes anthropogenic effects on plant distribution and diversity, and how aeroallergens interact with other environmental elements, such as air pollution and weather events. Increased understanding of the relationships between aeroallergens and health will enhance our ability to provide accurate information, improve preventive measures and provide timely treatments for affected populations

Epithelial barrier hypothesis: Effect of the external exposome on the microbiome and epithelial barriers in allergic disease

Environmental exposure plays a major role in the development of allergic diseases. The exposome can be classified into internal (e.g., aging, hormones, and metabolic processes), specific external (e.g., chemical pollutants or lifestyle factors), and general external (e.g., broader socioeconomic and psychological contexts) domains, all of which are interrelated. All the factors we are exposed to, from the moment of conception to death, are part of the external exposome. Several hundreds of thousands of new chemicals have been introduced in modern life without our having a full understanding of their toxic health effects and ways to mitigate these effects. Climate change, air pollution, microplastics, tobacco smoke, changes and loss of biodiversity, alterations in dietary habits, and the microbiome due to modernization, urbanization, and globalization constitute our surrounding environment and external exposome. Some of these factors disrupt the epithelial barriers of the skin and mucosal surfaces, and these disruptions have been linked in the last few decades to the increasing prevalence and severity of allergic and inflammatory diseases such as atopic dermatitis, food allergy, allergic rhinitis, chronic rhinosinusitis, eosinophilic esophagitis, and asthma. The epithelial barrier hypothesis provides a mechanistic explanation of how these factors can explain the rapid increase in allergic and autoimmune diseases. In this review, we discuss factors affecting the planet’s health in the context of the ‘epithelial barrier hypothesis,’ including climate change, pollution, changes and loss of biodiversity, and emphasize the changes in the external exposome in the last few decades and their effects on allergic diseases. In addition, the roles of increased dietary fatty acid consumption and environmental substances (detergents, airborne pollen, ozone, microplastics, nanoparticles, and tobacco) affecting epithelial barriers are discussed. Considering the emerging data from recent studies, we suggest stringent governmental regulations, global policy adjustments, patient education, and the establishment of individualized control measures to mitigate environmental threats and decrease allergic disease

A Human health perspective on climate change: a report outlining the research needs on the human health effects of climate change

"...an ad hoc Interagency Working Group on Climate Change and Health (IWGCCH) assembled to develop a white paper on relevant federal research and science needs, including research on mitigation and adaptation strategies. Examples of mitigation and adaptation research needs are identified, but a comprehensive discussion of these issues is not included. These research and science needs broadly include basic and applied science, technological innovations and capacities, public health infrastructure, and communication and education. Consideration is also given to the potential structure of a federal climate change and health research agenda and the use of scientific research results for applications and decision making. The purpose of this paper is to identify research critical for understanding the impact of climate change on human health so that we can both mitigate and adapt to the environmental effects of climate change in the healthiest and most efficient ways. Although the group recognizes the global nature of climate change's impacts on human health, the primary focus of this paper is on the situation in the United States." - p. vWorking Group -- Executive summary -- Introduction -- Crosscutting issues for climate change and health -- Asthma, respiratory allergies, and airway diseases -- Cancer -- Cardiovascular disease and stroke -- Foodborne diseases and nutrition -- Heat-related morbidity and mortality -- Human developmental effects -- Mental health and stress-related disorders -- Neurological diseases and disorders -- Vectorborne and zoonotic diseases -- Waterborne diseases -- Weather-related morbidity and mortality -- Synthesis and recommendations -- Summary statementthe Interagency Working Group on Climate Change and Health (IWGCCH)."The Interagency Working Group on Climate Change and Health (iWGCCH) is an ad hoc group formed by participating federal agencies and organizations at the invitation of the National institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) following the January 2009 'Workshop on a Research Agenda for Managing the Health Risks of Climate Change,' sponsored by the Institute of Medicine Roundtable on Environmental Health Sciences, research, and medicine. This report identifies gaps in knowledge of the consequences for human health of climate change, and suggests research to address them. The content, views, and perspectives presented in this report are solely those of the authors, and do not reflect the official views, policies, or implied endorsement of any of the individual participating federal agencies or organizations." - t.p.Published by Environmental Health Perspectives and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.Title from PDF t.p. (viewed April 23, 2010).Mode of access: Internet.Includes bibliographical references (p. 66-70)

Eighth Annual Conference of inVIVO Planetary Health: From Challenges to Opportunities

inVIVO Planetary Health (inVIVO) is a progressive scientific movement providing evidence, advocacy, and inspiration to align the interests and vitality of people, place, and planet. Our goal is to transform personal and planetary health through awareness, attitudes, and actions, and a deeper understanding of how all systems are interconnected and interdependent. Here, we present the abstracts and proceedings of our 8th annual conference, held in Detroit, Michigan in May 2019, themed “From Challenges, to Opportunities”. Our far-ranging discussions addressed the complex interdependent ecological challenges of advancing global urbanization, including the biopsychosocial interactions in our living environment on physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing, together with the wider community and societal factors that govern these. We had a strong solutions focus, with diverse strategies spanning from urban-greening and renewal, nature-relatedness, nutritional ecology, planetary diets, and microbiome rewilding, through to initiatives for promoting resilience, positive emotional assets, traditional cultural narratives, creativity, art projects for personal and community health, and exploring ways of positively shifting mindsets and value systems. Our cross-sectoral agenda underscored the importance and global impact of local initiatives everywhere by contributing to new normative values as part of a global interconnected grass-roots movement for planetary health

Correlation between pro-inflammatory alleles and clinical and laboratory markers of allergy in Xhosa South Africans

Background: Asthma and allergic disease are the result of a complex interaction between genetic predisposition and environmental exposure. It is likely that multiple genes are involved in the progression from allergen exposure to the development of signs and symptoms of allergic disease. Although advances in genetic research have progressed exponentially in the past twenty years, and a growing body of evidence from the developed world has yielded several promising candidate polymorphisms, the precise nature of the genetic basis for allergic disease remains to be elucidated. In addition, there is a paucity of literature in this field from the developing world, and for people of African origin in particular. Several studies suggest that the prevalence of asthma and allergic disease in South Africa has increased significantly over the past forty years, at a rate that is too rapid to be explained by genetic modification. A likely explanation for this trend is that an increasing number of genetically susceptible individuals are being exposed to environmental stimuli that are critical to the formation of allergic disease. It is possible, although unproven, that evolutionary adaptation of inflammatory immune responses may increase the genetic predisposition to allergic disease amongst people of Black African origin. This thesis represents the first analysis of several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) with regards to their prevalence in the Xhosa population, as well as the correlation between these SNPs and clinical and laboratory markers of allergic disease in this population. Methods: A cross-sectional sample of about 300 unrelated Xhosa school children was obtained from a local high school. Phenotypic data was collected in the form of a symptom questionnaire, blood samples for total IgE as well as IgE to Ascaris lumbricoides, skin prick tests to common local food and aeroallergens, as well as a modified methacholine challenge to establish the prevalence of bronchial hyper-reactivity. In addition, genotyping was performed to investigate the prevalence of twenty-seven SNPs in this population. We aimed to establish a baseline of the prevalence of potential pro-inflammatory alleles (PIAs), as well as to investigate the relationship between these PIAs and clinical and laboratory markers of asthma and allergic disease. Results: We found several significant associations between several SNPs and allergic disease, specifically in genes relating to the development of immune tolerance (IL-10), genes relating to TH1 inflammation (IL-12 and IFNGR1) and genes relating to TH2 inflammation (IL-4, IL- 4R, IL-13). Unfortunately, the generalizability of our findings is limited by, amongst others, the selection of pupils from a single school and the use of self-reported end points as markers of clinical phenotypes rather than physician diagnosed allergic illnesses. Conclusion: This is the first trial of its kind in the Xhosa population. Despite the limitations described above, we feel that this study has provided valuable baseline prevalence data, and unearthed some interesting associations between PIAs and allergic disease. We would welcome further research in this population to confirm or refute our findings