11 research outputs found
Poisoning of workers working in small lead-based units
Background: No data are available with the labor departments among the
workers of small-scale lead-based units with regard to lead poisoning.
One hundred and ninety-five workers were investigated for lead exposure
and three were found exceeding the limit of 80 mg/dL, which required a
treatment for lead poisoning. Aim: To assess the exposure and health
risk in workers working in small lead-based units. Setting and
Design: Random sampling is selected from the cross-sectional medical
study. Methods and Materials: Medical examination cum
biochemical/hematological investigations along with blood lead
estimation were carried out in these workers. Statistical Analysis:
Epi-Info and SPSS 16.0 were used for statistical analysis. Results
and Conclusion: Workers′ blood lead levels were brought down from
114.4, 110.0 and 120.6 mg/dL with treatment of D-penicillamine to 40
mg/dL. It may be concluded that lead poisoning is a preventable public
health problem that particularly affects the industrial workers in
small lead-based units
Biomechanics of insect cuticle: an interdisciplinary experimental challenge
The cuticle exoskeleton plays a key role in facilitating the evolutionary success of insects. Since the mid of the last century, many different biomechanical properties of exoskeletons have been investigated, always utilizing the most sophisticated scientific methods available at the time. So far, information on the biomechanical properties of cuticle seems to be as diverse as the methods used to measure them. As a consequence, insect cuticle is often considered to exhibit the most complex and diverse biomechanical properties of any biological material. However, it remains unclear which role the respective measurement methods and sample treatments used in previous studies play in supporting this claim. This review provides a broad overview of examination techniques used to study biomechanical properties of insect exoskeletons and discusses their respective advantages and disadvantages in describing the properties of a complex material such as cuticle. Our meta-analysis of the present data confirms significant effects of the respective measurement methods, sample treatments and body parts on the obtained mechanical properties. Based on our findings, we highlight research gaps and point out important factors which should be taken into account in future studies on insect cuticle.19127