Associations Between Metal Levels in Whole Blood and IgE Concentrations in Pregnant Women Based on Data From the Japan Environment and Children’s Study

Background: Metal exposures could possibly affect allergic responses in pregnant women, although no studies have yet shown a clear relationship between the two, and such exposures might also affect the development of allergic diseases in children. Methods: We investigated the relationship between metal concentrations in whole blood and immunoglobulin E (IgE; total and specific) in 14,408 pregnant women who participated in the Japan Environment and Children’s Study. The subjects submitted self-administered questionnaires, and blood samples were collected from them twice, specifically, during the first trimester and again during the second=third trimester. Concentrations of the metals Cd, Pb, Hg, Se, and Mn, as well as serum total and allergen-specific IgEs for egg white, house dust-mites (HDM), Japanese cedar pollen (JCP), animal dander, and moth, were measured. Allergen-specific IgE(s) were divided based on concentrations <0.35 or ≥0.35UA=mL, and the metal levels were divided into quartiles. Results: Multivariable logistic regression analysis showed that there was a significant negative correlation between HDM- and animal dander-specific IgEs and Hg and Mn concentrations. Conversely, there was a significant positive relationship between JCP-specific IgE and Hg and Se concentrations. Conclusions: Metal exposures may be related to both increases and decreases in allergen-specific IgEs in pregnant women.This work was supported by the Ministry of the Environment, Japan.Supplementary data related to this article can be found at https://doi.org/10.2188/jea.JE20180098

Induction of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) by ionizing radiation in rat mammary glands

Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate the expression and localization of iNOS in the rat mammary gland irradiated by X-rays.Materials and Methods: Lactating rats were irradiated by X-rays (~20 Gy) 24 h prior to isolation of the mammary glands. Homogenates and frozen sections were prepared for immunoblot analysis and immunohistochemistry of iNOS, respectively. Also, the mammary glands cultured in vitro were irradiated and the immunoblot analysis was performed.Results and Discussion: Expression of iNOS increased in the mammary glands of irradiated rats. The immunoreactive signal of iNOS was localized to the epithelium of alveoli of the irradiated glands. However, the induction of iNOS was inconclusive in the glands of non-parous rats with or without irradiation. On the other hand, expression of iNOS in cultured mammary glands with X-rays increased in a dose-dependent manner and a time-dependent manner. In addition, nitrite concentration in the culture exposed to X-rays enhanced as an increasing iNOS expression. These results suggest that iNOS protein is induced locally in rat mammary glands X-irradiated and in turn an excess amount of NO is produced in the glands, and that NO generated excessively in the mammary glands may correlate with mammary tumorigenesis induced by X-rays.第78回日本生化学

Modification of mortality and tumorigenesis by a water-soluble vitamin E analog, tocopherol-mono-glucoside (TMG)

The effects of TMG administered post-irradiation on the mortality of X-irradiated mice and on the development of tumors in the mammary and pituitary glands in rats, was investigated. When TMG (650 mg/kg) was administered i.p. to mice immediately after 7 Gy of whole-body X-irradiation, the 30-day survival rate was significantly higher than that of control. The administration of TMG even at 4 h after irradiation significantly improved survival compared to that of control. When dams of lactating rats were exposed to 1.5 Gy X-rays at day 21 after parturition and treated with diethylstilbestrol as a tumor promoter, the incidence of mammary and pituitary tumors was increased compared to non-irradiated control. The administration of TMG (600 mg/kg, i.p.) after irradiation significantly reduced the incidence of mammary and pituitary tumors. These results suggest that TMG is effective in preventing radiation-induced bone marrow death in mice and in reducing mammary and pituitary tumors in rats even when administered after irradiation.SFRBM\u27s 16th Annual Meetin