Epidemiologia ambiental: possibilidades e desafios

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Perceção do risco de exposição a campos eletromagnéticos de radiofrequência na coorte INMA-Guipúscoa

Perception of environmental risks to the population is a priority issue for the bodies and administrations responsible for managing them. There are few studies on the perception of the risk to RF, but all of them report high levels of concern. This study describes and analyzes the RF risk perception of mothers belonging to the INMA-Gipuzkoa project.Data on perception were collected by means of two questionnaires given to mothers in two different periods. During pregnancy, 625 mothers chose the five relevant environmental issues in their place of residence from a list of 16. When their children were 8, 386 mothers rated, on a scale from 0 to 10, their perception of their levels of exposure to RF and the health risk derived from such exposure.During pregnancy, 31.8 % of mothers chose proximity to RF antennas as one of the 5 most important environmental problems. When their children were 8, 98.0 % and 90.3 % of women reported medium or high perception values (between 5 and 10) regarding exposure and health risk, respectively. A moderate correlation was found between exposure perception and risk perception (0.5). There is no association between RF exposure perception and actual levels measured inside homes.Knowing the factors associated with the perception of risks by the population will be useful to manage them properly.La percepción sobre los riesgos ambientales en la población es un tema prioritario para los organismos y administraciones responsables de su gestión. Los pocos estudios que han evaluado la percepción del riesgo a radiofrecuencias (RF), apuntan a unos niveles altos de preocupación. Este estudio describe y analiza la percepción del riesgo a RF en las mujeres del proyecto INMAGipuzkoa.Los datos sobre percepción se recogieron mediante cuestionarios en dos diferentes periodos. Durante el embarazo 625 madres seleccionaron 5 problemas ambientales relevantes en su lugar de residencia de una lista de 16. A los 8 años de edad de los niños, 386 madres puntuaron, en una escala de 0 a 10, su percepción sobre el nivel de exposición a RF y el riesgo para la salud derivado de esa exposición.Durante el embarazo un 31,8 % de madres eligieron la cercanía a antenas de RF como uno de los 5 problemas ambientales más importantes. A los 8 años de edad de los niños el 98,0 % y el 90,3 % de las mujeres referían niveles de percepción medios o altos (entre 5 y 10) respecto a la exposición y el riesgo para la salud, respectivamente. Se encontró una correlación moderada entre percepción de exposición y de riesgo (0,5). No existe relación entre percepción de la exposición a RF y los niveles reales obtenidos mediante mediciones en las viviendas.Conocer los factores asociados con la percepción de los riesgos por la ciudadanía ayudará a gestionarlos de forma adecuada.A perceção da população sobre os riscos ambientais é um assunto prioritário para os organismos e administrações responsáveis pela sua gestão. Os poucos estudos que avaliaram a perceção do risco de exposição a radiofrequências (RF) indicam níveis altos de preocupação. Este estudo descreve e analisa a perceção de risco de exposição a RF em mulheres do projeto INMA-Guipúscoa.Os dados sobre a perceção foram obtidos através de questionários em dois períodos diferentes. Durante a gravidez 625 mães selecionaram 5 problemas ambientais relevantes no seu local de residência de entre uma lista de 16. Aos 8 anos de idade das crianças, 386 mães pontuaram, numa escala de 0 a 10, a sua perceção sobre o nível de exposição a RF e o risco para a saúde derivado dessa exposição.Durante a gravidez 31.8% das mães elegeram a proximidade a antenas de RF como um dois 5 problemas ambientais mais importantes. Aos 8 anos de idade das crianças 98,0 % e 90,3% das mulheres referiram níveis de perceção médios ou altos (entre 5 e 10) relativos à exposição e ao risco para a saúde, respetivamente. Encontrou-se uma correlação moderada entre a perceção de exposição e de risco (0,5). Não existe uma relação entre a perceção da exposição a RF e os níveis reais obtidos através de medições nas habitações.Conhecer os fatores associados à perceção de risco por parte dos cidadãos ajudará a geri-los de forma adequada

A Review on Sustainable Inks for Printed Electronics: Materials for Conductive, Dielectric and Piezoelectric Sustainable Inks

In the last decades, the demand for electronics and, therefore, electronic waste, has increased. To reduce this electronic waste and the impact of this sector on the environment, it is necessary to develop biodegradable systems using naturally produced materials with low impact on the environment or systems that can degrade in a certain period. One way to manufacture these types of systems is by using printed electronics because the inks and the substrates used are sustainable. Printed electronics involve different methods of deposition, such as screen printing or inkjet printing. Depending on the method of deposition selected, the developed inks should have different properties, such as viscosity or solid content. To produce sustainable inks, it is necessary to ensure that most of the materials used in the formulation are biobased, biodegradable, or not considered critical raw materials. In this review, different inks for inkjet printing or screen printing that are considered sustainable, and the materials that can be used to formulate them, are collected. Printed electronics need inks with different functionalities, which can be mainly classified into three groups: conductive, dielectric, or piezoelectric inks. Materials need to be selected depending on the ink’s final purpose. For example, functional materials such as carbon or biobased silver should be used to secure the conductivity of an ink, a material with dielectric properties could be used to develop a dielectric ink, or materials that present piezoelectric properties could be mixed with different binders to develop a piezoelectric ink. A good combination of all the components selected must be achieved to ensure the proper features of each ink.This publication is supported by the SUINK project funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under Grant Agreement No. 101070112. Funded by the Basque Government ELKARTEK2021 (KK-2021/00040) and ELKARTEK2023 KK-2023/0005

Early-Life Exposure to Outdoor Air Pollution and Respiratory Health, Ear Infections, and Eczema in Infants from the INMA Study

Background: Prenatal and early-life periods may be critical windows for harmful effects of air pollution on infant health.Objectives: We studied the association of air pollution exposure during pregnancy and the first year of life with respiratory illnesses, ear infections, and eczema during the first 12–18 months of age in a Spanish birth cohort of 2,199 infants.Methods: We obtained parentally reported information on doctor-diagnosed lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI) and parental reports of wheezing, eczema, and ear infections. We estimated individual exposures to nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and benzene with temporally adjusted land use regression models. We used log-binomial regression models and a combined random-effects meta-analysis to estimate the effects of air pollution exposure on health outcomes across the four study locations.Results: A 10-µg/m3 increase in average NO2 during pregnancy was associated with LRTI [relative risk (RR) = 1.05; 95% CI: 0.98, 1.12] and ear infections (RR = 1.18; 95% CI: 0.98, 1.41). The RRs for an interquartile range (IQR) increase in NO2 were 1.08 (95% CI: 0.97, 1.21) for LRTI and 1.31 (95% CI: 0.97, 1.76) for ear infections. Compared with NO2, the association for an IQR increase in average benzene exposure was similar for LRTI (RR = 1.06; 95% CI: 0.94, 1.19) and slightly lower for ear infections (RR = 1.17; 95% CI: 0.93, 1.46). Associations were slightly stronger among infants whose mothers spent more time at home during pregnancy. Air pollution exposure during the first year was highly correlated with prenatal exposure, so we were unable to discern the relative importance of each exposure period.Conclusions: Our findings support the hypothesis that early-life exposure to ambient air pollution may increase the risk of upper and lower respiratory tract infections in infants

Urban regeneration as population health intervention: a health impact assessment in the Bay of Pasaia (Spain)

Background: An important health issue in urban areas is how changes arising from the regeneration of city-areas affect social determinants of health and equity. This paper examines the impacts attributable to a new fish market and to delays in the regeneration of a port area in a deteriorated region of the Bay of Pasaia (Spain). Potential differential impacts on local residents and socially vulnerable groups were evaluated to determine health inequalities. Methods: An in-depth, prospective and concurrent Health-Impact-Assessment (HIA) focused on equity was conducted by the regional Public Health Department, following the Merseyside guidelines. Data from different sources was triangulated and impacts were identified using qualitative and quantitative methods. Results: The intervention area is characterised by poor social, environmental, and health indicators. The distinctness of the two projects generates contrasting health and inequality impacts: generally positive for the new fish market and negative for the port area. The former creates recreational spaces and improves urban quality and social cohesion. By contrast, inaction and stagnation of the project in the port area perpetuates deterioration, a lack of safety, and poor health, as well as increased social frustration. Conclusions: In addition to assessing the health impacts of both projects this HIA promoted intersectoral partnerships, boosted a holistic and positive view of health and incorporated health and equity into the political discourse. Community-level participatory action enabled public health institutions to respond to new urban planning challenges and responsibilities in a more democratic manner.This research was funded by the Basque Government's Department of Health (Ref. n. 2011111051)

Decay resistance variability of European wood species thermally modified by industrial process

Thermal modification is now considered as a new ecofriendly industrial wood modification process improving mainly the material decay resistance and its dimensional stability. Most industrial thermal treatment processes use convection heat transfer which induces sometimes heterogeneous treatment temperature propagation within the oven and lead to the heterogeneity in treatment efficiency. Thus, it is common that treatment is not completely effective on several stack boards, in a same batch. The aim of this paper was to study the decay resistance variability of various European wood species thermally modified. Thermal modifications were performed around 240°C during 4h, on about 10 m3 of 27 x 152 x 2000 mm3 wood planks placed in an industrial oven having a volume of 20 m3, on the following wood species: spruce, ash, beech and poplar. All of the tests concerning the decay resistance were carried out in the laboratory using untreated beech and pine woods as reference materials. An agar block test was used to determine the resistance of thermally modified woods, leached beforehand according to EN 84 standard or not, to brown-rot and white-rot fungi, according to XP CEN/TS 15083-1. A large selection of treated wood samples was tested in order to estimate the variability of treatment efficiency. Thermal treatment increased the biological durability of all leached and un-leached modified wood samples, compared with native wood species. The treatment temperature of 240°C used in this study is sufficient to reach durability classes ''durable'' or ''very durable'' for the four wood species. However, the dispersion of weight loss values, due to the fungal attacks was very important and showed a large variability of the durability of wood which has been treated in a single batch. These results showed that there is a substantial need to develop process control and² indicator in order to insure that the quality of treated timber is properly evaluated with a view to putting this modified timber on the market under a chain of custody. (Résumé d'auteur

Prenatal exposure to NO2 and ultrasound measures of fetal growth in the Spanish INMA cohort

__Background:__ Air pollution exposure during pregnancy has been associated with impaired fetal growth. However, few studies have measured fetal biometry longitudinally, remaining unclear as to whether there are windows of special vulnerability. __Objective:__ The aim was to investigate the impact of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) exposure on fetal and neonatal biometry in the Spanish INMA study. Methods: Biparietal diameter (BPD), femur length (FL), abdominal circumference (AC), and estimated fetal weight (EFW) were evaluated for up to 2,478 fetuses in each trimester of pregnancy. Size at 12, 20, and 34 weeks of gestation and growth between these points, as well as anthropometry at birth, were assessed by SD scores derived using cohort-specific growth curves. Temporally adjusted land-use regression was used to estimate exposure to NO2 at home addresses for up to 2,415 fetuses. Associations were investigated by linear regression in each cohort and subsequent meta-analysis. __Results:__ A 10-μg/m3 increase in average exposure to NO2 during weeks 0-12 was associated with reduced growth at weeks 0-12 in AC (-2.1%; 95% CI: -3.7, -0.6) and EFW (-1.6%; 95% CI: -3.0, -0.3). The same exposure was inversely associated with reduced growth at weeks 20-34 in BPD (-2.6%; 95% CI: -3.9, -1.2), AC (-1.8%; 95% CI: -3.3, -0.2), and EFW (-2.1%; 95% CI: -3.7, -0.2). A less consistent pattern of association was observed for FL. The negative association of this exposure with BPD and EFW was significantly stronger in smoking versus nonsmoking mothers. __Conclusi

The Senior Citizens' Clubs in the Urban Area and the Orientation of Their Activating Policy -Results and Inference from a Questionnaire Survey in Hyogo Prefecture-

Background: Several studies have reported decreases in birth size associated with exposure to organochlorine compounds (OCs), but uncertainties remain regarding the critical windows of prenatal exposure and the effects on fetal body segments. Objective: We examined the relationship between prenatal OC concentrations and fetal anthropometry. Methods: We measured 4,4´-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (4,4´-DDE), hexachlorobenzene (HCB), and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners (138, 153, and 180) in 2,369 maternal and 1,140 cord serum samples in four Spanish cohorts (2003–2008). We used linear mixed models to obtain longitudinal growth curves for estimated fetal weight (EFW), abdominal circumference (AC), biparietal diameter (BPD), and femur length (FL) adjusted by parental and fetal characteristics. We calculated standard deviation (SD) scores of growth at 0–12, 12–20, and 20–34 weeks of gestation as well as size at gestational week 34 for the four parameters. We studied the association between OCs and the fetal outcomes by cohort-specific linear models and subsequent meta-analyses. Results: PCBs were associated with a reduction in AC up to mid-pregnancy, and BPD and FL from gestational week 20 onward. An inverse association was also found between HCB and AC growth in early pregnancy. The reduction of these parameters ranged from –4% to –2% for a doubling in the OC concentrations. No association between 4,4´-DDE and fetal growth was observed. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first study to report an association between prenatal exposure to some PCBs and HCB and fetal growth: AC during the first two trimesters of pregnancy, and BPD and FL later in pregnancy

DNA methylation in childhood asthma : an epigenome-wide meta-analysis

Background DNA methylation profiles associated with childhood asthma might provide novel insights into disease pathogenesis. We did an epigenome-wide association study to assess methylation profiles associated with childhood asthma. Methods We did a large-scale epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) within the Mechanisms of the Development of ALLergy (MeDALL) project. We examined epigenome-wide methylation using Illumina Infinium Human Methylation450 BeadChips (450K) in whole blood in 207 children with asthma and 610 controls at age 4-5 years, and 185 children with asthma and 546 controls at age 8 years using a cross-sectional case-control design. After identification of differentially methylated CpG sites in the discovery analysis, we did a validation study in children (4-16 years; 247 cases and 2949 controls) from six additional European cohorts and meta-analysed the results. We next investigated whether replicated CpG sites in cord blood predict later asthma in 1316 children. We subsequently investigated cell-type-specific methylation of the identified CpG sites in eosinophils and respiratory epithelial cells and their related gene-expression signatures. We studied cell-type specificity of the asthma association of the replicated CpG sites in 455 respiratory epithelial cell samples, collected by nasal brushing of 16-year-old children as well as in DNA isolated from blood eosinophils (16 with asthma, eight controls [age 2-56 years]) and compared this with whole-blood DNA samples of 74 individuals with asthma and 93 controls (age 1-79 years). Whole-blood transcriptional profiles associated with replicated CpG sites were annotated using RNA-seq data of subsets of peripheral blood mononuclear cells sorted by fluorescence-activated cell sorting. Findings 27 methylated CpG sites were identified in the discovery analysis. 14 of these CpG sites were replicated and passed genome-wide significance (p Interpretation Reduced whole-blood DNA methylation at 14 CpG sites acquired after birth was strongly associated with childhood asthma. These CpG sites and their associated transcriptional profiles indicate activation of eosinophils and cytotoxic T cells in childhood asthma. Our findings merit further investigations of the role of epigenetics in a clinical context.Peer reviewe