Respiratory diseases in the »Đuro Đakovic« smelting plant in Slavonski Brod

Uvodno su prikazani uvjeti rada (mikroklima i zaprašenost) u ljevaonici, a zatim su priopćeni rezultati ciljanoga zdravstvenog pregleda 190 radnika izvršenog u 1984. i 1985. godini. Pregled je bio usmjeren na bolesti i oštećenja respiratornog trakta. Najčešće su bile bolesti gornjih dišnih putova (19,4 %) a 12,6 % radnika imalo je kronični bronhitis. Jedan radnik s 25 godina radnog staža u ljevaonici na poslovima čišćenja odljevaka imao je silikozu, u jednog su rendgenološke promjene upućivale na početnu pneumokoniozu, dok je u dvojice nalaz bio suspektan na silikozu. Unatoč bitnom poboljšanju radnih uvjeta i smanjenju zaprašenosti nužni su redoviti pregledi radnika izloženih mineralnoj prašini.Ambient and other working conditions in the smelting plant are described. The results are presented of medical check-up of 190 workers performed in 1984 and 1985 with special emphasis on respiratory diseases. As many as 19.4 % of the examined workers showed affection of the upper respiratory tract, and 12.6 % suffered from chronic bronchitis. One worker with 25 years of work on cast cleaning had apparent silicosis, another showed X-rays findings indicative of silicosis and two workers were found suspect of having the disease. Despite a considerable improvement in working conditions regular medical check-ups of workers exposed to mineral dusts are mandatory

In Situ Observations during Chemical Vapor Deposition of Hexagonal Boron Nitride on Polycrystalline Copper.

Using a combination of complementary in situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction, we study the fundamental mechanisms underlying the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) on polycrystalline Cu. The nucleation and growth of h-BN layers is found to occur isothermally, i.e., at constant elevated temperature, on the Cu surface during exposure to borazine. A Cu lattice expansion during borazine exposure and B precipitation from Cu upon cooling highlight that B is incorporated into the Cu bulk, i.e., that growth is not just surface-mediated. On this basis we suggest that B is taken up in the Cu catalyst while N is not (by relative amounts), indicating element-specific feeding mechanisms including the bulk of the catalyst. We further show that oxygen intercalation readily occurs under as-grown h-BN during ambient air exposure, as is common in further processing, and that this negatively affects the stability of h-BN on the catalyst. For extended air exposure Cu oxidation is observed, and upon re-heating in vacuum an oxygen-mediated disintegration of the h-BN film via volatile boron oxides occurs. Importantly, this disintegration is catalyst mediated, i.e., occurs at the catalyst/h-BN interface and depends on the level of oxygen fed to this interface. In turn, however, deliberate feeding of oxygen during h-BN deposition can positively affect control over film morphology. We discuss the implications of these observations in the context of corrosion protection and relate them to challenges in process integration and heterostructure CVD.P.R.K. acknowledges funding from the Cambridge Commonwealth Trust and the Lindemann Trust Fellowship. R.S.W. acknowledges a research fellowship from St. John’s College, Cambridge. S.H. acknowledges funding from ERC grant InsituNANO (no. 279342), EPSRC under grant GRAPHTED (project reference EP/K016636/1), Grant EP/H047565/1 and EU FP7 Work Programme under grant GRAFOL (project reference 285275). The European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF) is acknowledged for provision of synchrotron radiation and assistance in using beamline BM20/ROBL. We acknowledge Helmholtz-Zentrum-Berlin Electron storage ring BESSY II for synchrotron radiation at the ISISS beamline and continuous support of our experiments.This is the final version. It was first published by ACS at http://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/cm502603

Utjecaj toksičnosti metala na reprodukcijsku funkciju u muškaraca

A combination of genetic, environmental and lifestyle factors contributes to adverse effects on the reproductive health in men. Metals are pervasive in food, water, air, tobacco smoke, and alcoholic beverages. Experimental studies suggest that many metals have adverse effects on the male reproductive function. However, information about reproductive effects of human exposure to metals is scarce and/or inconsistent. This review summarises the information from epidemiological studies of the effects of metal exposure on reproductive function in men. Factors capable of affecting these relationships were identifi ed and discussed. A particular attention is given to the studies considering influence of concomitant exposure to various metals. These studies have generally confirmed that even moderate- to low-level exposure to lead affects certain reproductive parameters, and that exposure to cadmium affects the prostate function and serum testosterone levels. Adverse effects of mercury, manganese, chromium and arsenic on semen quality and altered serum hormone are less well documented. There is no clear evidence that boron exposure may impair reproductive health in men. Only a few studies have investigated reproductive effects of concomitant exposure to several metals and controlled for potential confounders. Future studies should consider the contribution of combined exposure to various metals and/or other factors that may influence individual susceptibility to reproductive health impairment in men.Postoje indikacije da kombinacija genetskih, okolišnih i čimbenika načina života pridonosi uočenom poremećaju reprodukcijskog zdravlja u muškaraca. Metali su široko rasprostranjeni u čovjekovu okolišu te u hrani, vodi, zraku, cigaretnom dimu i alkoholnim pićima. Rezultati eksperimentalnih istraživanja sugeriraju štetne učinke većine ispitivanih metala na mušku reprodukcijsku funkciju. Međutim, odgovarajuća su istraživanja u ljudi oskudna. Ovaj rad sažima rezultate dosadašnjih epidemioloških istraživanja o učincima izloženosti metalima na mušku reprodukcijsku funkciju. Poseban naglasak dan je istraživanjima koja su razmatrala utjecaj istodobne izloženosti različitim metalima uz čimbenike čovjekova načina života i njihovo međudjelovanje na reprodukcijske učinke. Objavljeni rezultati daju dovoljno dokaza o štetnom djelovanju olova i žive na neke reprodukcijske parametre te kadmija na poremećaj prostate i razinu testosterona u serumu, čak u uvjetima umjerene do niske razine izloženosti. Manje je dokaza o štetnom djelovanju na kvalitetu sjemena i razinu spolnih hormona nađeno za mangan. Podaci koji upućuju na moguće štetno djelovanje arsena ili kroma nisu dosljedni, dok o štetnom djelovanju bora na mušku reprodukcijsku funkciju nema jasnih podataka. Utjecaj potencijalno uzročnih varijabli uzet je u obzir samo u nekoliko radova. Stoga buduća istraživanja poremećaja reprodukcijskog zdravlja u muškaraca trebaju razmatrati doprinos istovremene izloženosti različitim metalima koji u kombinaciji s ostalim čimbenicima mogu utjecati na osobnu (pre)osjetljivost

Comparison of essential oil composition of Stachys menthifolia Vis. from two natural habitats in Croatia

Stachys menthifolia Vis. is an endemic species from the Balkan Peninsula. Aerial parts of the plant were collected from its natural habitat near Dubrovnik. Hydrodistilled volatile oil obtained from the plant material of S. menthifolia was subjected to gas chromatographic analysis coupled to mass spectrometry. More than 70 compounds were identified, representing 94.5% of the total oil. The major constituents of the oil were diterpenoid abietatriene (11.7%), and sesquiterpene hydrocarbons α-bisabolene (8.4%), and β-caryophyllene (7.4%). Presented results are comparable to our previous findings on essential oil composition of the same species from Biokovo Mountain, with small differences in quantitative and qualitative constitution of the oil. Although plants belonging to the Stachys genus show significant variability in their chemical compositions depending on the location and stage of plant development, this work indicates that chemical polymorphism of endemic S. menthifolia does not manifest in the region of Croatian Mediterranean area

Chemical composition and biological activities of the essential oils of two endemic Nepeta species

The chemical composition, antioxidant activity and several enzyme inhibitions of the essential oils of two endemic Nepeta species, N. nuda subsp. glandulifera and N. cadmea were investigated for the first time. The major compounds of N. nuda subsp. glandulifera essential oil were geijerene (61.02%) and neointermedeol (6.07%). On contrary, essential oil of N. cadmea contained 70.94% of 4aβ,7α,7aβ-nepetalactone. The oil of N. nuda subsp. glandulifera revealed better activity than the oil of N. cadmea against both reducing metal ions and radicals. Moreover, both oils have relatively weak but still noticeable activity against acetylcholinesterase and butyrylcholinesterase; weak activity against α-glucosidase, but quite high activity against α-amylase. On the other hand, both essential oils showed significant activity against tyrosinase. Presented results suggest that these two endemic species have strong potential to be used in food and pharmacological industries, and therefore they should to be investigated further. © 2018 Elsevier B.V