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Special Issue "Current Health Issues in Occupational Toxicology"

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A special issue of International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (ISSN 1660-4601). This special issue belongs to the section "Occupational Safety and Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2023) | Viewed by 15791

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Concettina Fenga

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Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and Morphofunctional Imaging, Occupational Medicine Section, University of Messina, 98125 Messina, Italy
Interests: occupational medicine; toxicology; biomarkers; oxidative stress; work-related stress

Dr. Giusi Briguglio
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Guest Editor

Prof. Dr. Chiara Costa

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Clinical and Experimental Medicine Department, University of Messina, 98125 Messina, Italy
Interests: occupational medicine; toxicology; biomarkers; oxidative stress; work-related stress

Dr. Luca Falzone

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Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences, Universita degli Studi di Catania, Catania, Italy
Interests: cancer; epigenetics; biomarkers; microRNAs; DNA methylation; occupational carcinogens
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Federica Giambò

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Department of Biomedical and Dental Sciences and Morphofunctional Imaging, Occupational Medicine Section, University of Messina, 98125 Messina, Italy
Interests: cancer; epigenetics; biomarkers; microRNAs; DNA methylation; occupational carcinogens

Dr. Marina Goumenou
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Guest Editor

Department of Toxicology and Forensic Sciences, University of Crete, 70013 Iraklio, Greece
Interests: environmental toxicology; risk assessment; genotoxicity; environmental pollution; exposure assessment; environmental analysis; biostatistics; toxicology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Occupational exposure to toxic pollutants has been associated with negative health impacts, such as increased morbidity and mortality. Numerous epidemiological studies have shown that these effects may depend on multiple issues: non-modifiable factors including age, gender and individual susceptibility, as well as modifiable factors such as smoking, alcohol, nutrition, lifestyle and occupational exposure.

A key challenge in occupational toxicology is to address the adverse effects from long-term exposure to low doses of compounds, close to health-based guidance values, often in complex mixtures.

On this basis, a huge body of evidence suggests the importance of the early detection of occupational health damage and of the implementation of effective strategies to reduce exposure to xenobiotics in the workplace.

This Special Issue of the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH) focuses on the current state of knowledge regarding the links between exposure to occupational pollutants and human health. Original papers, short communications and reviews are welcome for this issue.

Papers dealing with new toxicological approaches to identifying early effects and individual susceptibility through “omics”, including epigenetics, and to measuring and characterizing biological effects from gene–environment interactions will be particularly appreciated.

We will accept manuscripts from different disciplines including exposure-assessment science, epidemiology, intervention studies, and risk and health impact assessment.

Dr. Luca Falzone
Prof. Dr. Chiara Costa
Prof. Dr. Concettina Fenga
Dr. Marina Goumenou
Dr. Giusi Briguglio
Dr. Federica Giambò
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2500 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

occupational diseases
cancer
pollutants
biological monitoring
biomarkers
oxidative stress
molecular biology
epigenetics
bioinformatics

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

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19 pages, 2021 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Assessment of Mancozeb Exposure, Absorbed Dose, and Oxidative Damage in Greenhouse Farmers

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Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(17), 10486; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191710486 - 23 Aug 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1384

Abstract

Mancozeb (MNZ) is a fungicide commonly employed in many countries worldwide. This study assesses MNZ absorption dynamics in 19 greenhouse farmers, specifically following dermal exposure, aiming to verify the efficacy of both preventive actions and protective equipment. For data collection, a multi-assessment approach was used, which included a survey to record study population features. MNZ exposure was assessed through the indirect measurement of ethylene thiourea (ETU), widely employed as an MNZ biomarker. The ETU concentration was measured with the patch method, detecting environmental ETU trapped in filter paper pads, applied both on skin and working clothes, during the 8 h work shift. Urine and serum end-of-shift samples were also collected to measure ETU concentrations and well-known oxidative stress biomarkers, respectively, namely reactive oxygen metabolites (ROMs), advanced oxidation protein products (AOPPs), and biological antioxidant potential (BAP). It was observed that levels of ETU absorbed and ETU excreted were positively correlated. Additionally, working clothes effectively protected workers from MNZ exposure. Moreover, following stratification of the samples based on the specific working duty (i.e., preparation and spreading of MNZ and manipulation of MNZ-treated seedlings), it was found that the spreading group had higher ETU-related risk, despite lower chronic exposure levels. AOPP and ROM serum levels were higher in MNZ-exposed subjects compared with non-exposed controls, whereas BAP levels were significantly lower. Such results support an increase in the oxidative stress upon 8 h MNZ exposure at work. In particular, AOPP levels demonstrated a potential predictive role, as suggested by the contingency analysis results. Overall, this study, although conducted in a small group, confirms that ETU detection in pads, as well as in urine, might enable assessment of the risk associated with MNZ exposure in greenhouse workers. Additionally, the measurement of circulating oxidative stress biomarkers might help to stratify exposed workers based on their sensitivity to MNZ. Pivotally, the combination of both ETU measurement and biological monitoring might represent a novel valuable combined approach for risk assessment in farmhouse workers exposed to pesticides. In the future, these observations will help to implement effective preventive strategies in the workplace for workers at higher risk, including greenhouse farmers who are exposed to pesticides daily, as well as to clarify the occupational exposure levels to ETU. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Current Health Issues in Occupational Toxicology)

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10 pages, 1271 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Chronic Pesticide Exposure in Farm Workers Is Associated with the Epigenetic Modulation of hsa-miR-199a-5p

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Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19(12), 7018; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19127018 - 08 Jun 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1507

Abstract

The increasing use of pesticides in intensive agriculture has had a negative impact on human health. It was widely demonstrated how pesticides can induce different genetic and epigenetic alterations associated with the development of different diseases, including tumors and neurological disorders. Therefore, the identification of effective indicators for the prediction of harmful pesticide exposure is mandatory. In this context, the aim of the study was to evaluate the modification of hsa-miR-199a-5p expression levels in liquid biopsy samples obtained from healthy donors and farm workers with chronic exposure to pesticides. For this purpose, the high-sensitive droplet digital PCR assay (ddPCR) was used to detect variation in the expression levels of the selected microRNA (miRNA). The ddPCR analyses revealed a significant down-regulation of hsa-miR-199a-5p observed in individuals exposed to pesticides compared to control samples highlighting the good predictive value of this miRNA as demonstrated by statistical analyses. Overall, the obtained results encourage the analysis of miRNAs as predictive biomarkers of chronic pesticide exposure thus improving the current strategies for the monitoring of harmful pesticide exposure. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Current Health Issues in Occupational Toxicology)

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12 pages, 855 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Children and Parents’ Awareness Regarding Potential Hazards Derived from the Use of Chemical Products in Greece

Christina Tsitsimpikou

Nikolaos Georgiadis

Konstantinos Tsarouhas

Panagiotis Kartsidis

Eleni Foufa

Flora Bacopoulou

Athanasios Choursalas

Dimitrios Kouretas

Alexandros K. Nikolaidis

and

Elisabeth A. Koulaouzidou

Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(24), 12948; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph182412948 - 08 Dec 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1593

Abstract

Over the last decades, human activities prompted the high production and widespread use of household chemical products, leading to daily exposure of humans to several chemicals. The objective of this study was to investigate the frequency of chemicals’ use by children and parents in Greece and estimate the level of risk awareness and understanding among them. A total of 575 parents and children were asked to answer an anonymous, closed-ended, validated, and self-administered questionnaire. One-third of the children and almost half of the parents participating in the study believed that commonly used chemical products do not pose any risk to human health or to the environment, despite the product labelling. The majority of both children (61.8%) and parents (70.6%) were informed about product safety via the product labelling. Around 20% in both groups could not differentiate between systemic toxicity and acute lethal effects depicted by pictograms on the label and milder hazards, such as skin irritation. Moreover, the information on hazard and precautionary statements appearing on the label was very poorly perceived. Therefore, as both children and parents seem not to clearly identify the hazards and risks arising from the use of everyday chemical products, targeted awareness policies should be implemented to support the safe use of household products. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Current Health Issues in Occupational Toxicology)

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14 pages, 3765 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Study of Airborne Particulate Matter in Dalnegorsk Town

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Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(17), 9234; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18179234 - 01 Sep 2021

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 1806

Abstract

Mines, quarries, dumps, and tailings are the sources of air pollution. In the Dalnegorsk District (Primorsky Krai, Russia), there are 20 polymetallic deposits. This study aimed to evaluate the particle size and material composition of ambient particulate matter (PM) in Dalnegorsk town and verify the influence of mining and chemical industry facilities on the composition of PM. Ambient particulates were analyzed in samples of snow cover and washout from vegetation (conifer tree needles). According to particle size distribution data, the relative content of particles with a diameter up to 10 microns (PM₁₀) reaches 40% in three snow samples taken in the central part of the town. Among ore minerals, pyrite and arsenopyrite predominated in the samples. In addition, sphalerite, galena, cassiterite, and iron–chromium–nickel formations of various shapes were found in the studied particles. The presence of these metals in airborne PM can negatively affect the incidence rate of PM-associated diseases and the determination of their levels are very useful for air pollution prevention strategies. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Current Health Issues in Occupational Toxicology)

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28 pages, 10098 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Genetic and Epigenetic Alterations Induced by Pesticide Exposure: Integrated Analysis of Gene Expression, microRNA Expression, and DNA Methylation Datasets

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Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(16), 8697; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18168697 - 17 Aug 2021

Cited by 35 | Viewed by 3558

Abstract

Environmental or occupational exposure to pesticides is considered one of the main risk factors for the development of various diseases. Behind the development of pesticide-associated pathologies, there are both genetic and epigenetic alterations, where these latter are mainly represented by the alteration in the expression levels of microRNAs and by the change in the methylation status of the DNA. At present, no studies have comprehensively evaluated the genetic and epigenetic alterations induced by pesticides; therefore, the aim of the present study was to identify modifications in gene miRNA expression and DNA methylation useful for the prediction of pesticide exposure. For this purpose, an integrated analysis of gene expression, microRNA expression, and DNA methylation datasets obtained from the GEO DataSets database was performed to identify putative genes, microRNAs, and DNA methylation hotspots associated with pesticide exposure and responsible for the development of different diseases. In addition, DIANA-miRPath, STRING, and GO Panther prediction tools were used to establish the functional role of the putative biomarkers identified. The results obtained demonstrated that pesticides can modulate the expression levels of different genes and induce different epigenetic alterations in the expression levels of miRNAs and in the modulation of DNA methylation status. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Current Health Issues in Occupational Toxicology)

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Review

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17 pages, 747 KiB

Open AccessReview

Toxicology and Microbiota: How Do Pesticides Influence Gut Microbiota? A Review

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Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18(11), 5510; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18115510 - 21 May 2021

Cited by 41 | Viewed by 4387

Abstract

In recent years, new targets have been included between the health outcomes induced by pesticide exposure. The gastrointestinal tract is a key physical and biological barrier and it represents a primary site of exposure to toxic agents. Recently, the intestinal microbiota has emerged as a notable factor regulating pesticides’ toxicity. However, the specific mechanisms related to this interaction are not well known. In this review, we discuss the influence of pesticide exposure on the gut microbiota, discussing the factors influencing gut microbial diversity, and we summarize the updated literature. In conclusion, more studies are needed to clarify the host–microbial relationship concerning pesticide exposure and to define new prevention interventions, such as the identification of biomarkers of mucosal barrier function. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Current Health Issues in Occupational Toxicology)

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