scholarly journals Polychlorinated biphenyls and risk of hepatocellular carcinoma in the population living in a highly polluted area in Italy

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Donato ◽  
Marco Moneda ◽  
Nazario Portolani ◽  
Angelo Rossini ◽  
Sarah Molfino ◽  
...  

AbstractPolychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are human carcinogens, based on sufficient evidence for melanoma and limited evidence for non-Hodgkin lymphoma and breast cancer. Few data are available for liver cancer, although PCBs cause it in rats and determined liver damage in poisoned people. We investigated the association between PCB serum levels and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with a case–control study in a PCB-polluted area in North Italy. We enrolled prospectively 102 HCC incident cases and 102 age and gender-matched hospital controls. Serum concentrations of 33 PCB congeners were determined by a gas chromatograph coupled to mass spectrometry. Of 102 HCC cases, 62 who had lost < 3 kg of body weight in past 3 years were included in the analysis (67.7% males, mean age 68 years). The odds ratio (OR) for HCC for 3rd compared to 1st tertile of PCB distribution was 1.76 (95% confidence interval 0.62–5.03) for total PCB, adjusting for socio-demographic variables and risk factors for HCC by logistic regression. For most PCB congeners, ORs > 1.5 or 2 were found, although the 95% CIs included the null value for almost all of them. This preliminary study suggests that PCBs might play a role in HCC development.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Donato ◽  
Marco Moneda ◽  
Nazario Portolani ◽  
Angelo Rossini ◽  
Sarah Molfino ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are human carcinogens, based on sufficient evidence for melanoma and limited evidence for non-Hodgkin lymphoma and breast cancer. Few data are available for liver cancer, although PCBs cause it in rats and determined liver damage in poisoned people. We investigated the association between PCB serum levels and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with a case-control study in a PCB-polluted area in North Italy.Methods: We enrolled prospectively 102 HCC incident cases and 102 age- and gender-matched hospital controls. Serum concentrations of 33 PCB congeners were determined by a gas chromatograph coupled to mass spectrometry.Results: Of the 102 HCC cases, 62 who had lost < 3 kg of body weight in past 3 years were included in the analysis (67.7% males, mean age 68 years). 69% of them (8% of controls) had one or more risk factors for HCC: past alcohol intake ≥60 g/day and/or HBV or HCV infection. The odds ratio (OR) for HCC for 3rd compared to 1st tertile of PCB distribution was 1.76 (95% confidence interval 0.62-5.03) for total PCB, adjusting for socio-demographic variables and risk factors for HCC by logistic regression. No differences were found restricting the analysis to HCC cases and controls with or without the main risk factors for HCC. For most PCB congeners, ORs > 1.5 or 2 were found, although the 95% CIs included the null value for almost all of them. Conclusions: This preliminary study suggests that PCBs might play a role in HCC development.Electronic word count for abstract: 252 words.


2013 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Zani ◽  
Francesco Donato ◽  
Michele Magoni ◽  
Donatella Feretti ◽  
Loredana Covolo ◽  
...  

<em>Background</em>. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) have been found to be associated with diabetes in some, but not all, studies performed so far. The aim of this study was to assess the association between PCB serum levels and glycaemia and diabetes in people living in Brescia, a highly industrialised PCB-polluted town in Northern Italy. <em>Design and Methods</em>. 527 subjects were enrolled in a cross-sectional population-based study: they were interviewed face-to-face in 2003 and also provided a blood sample under fasting conditions. The concentration of 24 PCB congeners was determined using gas-chromatography (GC/MS). Subsequently, all subjects were included in a follow-up (cohort) study. According to the Local Health Authority health-care database, subjects were considered to be diabetic if they had diabetes at interview time (prevalent cases) or during a 7-year follow-up (incident cases). <em>Results</em>. A total of 53 subjects (10.0%) were diabetics: 28 had dia- betes at enrolment and other 25 developed the disease subsequently. Diabetes frequency increased according to the serum concentrations of total PCBs and single PCB congeners, but no association was found when estimates were adjusted for education, body mass index, age and gender by logistic regression analysis. Accordingly, glycaemia increased with PCB serum levels, but no association was observed when multiple regression analysis, including confounding factors, was performed. Conclusions. This study does not support the hypothesis that PCB environmental exposure is strictly associated with diabetes or glycaemia.


Chemosphere ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 91 (2) ◽  
pp. 194-199 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Zani ◽  
Umberto Gelatti ◽  
Francesco Donato ◽  
Michela Capelli ◽  
Nazario Portolani ◽  
...  

2017 ◽  
Vol 220 (2) ◽  
pp. 461-467 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Raffetti ◽  
Fabrizio Speziani ◽  
Francesco Donato ◽  
Lucia Leonardi ◽  
Grazia Orizio ◽  
...  

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-47
Author(s):  
Mariachiara Arisi ◽  
Ausilia Maria Manganoni ◽  
Giuseppe de Palma ◽  
Michele Magoni ◽  
Francesco Donato ◽  
...  

Chemosphere ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 235 ◽  
pp. 969-975 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michele Magoni ◽  
Francesco Donato ◽  
Pietro Apostoli ◽  
Giuseppe Rossi ◽  
Pietro Comba ◽  
...  

Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 465
Author(s):  
Gregorio P. Milani ◽  
Mario G. Bianchetti ◽  
Giuseppe Togni ◽  
Andreas W. Schoenenberger ◽  
Franco Muggli

It is assumed that healthcare workers are at the highest risk to be infected by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). However, few data from healthcare workers who do not primarily take care of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection support this assumption. We investigated the prevalence of immunoglobulin G (Ig G) against SARS-CoV-2 among healthcare workers who do not primarily take care of patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection and the general population in a well-defined geographical area. The first part of the study was conducted in May 2020 in Val Mesolcina (Southern Switzerland), a valley with ~8000 inhabitants. All healthcare workers were invited. All participants (n = 488) of the Swiss Longitudinal Cohort Study (SWICOS), a cohort representative of the general population, were also invited. Circulating Ig G against spike protein subunit 1 of SARS-CoV-2 were tested in each subject. Subjects with positive Ig G were tested again after 6 months. The condition of being a healthcare worker, rather than a part of the general population, was tested as a predictor of seroprevalence positivity by both simple and multiple (adjusted for age and sex) logistic regression. Eleven (2.6%) of the 423 SWICOS participants and 46 (16%) out of 289 healthcare workers were positive for antibodies against SARS-CoV-2. The seroprevalence OR was 7.01 (95% CI: 3.53–15.47) for healthcare workers as compared to SWICOS participants. After adjusting for age and gender, the seroprevalence OR was 5.13 (95% CI: 2.54–10.40). About three quarters of the subjects in the SWICOS (73%) and in healthcare (79%) group with a previous positive serology still presented positive Ig G against the SARS-CoV-2 after 6 months. The present seroprevalence data point out that the SARS-CoV-2 infection is seven times higher among healthcare workers than in the general population of Val Mesolcina. Efforts to effectively protect all the healthcare personnel are needed.


Medicina ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 57 (8) ◽  
pp. 774
Author(s):  
Christina Batsi ◽  
Evangelia Gkika ◽  
Loukas Astrakas ◽  
Athanassios Papadopoulos ◽  
Ioannis Iakovou ◽  
...  

Background and Objectives: Vitamin D (Vit D) deficiency has been implicated in various conditions, including cardiovascular disease. The purpose of this retrospective study was to investigate the incidence of patients with myocardial ischemia in relation to their serum levels of vitamin D. Materials and Methods: A 64-month search (January 2016 to April 2021) in our database of the Nuclear Medicine Laboratory revealed 113 patients who had both myocardial perfusion imaging with single photon emission computed tomography (MPI SPECT) and Vit D measurements. MPI SPECT obtained myocardial images during both stress (summed stress score, SSS) and rest (summed rest score, SRS). Abnormal MPI SPECT was when the SSS was ≥4. Vit D was determined by radioimmunoassay (RIA). Patients with Vit D values <10 ng/mL, 10–29 ng/mL and ≥30 ng/mL were defined as having a deficiency, insufficiency and sufficiency, respectively. Results: Among patients, 46/113 (40.7%) were male and 67/113 (59.3%) were female. Abnormal MPI was found in 58/113 (51.3%) patients. Vit D deficiency was noted in 20/113 (17.7%) patients, insufficiency in 86/113 (76.1%) patients, and normal Vit D was noted in only 7/113 (6.2%) patients. Sixteen of the 20 patients (80%) with Vit D deficiency, and 38/86 (44.2%) with insufficiency had an abnormal MPI SPECT. In contrast, only 1/7 (14.3%) patients with sufficient Vit D levels had an abnormal MPI SPECT. The Mann-Whitney U-test showed that ischemia reduced the values of Vit D. Correlation analysis showed a negative association of Vit D levels with SSS (rho = −0.232, p = 0.014) and SRS (rho = −0.250, p = 0.008). Further evaluation with a Vit D cut off 20 ng/mL retrieved no statistical significance. Finally, Vit D and gender were independently associated with myocardial ischemia. Conclusions: Low Vit D levels may represent a risk factor for myocardial ischemia.


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