A New Threat to Public Health: Organochlorines and Food

1992 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ross Hume Hall

Ambient levels of persistent toxic chemicals, chemicals that persist for decades in the environment, have reached levels high enough to affect the health of children. The organochlorines (PCBs, DDT and the dioxin family) accumulate in human adipose tissue. Pregnant women pass the contamination to their fetuses. The developing nervous system is the most vulnerable. Neurobehavioral deficits, including short-term memory loss, are detected in children born to mothers at the high end of the distribution curve of organochlorines. Humans are not alone in their susceptibility to these subtle effects. Wildlife exposed to the same spectrum of organochlorines as humans suffer a variety of behavioral changes. Rats and Rhesus monkeys fed diets containing the organochlorines under laboratory conditions exhibit behavioral changes that persist into adulthood. For humans, food provides 80 percent of organochlorine contamination. Meat, fish, dairy and commercial fruit are the main sources. A vegetarian diet including unsprayed fruit minimizes contamination. The ultimate solution to this public health problem is elimination of the organochlorines from the environment.

2006 ◽  
Vol 26 (8) ◽  
pp. 1190-1192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Galatti ◽  
Giovanni Polimeni ◽  
Francesco Salvo ◽  
Marcello Romani ◽  
Aurelio Sessa ◽  
...  

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (6) ◽  
pp. 1923-1934 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammed Nuru ◽  
Nino Muradashvili ◽  
Anuradha Kalani ◽  
David Lominadze ◽  
Neetu Tyagi

1997 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 320
Author(s):  
P. Lass ◽  
J. R. Buscombe ◽  
A. Davenport ◽  
S. Gacinovic ◽  
D. S. Thakrar ◽  
...  

1971 ◽  
Vol 178 (1053) ◽  
pp. 455-464 ◽  

1. Memory in day-old-chickens during the first few hours after learning can be made to decline by the prior intracranial injection of two classes of drugs. 2. Sodium pump inhibitors in increasing doses cause increasingly rapid loss of memory. 3. Protein synthesis inhibitors in increasing doses attain a maximum potency in causing memory decline and the rate may not be further accelerated by higher doses. 4. Adding a sodium pump inhibitor to the inhibition of protein synthesis increases memory loss. 5. Adding a protein synthesis inhibitor to a sodium pump inhibitor causes no further loss. 6. Therefore within a few minutes of learning a short-term memory of limited time span but independent of protein synthesis becomes supplemented and eventually replaced by a long-term storage requiring protein synthesis. The amount of long-term store is set by the amount of short-term memory. 7. The short-term store could be directly dependent on post-activation enhancement of Na + extrusion from neurons. Some physiological mechanisms by which this could be achieved and how this might activate protein synthesis are discussed.


1988 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 142-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
James M. Dunn ◽  
Paul E. Groth ◽  
Anne DeSimone

Tocainide is a primary analog of lidocaine with antiarrhythmic properties used to treat ventricular rhythm disorders. A 76-year-old man with benign paroxysmal premature ventricular contractions was treated with tocainide and developed a generalized maculopapular lupoid eruption, bleeding from the lips and gingivae, vertigo, gross tremors of the extremities, fever, and short-term memory loss, which required hospitalization. The patient recovered slowly over three months with no permanent sequelae after discontinuing the drug and receiving rigorous supportive care. His excellent physical status and absence of concomitant illness contributed to an uneventful recovery. Tocainide is a potent cardioactive drug with a long biological half-life and should be used with caution.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiucheng Xu ◽  
Keqiang Xu ◽  
Zhichao Li ◽  
Taotian Tu ◽  
Lei Xu ◽  
...  

AbstractBackgroundDengue Fever (DF) is a tropical mosquito-borne disease that threatens public health and causes enormous economic burdens worldwide. In China, DF expanded from coastal region to inner land, and the incidence sharply increased in the last few years. In this study, we conduct the analysis of dengue using the Long Short Term Memory (LSTM) recurrent neural networks. This is an artificial intelligence technology, to develop a precise dengue forecast model.Methodology/Principal FindingsThe model is developed from monthly dengue cases and local meteorological data of 2005–2018 among top 20 Chinese cities with a record of the highest dengue incidence. The first 13 year data were used to construct the LSTM and to predict the dengue outbreaks in 2018. The results are compared with the estimated dengue cases of other previously published models. Model performance and prediction accuracy were assessed using Root Mean Square Error (RMSE). With the LSTM method, the prediction measurements of average RMSE drop by 54.79% and 34.76% as compared with the Susceptible Infected Recovered (SIR) model and Zero Inflated Generalized Additive Model (ZIGAM). Our results showed that if only local data were used to develop forecast models, the LSTM neural networks would fail to capture the transmission characteristics of dengue virus in areas with fewer dengue cases. Contrarily, transfer learning (TL) can improve the accuracy of prediction of the LSTM neural network model in areas with fewer dengue incidences.Conclusion and significanceThe LSTM model is beneficial in predicting dengue incidence as compared with other previously published forecasting models. The findings provide a more precise forecast dengue model, which can help the local government and health-related departments respond early to dengue epidemics.Author summaryIn China, DF is a public health concern that poses a great economic burden on local governments. However, the incidence has sharply increased in recent years with growth in the sub-regions. With this issue, it will be challenging to develop an accurate and timely dengue forecast model. LSTM recurrent neural networks, deep learning methods and virus propagation rules by learning from observational data offer more advantages in predicting the prevalence of infectious disease dynamics than the traditional statistical model. The 2005–2017 data of the top 20 Chinese cities with the highest dengue incidence were used to construct the LSTM model, advantageous in predicting dengue in most cities. Moreover, the model helped to predict the dengue outbreaks in 2018 and used to compare the estimated dengue cases with the RMSE results of other previously published models. A thorough search of the literature shows that this is the first established dengue forecast model using the LSTM method, which is effective in predicting the trend of dengue dynamics.


Author(s):  
Nivedita Sinha ◽  
Rajesh R. Sinha ◽  
Ajay Krishna ◽  
Rashmi Singh

Background: Vitamin A deficiency (VAD) is a major preventable public health problem. Prevalence of VAD in preschool children was 5.7% (India), and 4.5% (Bihar). India is implementing biannual Vitamin A Supplementation (VAS) since 2007 along with 80 other countries. VAS was originally proposed as a short term measure, followed by dietary improvement. Since vulnerability to VAD is more in high priority districts (HPDs), it was deemed worthwhile to study the extent to which VAS programme is utilized in the 10 HPDs of Bihar with respect to the processes involved and the ultimate outcome of empowering the community with knowledge and capacity to combat VAD on their own.Methods: Cross sectional observational study conducted in 6 randomly selected blocks and 5 session sites per block of the 10 HPDs. 300 sites sampled for processes and 893 caregivers interviewed for their knowledge.Results: Out of 300 sites, 269 sites found functional, 30.85% sites had due lists and 30.11% had MCP cards; 20.44% had adequate VA. IEC displayed at 52.78% and 71.3% sessions conducted in shade. In 79.55% sites efforts made to determine age of child before administration. Correct use of recommended spoon known to 80.66%, benefits of VA to 76.57% and diseases due to VAD to 81.7% of FLWs. Knowledge regarding VA good in 33.4% of caregivers, average in 35.5%, and poor in 30.9%.Conclusions: Crucial gaps found in necessary inputs and conduct of VAS. Community knowledge found lacking for sustainable programme withdrawal. Better programme management will improve utilization. 


2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 612-614 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dahai Wang ◽  
Qinjian Hao ◽  
Lan He ◽  
Qiang Wang

Objective: To describe a case of leucine-rich, glioma inactivated 1 antibody-encephalitis presenting with psychosis. Methods: Case report. Results: A young man with leucine-rich, glioma inactivated 1-antibody encephalitis initially presented with acute psychotic symptoms, short-term memory loss and faciobrachial dystonic seizures. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed hippocampal lesions. Electroencephalography revealed frontotemporal slowing of background activity. Conclusion: Increased awareness of leucine-rich, glioma inactivated 1-antibody encephalitis may promote early recognition and treatment.


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