scholarly journals Human Biomonitoring of Selected Hazardous Compounds in Portugal: Part II—Lessons Learned on Mycotoxins

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 130
Author(s):  
Angelina Pena ◽  
Sofia Duarte ◽  
André M. P. T. Pereira ◽  
Liliana J. G. Silva ◽  
Célia S. M. Laranjeiro ◽  
...  

Human biomonitoring (HBM) data provide information on total exposure regardless of the route and sources of exposure. HBM studies have been applied to quantify human exposure to contaminants and environmental/occupational pollutants by means of determining the parent compounds, their metabolites, or even their reaction products in biological matrices. HBM studies performed among the Portuguese population are dispersed and limited. Thus, to overcome this knowledge gap, this work reviews the published Portuguese HBM information concerning mycotoxins detected in the urine, serum, milk, hair, and nails of different groups of the Portuguese population. This integrative approach to the available HBM data allows us to analyze the main determinants and patterns of exposure of the Portuguese population to the selected hazardous compounds, as well as to assess the potential health risks. We also aimed to identify the main difficulties and challenges of HBM through the analysis of the enrolled studies. Ultimately, this study aims to support national and European policies in promoting human health by summarizing the most important outcomes and lessons learned through the HBM studies carried out in Portugal.

Molecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 242
Author(s):  
Angelina Pena ◽  
Sofia Duarte ◽  
André M. P. T. Pereira ◽  
Liliana J. G. Silva ◽  
Célia S. M. Laranjeiro ◽  
...  

Human biomonitoring (HBM) data provide information on total exposure regardless of the route and sources of exposure. HBM studies have been applied to quantify human exposure to contaminants and environmental/occupational pollutants by determining the parent compounds, their metabolites or even their reaction products in biological matrices. HBM studies performed among the Portuguese population are disperse and limited. To overcome this knowledge gap, this review gathers, for the first time, the published Portuguese HBM information concerning polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), metals, metalloids, and pesticides concentrations detected in the urine, serum, milk, hair, and nails of different groups of the Portuguese population. This integrative insight of available HBM data allows the analysis of the main determinants and patterns of exposure of the Portuguese population to these selected hazardous compounds, as well as assessment of the potential health risks. Identification of the main difficulties and challenges of HBM through analysis of the enrolled studies was also an aim. Ultimately, this study aimed to support national and European policies promoting human health and summarizes the most important outcomes and lessons learned through the HBM studies carried out in Portugal.


Fermentation ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 33 ◽  
Author(s):  
Santiago Benito

The undesirable effects of some hazardous compounds involved in the different steps of the winemaking process may pose health risks to consumers; hence, the importance of compliance with recent international food safety standards, including the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) standards. In recent years, there has been a rise in the development of new technologies in response to the hazardous effects of chemical compounds detected during the winemaking process, whether naturally produced or added during different winemaking processes. The main purpose was to reduce the levels of some compounds, such as biogenic amines, ethyl carbamate, ochratoxin A, and sulfur dioxide. These technological advances are currently considered a necessity, because they produce wines free of health-hazardous compounds and, most importantly, help in the management and prevention of health risks. This review shows how to prevent and control the most common potential health risks of wine using a HACCP methodology.


2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 959-963 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yordanka Peycheva ◽  
Snezhana Lazarova

The formation of comprehensive and in-depth notions of objects and phenomena in the world can be achieved when the mastery of knowledge and skills is carried out in a system realized in the context of integration of different scientific directions. One of the main issues in modern education is related to the contradiction - on one hand between the need to form the skills necessary for the orientation and adaptation of the personality in the dynamics of the globalizing world and on the other - the education which is largely based on unilateral acquiring of knowledge and skills within the different subject areas. This influences the development of a worldview and the formation of an adequate attitude towards the problems under consideration and the world as a whole. The knowledge and skills acquired today are often “locked” in the respective direction. The cross-curricular unity in the curriculum is of a recommended nature, but even if it is realized, it does not fully meet the need for a comprehensive and multifaceted consideration of global issues, as a result of which the student not only understands, reflects, but also applies the lessons learned in the process of creating a product - ideal or material. Combining the intellectual nature of the cognitive process with the practice activity are conditions in which the students are highly active and achieve better learning outcomes. Therefore, it is expedient for the different directions to correspond more closely to each other and to carry out effective cross-curricular integration. The concept of applying an integrative approach in the current paper is based on the idea of creating pedagogical conditions for reconciling the goals and expected outcomes of technology and entrepreneurship and natural sciences studied at the initial stage of the primary education. Integration can take place on two levels - knowledge and skills. We believe that the lapbook as an innovative didactic tool contains the necessary potential for effective realization of the educational goals in both directions in terms of achieving the expected results. In the course of its elaboration, new information is acquired in the field of engineering and technology, specific skills underlying the curricula of technology and entrepreneurship programs are developed. At the same time, a number of subjects from the learning content, which are considered from the natural science point of view, are enriched and perceived in a technological way, after which they find place in an attractive book - a lapbook, made by the students themselves. Its utilitarian value is multiplied by the personal contribution to its creation - not only as an object but also as content. The main topics that are of interest to the students are exploring and preserving nature, jobs, modern technical achievements, holidays and customs. As a result of the adequate integration of competences, tailored to curricula, a number of skills are formed, such as: skills for searching on their own, systematization and presentation of information, and application of the lessons learned in a new situation.


Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 940
Author(s):  
Linda Rubinstein ◽  
Amber M. Paul ◽  
Charles Houseman ◽  
Metadel Abegaz ◽  
Steffy Tabares Ruiz ◽  
...  

Long duration spaceflight poses potential health risks to astronauts during flight and re-adaptation after return to Earth. There is an emerging need for NASA to provide successful and reliable therapeutics for long duration missions when capability for medical intervention will be limited. Clinically relevant, human placenta-derived therapeutic stromal cells (PLX-PAD) are a promising therapeutic alternative. We found that treatment of adult female mice with PLX-PAD near the onset of simulated weightlessness by hindlimb unloading (HU, 30 d) was well-tolerated and partially mitigated decrements caused by HU. Specifically, PLX-PAD treatment rescued HU-induced thymic atrophy, and mitigated HU-induced changes in percentages of circulating neutrophils, but did not rescue changes in the percentages of lymphocytes, monocytes, natural killer (NK) cells, T-cells and splenic atrophy. Further, PLX-PAD partially mitigated HU effects on the expression of select cytokines in the hippocampus. In contrast, PLX-PAD failed to protect bone and muscle from HU-induced effects, suggesting that the mechanisms which regulate the structure of these mechanosensitive tissues in response to disuse are discrete from those that regulate the immune- and central nervous system (CNS). These findings support the therapeutic potential of placenta-derived stromal cells for select physiological deficits during simulated spaceflight. Multiple countermeasures are likely needed for comprehensive protection from the deleterious effects of prolonged spaceflight.


2021 ◽  
Vol 71 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Trishala Gopikrishna ◽  
Harini Keerthana Suresh Kumar ◽  
Kumar Perumal ◽  
Elavarashi Elangovan

Abstract Purpose Fermented soybean foods (FSF) is popularly consumed in the South-East Asian countries. Bacillus species, a predominant microorganism present in these foods, have demonstrated beneficial and deleterious impacts on human health. These microorganisms produce bioactive compounds during fermentation that have beneficial impacts in improving human health. However, the health risks associated with FSF, food pathogens, biogenic amines (BAs) production, and late-onset anaphylaxis, remain a concern. The purpose of this review is to present an in-depth analysis of positive and negative impacts as a result of consumption of FSF along with the measures to alleviate health risks for human consumption. Methods This review was composed by scrutinizing contemporary literature of peer-reviewed publications related to Bacillus and FSF. Based on the results from academic journals, this review paper was categorized into FSF, role of Bacillus species in these foods, process of fermentation, beneficial, and adverse influence of these foods along with methods to improve food safety. Special emphasis was given to the potential benefits of bioactive compounds released during fermentation of soybean by Bacillus species. Results The nutritional and functional properties of FSF are well-appreciated, due to the release of peptides and mucilage, which have shown health benefits: in managing cardiac disease, gastric disease, cancer, allergies, hepatic disease, obesity, immune disorders, and especially microbial infections due to the presence of probiotic property, which is a potential alternative to antibiotics. Efficient interventions were established to mitigate pitfalls like the techniques to reduce BAs and food pathogens and by using a defined starter culture to improve the safety and quality of these foods. Conclusion Despite some of the detrimental effects produced by these foods, potential health benefits have been observed. Therefore, soybean foods fermented by Bacillus can be a promising food by integrating effective measures for maintaining safety and quality for human consumption. Further, in vivo analysis on the activity and dietary interventions of bioactive compounds among animal models and human volunteers are yet to be achieved which is essential to commercialize them for safe consumption by humans, especially immunocompromised patients.


Toxin Reviews ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-13
Author(s):  
Masumeh Taheri ◽  
Mohamad Hosein Mahmudy Gharaie ◽  
Jalil Mehrzad ◽  
Michael Stone ◽  
Reza Afshari

2009 ◽  
Vol 28 (6-7) ◽  
pp. 393-400 ◽  
Author(s):  
JF Nyland ◽  
EK Silbergeld

There is an urgent need to develop efficient and rapid strategies in order to characterize the potential health risks associated with nanomaterials, given the speed with which applications and uses are increasing. Use of standard toxicity methods will not be sufficient to meet this need. This article proposes the adoption of two novel guidances: the system’s biological approach to toxicity testing advocated by the US National Research Council and a nanobiological perspective that identifies key events at the nanoscale that are relevant to signal transduction and structural biology.


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