Responses of serum chemokines to dramatic changes of air pollution levels, a panel study.

Background: Despite the in vitro and in vivo evidence, studies are limited in evaluating whether chemokines are potential inflammatory mediators in response to air pollution exposure in humans. Methods: We conducted a panel study coinciding with the Beijing Olympics, when temporary air pollution controls were implemented. We measured a suite of serum chemokines among healthy adults before, during and after the Olympics, respectively. Linear mixed-effect models were used to evaluate changes in chemokine levels over the three time periods. Results: In response to the 50% drop in air pollution levels during the games, levels of RANTES, MCP-2, and TARC decreased by 25.8%, 20.9% and 35.3%, respectively (p < 0.001) from pre-Olympics, and then increased by 45.8%, 34.9% and 61.5%, respectively (p < 0.001) after the games when air pollution levels went up again. Similar patterns were observed in subgroup analyses by sex, age, smoking and body mass index. GRO-α and IL-8 decreased significantly during the games (22.5% and 30.4%), and increased non-significantly after the games. Eotaxin-1 only increased significantly from during- to post-games. Conclusions: The strongest associations with air pollution levels were observed among RANTES, TARC and MCP-2. Those chemokines may play important roles in the air pollution-induced inflammatory pathway.

Consumption of Lake Ontario sport fish and the incidence of colorectal cancer in the New York State Angler Cohort Study (NYSACS).

Fish consumption is hypothesized to reduce the risk of colorectal cancer. Nonetheless, consuming sport fish from the Great Lakes increases exposure to certain persistent organic pollutants, namely polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorine insecticides, which may increase the risk of cancer. Evidence that exposure to persistent organic pollutants is associated with colorectal cancer is sparse. We examined colorectal cancer incidence in the New York State Angler Cohort Study (NYSACS), a prospective cohort of 17,110 anglers and spouses age 18-40 years at enrollment. In 1991, participants completed a mailed self-administered questionnaire that ascertained the number of years that fish from Lake Ontario were consumed, as well as potential confounders. Forty-one histologically confirmed first primary incident colorectal cancers diagnosed as of December 31, 2008 were identified via the New York State Cancer Registry. Vital status was ascertained by linkage with the Social Security Administration Death File. Rate ratios (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated with Poisson regression, adjusting for age, pack-years of smoking, and sex. Compared with never consumers, colorectal cancer incidence was statistically non-significantly lower among consumers of Lake Ontario sport fish (RR=0.66; 95% CI: 0.35; 1.24). Incidence of colon cancer was lower among Lake Ontario sport fish consumers (RR=0.45, 95%CI: 0.20; 1.00). We did not observe any evidence of effect measure modification by sex or age. Although consumption of Lake Ontario sport fish may have an inverse association with colorectal cancer risk, inferences are complicated by a small number of cases and a lack of information regarding potential confounders including other dietary factors. However, our results do not provide support for the hypothesis that consumption of contaminated sport fish increases the risk of colorectal cancer.

Peak expiratory flow, breath rate and blood pressure in adults with changes in particulate matter air pollution during the Beijing Olympics: a panel study.

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to examine whether changes in short-term exposures to particulate matter are associated with changes in lung function, breath rate, and blood pressure among healthy adults and whether smoking status modifies the association. METHODS: We took advantage of the artificially controlled changes in air pollution levels that occurred during the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China and conducted a panel study of 201 Beijing residents. Data were collected before, during, and after the Olympics, respectively. Linear mixed-effect models and generalized estimating equation models were used to compare measurements of peak expiratory flow, breath rate and blood pressure across three time points. RESULTS: The mean values of peak expiratory flow were 346.0 L/min, 399.3 L/min, and 364.1L/min over the three study periods. Peak expiratory flow levels increased in 78% of the participants when comparing the during- with pre- Olympics time points, while peak expiratory flow levels decreased in 80% of participants for the post- and during-Olympic periods comparison. In subgroup analyses comparing the during-Olympic to pre-Olympic time points, we found a larger percentage change in peak expiratory flow (+17%) among female, younger and non-smoking participants than among male, elderly and smoking participants (+12%). The percentage of participants with a fast breath rate (>20/min) changed from 9.7% to 4.9% to 30.1% among females, and from 7.9% to 2.6% to 27.3% among males over the three time points. The changes in blood pressure over the three study periods were not very clear, although there is an increase in diastolic pressure and a decrease in pulse pressure among males during the games. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that exposure to different air pollution levels has significant effects on respiratory function. Smoking, age and gender appear to modify participants' biological response to changes in air quality.

Indoor air pollution and risk of lung cancer among Chinese female non-smokers.

PURPOSE: To investigate indoor particulate matter (PM) level and various indoor air pollution exposure, and to examine their relationships with risk of lung cancer in an urban Chinese population, with a focus on non-smoking women. METHODS: We conducted a case-control study in Taiyuan, China, consisting of 399 lung cancer cases and 466 controls, of which 164 cases and 218 controls were female non-smokers. Indoor PM concentrations, including PM(1), PM(2.5), PM(7), PM(10), and TSP, were measured using a particle mass monitor. Unconditional logistic regression models were used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) and 95 % confidence intervals after adjusting for age, education, annual income, and smoking. RESULTS: Among non-smoking women, lung cancer was strongly associated with multiple sources of indoor air pollution 10 years ago, including heavy exposure to environmental tobacco smoke at work (aOR = 3.65), high frequency of cooking (aOR = 3.30), and solid fuel usage for cooking (aOR = 4.08) and heating (aOR(coal stove) = 2.00). Housing characteristics related to poor ventilation, including single-story, less window area, no separate kitchen, no ventilator, and rarely having windows open, are associated with lung cancer. Indoor medium PM(2.5) concentration was 68 µg/m(3), and PM(10) was 230 µg/m(3). PM levels in winter are strongly correlated with solid fuel usage for cooking, heating, and ventilators. PM(1) levels in cases are more than 3 times higher than that in controls. Every 10 µg/m(3) increase in PM(1) is associated with 45 % increased risk of lung cancer. CONCLUSIONS: Indoor air pollution plays an important role in the development of lung cancer among non-smoking Chinese women.

Metabolomics Profiling before, during, and after the Beijing Olympics: A Panel Study of Within-Individual Differences during Periods of High and Low Air Pollution.

BACKGROUND: The metabolome is a collection of exogenous chemicals and metabolites from cellular processes that may reflect the body's response to environmental exposures. Studies of air pollution and metabolomics are limited. OBJECTIVES: To explore changes in the human metabolome before, during, and after the 2008 Beijing Olympics Games, when air pollution was high, low, and high, respectively. METHODS: Serum samples were collected before, during, and after the Olympics from 26 participants in an existing panel study. Gas and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry were used in metabolomics analysis. Repeated measures ANOVA, network analysis, and enrichment analysis methods were employed to identify metabolites and classes associated with air pollution changes. RESULTS: A total of 886 molecules were measured in our metabolomics analysis. Network partitioning identified four modules with 65 known metabolites that significantly changed across the three time points. All known molecules in the first module ([Formula: see text]) were lipids (e.g., eicosapentaenoic acid, stearic acid). The second module consisted primarily of dipeptides ([Formula: see text], e.g., isoleucylglycine) plus 8 metabolites from four other classes (e.g., hypoxanthine, 12-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid). Most of the metabolites in Modules 3 (19 of 23) and 4 (5 of 5) were unknown. Enrichment analysis of module-identified metabolites indicted significantly overrepresented pathways, including long- and medium-chain fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids (n3 and n6), eicosanoids, lysolipid, dipeptides, fatty acid metabolism, and purine metabolism [(hypo) xanthine/inosine-containing pathways]. CONCLUSIONS: We identified two major metabolic signatures: one consisting of lipids, and a second that included dipeptides, polyunsaturated fatty acids, taurine, and xanthine. Metabolites in both groups decreased during the 2008 Beijing Olympics, when air pollution was low, and increased after the Olympics, when air pollution returned to normal (high) levels. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP3705.

How do glutathione antioxidant enzymes and total antioxidant status respond to air pollution exposure?

This study aims to investigate how antioxidant enzyme activity and overall antioxidant capacity respond to short-term changes in exposure to air pollution. 201 participants were recruited before- and followed up during- and after- the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Serum levels of antioxidant enzymes including glutathione S-transferases (GST), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione reductase (GR), and total antioxidant status (TAS) were measured. We used linear mixed-effects models to compare changes in antioxidant enzymes across the three periods after adjusting for potential confounding factors. Among all participants, glutathione peroxidase (GPx) levels decreased by 12.0% when air pollution dropped by 50-60% during the Olympics and increased by 6.5% when air pollution levels rose after the Olympics. The magnitude of increase among males, smokers, and older individuals was relatively smaller compared to females, nonsmokers, and younger individuals. Among all participants, total antioxidant status (TAS) significantly decreased by 6.23% during the games and continued to decrease by 4.41% after the games. However, among females, nonsmokers, and younger participants, there was an increase in TAS response to the elevated air pollution levels. Our study observed strong responses in GPx and TAS levels to the short-term decrease and increase of air pollution levels and responses varied among subgroups.

Raw Garlic Consumption and Lung Cancer in a Chinese Population.

BACKGROUND: Evidence of anticancer properties of garlic for different cancer sites has been reported previously in in vitro and in vivo experimental studies but there is limited epidemiologic evidence on the association between garlic and lung cancer. METHODS: We examined the association between raw garlic consumption and lung cancer in a case-control study conducted between 2005 and 2007 in Taiyuan, China. Epidemiologic data was collected by face-to-face interviews from 399 incident lung cancer cases and 466 healthy controls. We used unconditional logistic regression models to estimate crude and adjusted ORs (aOR) and their 95% confidence intervals (CI). Adjusted models controlled for age, sex, average annual household income 10 years ago, smoking, and indoor air pollution. RESULTS: Compared with no intake, raw garlic intake was associated with lower risk of development of lung cancer with a dose-response pattern (aOR for <2 times/week = 0.56; 95% CI, 0.39-0.81 and aOR for ≥2 times/week = 0.50; 95% CI, 0.34-0.74; Ptrend = 0.0002). Exploratory analysis showed an additive interaction of raw garlic consumption with indoor air pollution and with any supplement use in association with lung cancer. CONCLUSIONS: The results of the current study suggest that raw garlic consumption is associated with reduced risk of lung cancer in a Chinese population. IMPACT: This study contributes to the limited research in human population on the association between garlic and lung cancer and advocates further investigation into the use of garlic in chemoprevention of lung cancer. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev; 25(4); 624-33. ©2016 AACR.

Maternal fish consumption and infant birth size and gestation: New York State Angler Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: The scientific literature poses a perplexing dilemma for pregnant women with respect to the consumption of fish from natural bodies of water. On one hand, fish is a good source of protein, low in fat and a rich source of other nutrients all of which have presumably beneficial effects on developing embryos and fetuses. On the other hand, consumption of fish contaminated with environmental toxicants such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) has been associated with decrements in gestation and birth size. METHODS: 2,716 infants born between 1986-1991 to participants of the New York State Angler Cohort Study were studied with respect to duration of maternal consumption of contaminated fish from Lake Ontario and its tributaries and gestation and birth size. Hospital delivery records (maternal and newborn) were obtained for 92% of infants for the ascertainment of gestation (weeks), birth size (weight, length, chest, and head circumference) and other known determinants of fetal growth (i.e., maternal parity, history of placental infarction, uterine bleeding, pregnancy loss or cigarette smoking and infant's race, sex and presence of birth defect). Duration of maternal fish consumption prior to the index infant's birth was categorized as: none; 1-2, 3-7, 8+ years, while birth weight (in grams), birth length (in centimeters), and head and chest circumference (in centimeters) were left as continuous variables in multiple linear regression models. Birth size percentiles, ponderal indices and head to chest circumference ratios were computed to further assess proportionality and birth size in relation to gestational age. RESULTS: Analysis of variance failed to identify significant mean differences in gestation or any measure of birth size in relation to duration of maternal lifetime fish consumption. Multiple linear regressions identified gestational age, male sex, number of daily cigarettes, parity and placental infarction, as significant determinants of birth size. CONCLUSIONS: The results support the absence of an adverse relation between Lake Ontario fish consumption and reduced birth size as measured by weight, length and head circumference. Biological determinants and maternal cigarette smoking during pregnancy remain important determinants of birth size.

PCB congeners and pesticides and female fecundity, New York State Angler Prospective Pregnancy Study.

Consumption of PCB-contaminated sport fish from Lake Ontario has been reported to be associated with diminished female fecundity. To identify Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners and other pesticides that might be associated with reduced fecundity, we followed 102 women aged 20-34 years attempting pregnancy who completed daily diaries for 12 at risk menstrual cycles. Fecundity referred to time-to-pregnancy (TTP) or the number of at risk menstrual cycles required for pregnancy. Blood specimens were obtained for 88 (86%) women and were analyzed using gas chromatography and electron capture for 66 PCB congeners and seven pesticides. Laboratory values were recovery, background and fat corrected prior to natural log transformation. Using stepwise discriminant analysis, congeners IUPAC #205 and #206 and hexaclorobenzene were significantly and positively associated with increasing TTP when women were categorized as becoming pregnant in the first or first three at risk menstrual cycles, respectively. Congeners #205 and #206 are reported to have (anti) estrogenic structural activity.

Vitamin D status and 5-year changes in periodontal disease measures among postmenopausal women: the Buffalo OsteoPerio Study.

BACKGROUND: Vitamin D is hypothesized to prevent periodontal disease progression through its immune-modulating properties and its role in maintaining systemic calcium concentrations. The authors investigated associations between plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] (collected 1997 to 2000) and the 5-year change in periodontal disease measures from baseline (1997 to 2000) to follow-up (2002 to 2005) among 655 postmenopausal women in a Women's Health Initiative Observational Study ancillary study. Exploratory analyses were conducted in 628 women who also had 25(OH)D measures at follow-up. METHODS: Four continuous measures of the 5-year change in periodontal disease were assessed using alveolar crest height (ACH), clinical attachment level (CAL), probing depth (PD), and percentage of gingival sites that bled on assessment. Linear regression was used to estimate ß-coefficients, standard errors, and P values corresponding to change in periodontal disease (a 1-mm change in ACH, CAL, or PD or a 1-unit change in the percentage of gingival sites that bled) for a 10-nmol/L difference in 25(OH)D. Models were adjusted for age, education, dental visit frequency, smoking, diabetes status, current medications affecting bone health, baseline measures of periodontal disease, body mass index, and recreational physical activity. RESULTS: No statistically significant associations were observed between baseline 25(OH)D and change in periodontal disease measures, overall or in a subset (n = 442) of women with stable 25(OH)D concentrations [25(OH)D change <20 nmol/L from baseline to follow-up]. RESULTS also did not vary significantly in analyses that were stratified by baseline periodontal disease status. CONCLUSIONS: No association between baseline 25(OH)D and the subsequent 5-year change in periodontal disease measures was observed. Vitamin D status may not influence periodontal disease progression. More studies are needed to confirm these results.

Plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations and periodontal disease in postmenopausal women.

BACKGROUND: Vitamin D has anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties that, together with its influence on bone health, may confer periodontal benefit. METHODS: Cross-sectional associations (years 1997-2000) between plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration [25(OH)D] and periodontal measure were investigated among 920 postmenopausal women. Measures of chronic disease were defined based on: 1) alveolar crestal height (ACH) measures from intraoral radiographs and tooth loss and 2) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)/American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) criteria using measures of clinical attachment level and probing depth (PD). Acute oral inflammation was assessed by the percentage of gingival sites that bled upon assessment with a probe. Logistic regression was used to estimate the odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for periodontal disease among participants with adequate [25(OH)D ≥50 nmol/L] compared with deficient/inadequate [25(OH)D <50 nmol/L] vitamin D status adjusted for age, dental visit frequency, and body mass index. RESULTS: No association was observed between vitamin D status and periodontal disease defined by ACH and tooth loss (adjusted OR = 0.96, 95% CI = 0.68 to 1.35). In contrast, women with adequate compared with deficient/inadequate vitamin D status had 33% lower odds (95% CI = 5% to 53%) of periodontal disease according to the CDC/AAP definition and 42% lower odds (95% CI = 21% to 58%) of having ≥50% of gingival sites that bled. CONCLUSIONS: Vitamin D status was inversely associated with gingival bleeding, an acute measure of oral health and inflammation, and inversely associated with clinical categories of chronic periodontal disease that incorporated PD, an indicator of oral inflammation. However, vitamin D was not associated with chronic periodontal disease based on measures of ACH in combination with tooth loss.

Associations between the worksite environment and perceived health culture.

PURPOSE: Recognition regarding the importance of health culture in the worksite health promotion literature is growing; however, little empirical evidence exists to guide programmatic or research efforts. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the health supporting structural features of the workplace and perceived health culture. DESIGN: Cross-sectional. SAMPLE: Twenty-one worksites with culture data from 2467 employees from Western New York. MEASURES: The Heart Check (HC) and Lifegain Health Culture Audit (LHCA) were used to assess worksite environment and worksite health culture, respectively. ANALYSIS: Pearson r was used to examine the associations between HC factors and LHCA mean scores. Multiple linear regression was used to predict LHCA mean scores from selected HC factors. RESULTS: Adjusting for age and gender, several significant correlations between HC and LHCA scores were identified, ranging from r = .54 (p < .05) to r = .72 (p < .001). The HC Environmental Structure factor (HCES) and HC Communication factor (HCC) were significantly correlated to LHCA scores (r = .55 and r = .72, respectively; p < .01) but not to each other. A regression model combining HCES and HCC was found to be predictive of LHCA score (R(2) = .69, p < .001). CONCLUSIONS: Modifiable components of the worksite environment are strongly and positively related to employee perceptions of the worksite health culture.

Reliability of sport fish consumption in the New York State Angler cohort study.

This paper examines the reliability of sport fish consumption data from the New York State Angler Cohort Study (NYSACS). NYSACS is a prospective cohort study conducted among New York State registered sportsmen and fishermen. Sport fish consumption information for New York State waters including the Great Lakes between June 1990 and June 1991 were collected through self-administered questionnaires, Spouses of male anglers were asked to provide their husbands' fish consumption during the same time period. A short telephone interview after the cohort was ascertained was also conducted among about 100 study participants for the purpose of quality control. Percentage agreement, kappa, and weighted kappa were calculated to evaluate the reliability of the interview using spousal data and reinterview data. Overall, for the total fish consumption between June 1990 and June 1991, percentage agreement, kappa, and weighted kappa between spousal data and primary response were 67.28%, 0.5087, and 0.6157, respectively. For reinterview data, weighted kappa ranged from 0.4510 to 0.5285 for season-specific analysis and kappa ranged from 0.4615 to 0.7006 for fish species-specific analysis. Spouses may be a good source of proxy data for fish consumption. The reliability of sport fish consumption data for the NYSACS study is acceptable, suggesting that the food frequency measuring methods employed are a viable approach to obtain retrospective sport fish consumption data from sportsmen and subsistence anglers.

Profiles of ortho-polychlorinated biphenyl congeners, dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene, hexachlorobenzene, and Mirex among male Lake Ontario sportfish consumers: the New York State Angler cohort study.

Great Lakes sportfish consumption is a recognized human exposure source to environmental organochlorine compounds. Using data collected as part of the New York State Angler Cohort Study, 203 males were considered with regard to history of Lake Ontario sportfish consumption and sera levels of 57 ortho-substituted polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners, dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene, hexachlorobenzene, and Mirex. Consumption of six species of highly contaminated Lake Ontario sportfish during the years 1980 to 1990 was considered. Exposure was weighted by average annual frequency of consumption, whole-fish PCB estimates, and meal size to determine a continuous index of exposure. This index was dichotomized to compare "consumers" to "nonconsumers" in several procedures. Recovery and lipid-adjusted serum values for PCB congener IUPAC Nos. 138+163 (rsp=0.3), 183 (rsp=0.3), 187 (rsp=0.4), and 188 (rsp=0.3) and Mirex (rsp=0.4) were significantly correlated with the index of fish consumption (P<0.001). A logistic regression model, using forward stepwise selection procedures (alpha in/out=0.002/0.004), was employed to account for high intercorrelations among organochlorine predictor variables. Mirex was the sole statistically significant predictor variable of "consumer/nonconsumer." A one-unit increase in log Mirex was associated with a 92.0% increase in the odds of having reported sportfish consumption (OR=1.92, 95%CI=1.43, 2.58). Age, body mass index, cigarette smoking, water/wildfowl consumption, and year of sampling were considered covariates. The results of this study support the premise that long-term dietary consumption of Lake Ontario sportfish, even at comparatively low levels, contributes significantly to the body burden of organochlorine compounds in western New York anglers and sportsmen.

Hormonally active agents in the environment and children's behavior: assessing effects on children's gender-dimorphic outcomes.

BACKGROUND: Early sex hormone exposure contributes to gender-dimorphic behavioral development in mammals, including humans. Environmental toxicants concentrated in contaminated sport fish can interfere with the actions of sex steroids. METHODS: This study developed an outcome variable by combining gender-dimorphic behaviors that differentiates boys and girls. Offspring of participants in the New York State Angler Cohort Study (NYSACS) were targeted in a parent-report postal survey. Instruments were selected based on findings of gender differences in the general population. RESULTS: A linear discriminant function model incorporating three gender behavior scales correctly classified the sex of 97.7% of children (252 boys and 234 girls) from a random NYSACS sample. The discriminant function was cross-validated by correctly classifying the sex of 98.4% of children (457 boys and 425 girls) from the remaining NYSACS cases and 97.6% of children (154 boys and 142 girls) from an independent school sample. Within-sex stepwise multiple regression analyses revealed that masculine behavior increased among boys with age and with the number of years of maternal sport fish consumption. In girls, older age and previous live-born siblings were associated with more masculine behavior, whereas feminine behavior increased with the duration of breast feeding. These associations were replicated in an independent sample. CONCLUSIONS: A linear discriminant function effectively transformed the binary classification of sex (male-female) to a bipolar continuum of gender (masculinity-femininity). Findings from this study are consistent with the hypothesis that environmental contaminants contribute to shifts in gender-role behavior. Future investigations will need to account for competing explanations of this effect.