Association between drinking water quality and mental health and the modifying role of diet: a prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Environmental factors play an important role in developing mental disorders. This study aimed to investigate the associations of metal and nonmetal elements in drinking water with the risk of depression and anxiety and to assess whether diets modulate these associations. METHODS: We conducted a prospective cohort study including 24,285 participants free from depression and anxiety from the Yinzhou Cohort study in the 2016-2021 period. The exposures were measured by multiplying metal and nonmetal element concentrations in local pipeline terminal tap water samples and total daily drinking water intakes. Cox regression models adjusted for multi-level covariates were used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs). RESULTS: During an average follow-up period of 4.72 and 4.68 years, 773 and 1334 cases of depression and anxiety were identified, respectively. A 1 standard deviation (SD) increase in manganese exposure reduced the incidence of depression by 8% (HR 0.92, 95%CI 0.88 to 0.97). In contrast, with a 1 SD increase in copper and cadmium exposure, the incidence of depression increased by 6% (HR 1.06, 95%CI 1.01 to 1.11) and 8% (HR 1.08, 95%CI 1.00 to 1.17), respectively. The incidence of anxiety increased by 39% (HR 1.39, 95%CI 1.20 to 1.62), 33% (HR 1.33, 95%CI 1.03 to 1.71), and 14% (HR 1.14, 95%CI 1.03 to 1.25) respectively for a 1 SD increase in manganese, iron, and selenium exposure. Diets have a moderating effect on the associations of metal and nonmetal elements with the risk of anxiety. Stronger associations were observed in older, low-income groups and low-education groups. CONCLUSIONS: We found significant associations between exposure to metal and nonmetal elements and depression and anxiety. Diets regulated the associations to some extent.

Predictive modeling of co-infection in lupus nephritis using multiple machine learning algorithms.

This study aimed to analyze peripheral blood lymphocyte subsets in lupus nephritis (LN) patients and use machine learning (ML) methods to establish an effective algorithm for predicting co-infection in LN. This study included 111 non-infected LN patients, 72 infected LN patients, and 206 healthy controls (HCs). Patient information, infection characteristics, medication, and laboratory indexes were recorded. Eight ML methods were compared to establish a model through a training group and verify the results in a test group. We trained the ML models, including Logistic Regression, Decision Tree, K-Nearest Neighbors, Support Vector Machine, Multi-Layer Perceptron, Random Forest, Ada boost, Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGB), and further evaluated potential predictors of infection. Infected LN patients had significantly decreased levels of T, B, helper T, suppressor T, and natural killer cells compared to non-infected LN patients and HCs. The number of regulatory T cells (Tregs) in LN patients was significantly lower than in HCs, with infected patients having the lowest Tregs count. Among the ML algorithms, XGB demonstrated the highest accuracy and precision for predicting LN infections. The innate and adaptive immune systems are disrupted in LN patients, and monitoring lymphocyte subsets can help prevent and treat infections. The XGB algorithm was recommended for predicting co-infection in LN.

Lack of association between polymorphisms from genome-wide association studies and tuberculosis in the Chinese population.

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified rs4331426 and rs2057178 as being associated with tuberculosis (TB) in African populations. Both are common single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in Africans, but they are much rarer in Eurasian populations. In order to corroborate these results, we carried out a case-control study in the Chinese population; these 2 SNPs were genotyped in 600 pulmonary TB patients and 618 healthy controls. The results showed that neither of the SNPs was associated with TB, even after stratification by gender, age, and smear status. Considering the limitation of poor coverage of variations in commercial available genotyping platforms in African populations, further GWAS should be conducted in other populations such as Indian and Chinese. Moreover, future genetic studies on host susceptibility to TB need to take into account all the variables, including host, environment, pathogen, and interactions.

Drinking water quality and inflammatory bowel disease: a prospective cohort study.

Environmental factors, such as drinking water and diets, play an important role in the development of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). This study aimed to investigate the associations of metal elements and disinfectants in drinking water with the risk of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and to assess whether diet influences these associations. We conducted a prospective cohort study including 22,824 participants free from IBD from the Yinzhou cohort study in the 2016-2022 period with an average follow-up of 5.24 years. The metal and disinfectant concentrations were measured in local pipeline terminal tap water samples. Cox regression models adjusted for multi-level covariates were used to estimate adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs). During an average follow-up period of 5.24 years, 46 cases of IBD were identified. For every 1 standard deviation (SD) increase in the concentration of manganese, mercury, selenium, sulfur tetraoxide (SO4), chlorine, and nitrate nitrogen (NO3_N) were associated with a higher risk of IBD with the HRs of 1.45 (95% CI: 1.14 to 1.84), 1.51 (95% CI: 1.24-1.82), 1.29 (95% CI: 1.03-1.61), 1.52 (95% CI: 1.26-1.83), 1.26 (95% CI: 1.18-1.34), and 1.66 (95% CI: 1.32-2.09), whereas zinc and fluorine were inversely associated with IBD with the HRs of 0.42 (95% CI: 0.24 to 0.73) and 0.68 (95% CI: 0.54-0.84), respectively. Stronger associations were observed in females, higher income groups, low education groups, former drinkers, and participants who never drink tea. Diets have a moderating effect on the associations of metal and nonmetal elements with the risk of IBD. We found significant associations between exposure to metals and disinfectants and IBD. Diets regulated the associations to some extent.

Retraction Note to: Mental health status, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors of migrant children in eastern coastal China in comparison to urban children: a cross-sectional survey.

[This retracts the article DOI: 10.1186/s13034-018-0219-2.].

Association of particulate matter air pollution and hospital visits for respiratory diseases: a time-series study from China.

Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is a mixture of multiple components, which is associated with several chronic diseases, including respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. We evaluated the association between daily PM2.5 and PM2.5-10 exposure and hospital visits for respiratory diseases. Hospital visits for respiratory diseases were collected from Yinzhou Health Information System database. We used generalized additive models to examine the excess relative risk (ERR) and 95% confidence interval for hospital visits for respiratory diseases associated with each 10-µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 and PM2.5-10 concentration. Non-linear exposure-response relationship between PM exposure and hospital visits for respiratory diseases was evaluated by a smooth spline. The ERRs for hospital visits for respiratory diseases associated with a 10-µg/m3 increase in the 6-day cumulative average concentration of PM2.5 and PM2.5-10 were 5.40 (95% CI 2.32, 8.57) and 6.37% (95% CI 1.84, 11.10), respectively. The findings remained stable when we adjusted other gaseous air pollution. PM2.5 and PM2.5-10 were associated with the increased visits for the acute upper respiratory infection, pneumonia, asthma, and COPD. In this time-series study, we found a positive association between daily particulate matter exposure and hospital visits for respiratory diseases.

Mental health status, and suicidal thoughts and behaviors of migrant children in eastern coastal China in comparison to urban children: a cross-sectional survey.

PURPOSE: Although adolescents' mental health problems and self-injurious thoughts and behaviors (SITBs) have been a serious public health concern worldwide, descriptions of risk factors for SITBs often fail to take migration into account. There are roughly 35.8 million migrant children in China who, with their parents, moved from original rural residence to urban areas. Little is known about migrant children's mental health status and levels of SITBs. This study aims to explore the mental health status and SITBs of migrant children living in eastern coastal China in comparison to their urban counterparts. METHODS: This study was a cross-sectional survey conducted in 13 schools. Mental health status and SITBs were measured via self-administered questionnaires. Associations between strengths and difficulties questionnaire outcomes and SITBs were investigated. RESULTS: Data from 4217 students (1858 migrant children and 2359 urban children) were collected. After controlling for gender, age, family economic status, parent's education level and parents' marital status, migrant children scored higher for total difficulties (p < 0.001) and externalizing problems (p < 0.001) than did urban children and reported higher rates of suicidal ideation (p < 0.05) and self-injurious behaviors (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Migrant children, compared with urban children, have a higher risk of externalizing problems and SITBs. It is urgent to address these problems by providing both mental health services at migrant-exclusive schools and equitable education and social welfare to migrant children.

Acute effect of fine and coarse particular matter on cardiovascular visits in Ningbo, China.

Although a growing number of epidemiological studies have been conducted on size-specific health effects of particulate matter in China, results remain inconsistent. In this study, we investigated acute effect of fine and coarse particular matter on cardiovascular hospital visits in Ningbo, China. We used generalized additive models to examine short-term effects of PM2.5 and PM10-2.5 on cardiovascular hospital visits by adjustment for temporal, seasonal, and meteorological effects. Subgroup analyses were conducted by age, sex, and season. We also examined the stability of their effects in multi-pollutant models. We found that PM2.5 were associated with cardiovascular hospital visits (RR = 1.006; 95% CI 1.000, 1.011) and results remained similar after adjustment for PM10-2.5 (RR = 1.005; 95% CI 0.998, 1.013). There was a borderline association between PM10-2.5 and cardiovascular hospital visits (RR = 1.007; 95% CI 0.997, 1.016), which disappeared after controlling for PM2.5 (RR = 1.000; 95% CI 0.988, 1.013). The associations appeared to be stronger in the cold season and among the elderly (≥ 75 years). The findings of this study suggested significant adverse effects of PM2.5, but no independent effects of PM10-2.5 on cardiovascular hospital visits. Additional studies are needed to confirm these findings.

Air pollution and hospital visits for acute upper and lower respiratory infections among children in Ningbo, China: A time-series analysis.

Acute upper and lower respiratory infections are main causes of mortality and morbidity in children. Air pollution has been recognized as an important contributor to development and exacerbation of respiratory infections. However, few studies are available in China. In this study, we investigated the short-term effect of air pollution on hospital visits for acute upper and lower respiratory infections among children under 15 years in Ningbo, China. Poisson generalized models were used to estimate the associations between air pollution and hospital visits for acute upper and lower respiratory infections adjusted for temporal, seasonal, and meteorological effects. We found that four pollutants (PM2.5, PM10, NO2, and SO2) were significantly associated with hospital visits for acute upper and lower respiratory infections. The effect estimates for acute upper respiratory infections tended to be higher (PM2.5 ER = 3.46, 95% CI 2.18, 4.76; PM10 ER = 2.81, 95% CI 1.93, 3.69; NO2 ER = 11.27, 95% CI 8.70, 13.89; SO2 ER = 15.17, 95% CI 11.29, 19.19). Significant associations for gaseous pollutants (NO2 and SO2) were observed after adjustment for particular matter. Stronger associations were observed among older children and in the cold period. Our study suggested that short-term exposure to outdoor air pollution was associated with hospital visits for acute upper and lower respiratory infections in Ningbo.

Association of PM2.5 pollution with the pattern of human activity: A case study of a developed city in eastern China.

Recently, air pollution has attracted a substantial amount of attention in China, which can be influenced by a variety of factors, but the association between air pollution and human activity is not quite clear. Based on real-time online data (January 1, 2014, to December 31, 2014) of air pollution and meteorology reported by official sites, and demographic, economic, and environmental reform data in a statistical yearbook, the influences of meteorological factors (temperature, relative humidity, precipitation intensity, and wind force) and human activities on PM2.5 pollution were explored. After correlation analysis, logistic regression analysis, and a nonparametric test, weak negative correlations between temperature and PM2.5 pollution were found. In most cases, festival and morning peak hours were protection and risk factors of PM2.5 pollution, respectively. In addition, government actions, such as an afforestation project and increasing financial expenditure for energy saving and environmental protection, could greatly contribute to alleviating pollution of PM2.5. The findings could help officials formulate effective laws and regulations, and then PM2.5 pollution related to the pattern of human activity would be ameliorated. IMPLICATIONS: Most of the time, festival and morning peak hours are protection and risk factors for PM2.5 pollution, respectively. Increasing the percentage of afforestation area and financial expenditure for energy saving and environmental protection could significantly reduce PM2.5 pollution. The findings can help officials formulate effective laws and regulations, and then PM2.5 pollution related to the pattern of human activity, especially government action, will be ameliorated.

Polymorphisms in the CISH gene are associated with susceptibility to tuberculosis in the Chinese Han population.

A recent multi-center case-control study identified several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within the cytokine-inducible SRC homology 2 domain (CISH) gene that are associated with susceptibility to tuberculosis (TB) in both African and Asian populations. To acquire a more robust and well-powered estimate of the putative influence of these SNPs on TB susceptibility, we conducted a well-designed case-control study in the Chinese Han population. We genotyped 3 previously identified SNPs within CISH in 600 patients with pulmonary TB and 618 healthy controls, and we calculated the pooled P-values and ORs of several studies that have also been conducted in the Chinese populations. The results of the case-control study showed that the C allele of rs2239751 and the T allele of rs414171 are associated with TB susceptibility, and this association exists only in women and young adults. The pooled analysis indicated that both SNPs are significantly associated with TB in the global populations and Chinese populations. The current study confirms that variants of CISH are associated with susceptibility to TB, suggesting that negative regulators of cytokine signaling may have a role in immunity against TB infection. We hypothesize that CISH and estrogen may interact in the cytokine-dependent regulation of the immune system.