Category: Environmental Effects

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Proximity to Deforested Areas Can Increase Outbreak Risk

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Aerial view of logging activities. Photo by Pok Rie from Pexels

A new study has found that human proximity to deforested areas poses an increased risk of the outbreak of zoonotic viruses.  

This adds to a growing body of evidence that human encroachment on the natural environment is resulting in zoonotic disease outbreaks.

Deforested areas and even monocultures such as commercial forests planted by humans are linked to the outbreak of diseases, the researchers found.

The researchers explained that a forest’s healthy diverse ecosystem with a range of species, blocks and filters viruses. However, in the case of monocultures where single species of plants are cultivated, like a palm oil plantation, specialist species die off and are replaced by generalists such as rats which then spread pathogens on to humans.

“I was surprised by how clear the pattern was,” said one of the study authors, Serge Morand, of the French National Centre for Scientific Research. “We must give more consideration to the role of the forest in human health, animal health and environmental health. The message from this study is ‘don’t forget the forest’.”

Using a number of databases from sources such as the World Health Organization, the researchers analysed the relationship between changes in forest cover, plantations, population and disease around the globe.
Over 1990 to 2016, the study period covered 3884 outbreaks of 116 zoonotic diseases that crossed over into humans and 1996 outbreaks of 69 vector-borne infectious diseases, largely carried by mosquitoes, ticks or flies.

“Everyone in the field of planetary health is worried about what is happening to biodiversity, climate and public health in Brazil,” Morand emphasised. “The stress there is growing. The Amazon is near a tipping point due to climate change, which is not good at all for the world ecosystem. If we reach the tipping point, the outcomes will be very bad in terms of drought, fires and for sure in terms of disease.”

The rainforests of the Congo basin and south-east Asia, and monoculture afforestation projects around the world were also cause for concern. “Our results clearly suggest that it is not only forest clearance that is responsible for outbreaks of infectious diseases, but also reforestation or afforestation, particularly in countries outside the tropical zone,” the paper noted.

Morand’s next study involves examining forest cover with satellite imagery and exploring links with that to disease.

Source: The Guardian

Categories : Environmental EffectsTags :

Edible Food Film Packaging Developed as Alternative to Plastic

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Researchers from India and Russia have created edible food films for packaging fruits, vegetables, poultry, meat, and seafood. 

These films are made up of natural ingredients, and as such are safe for health and the environment. In addition, these films are water-soluble and dissolve by almost 90% over 24 hours. A description of their research and the results of their experiments are published in the Journal of Food Engineering.

Using such films would help to reduce the problem of microplastics, micrometre-scale fragments of plastic which have been detected in human stools as well as inhaled through the lungs.Chemicals such BPAs, phthalates and flame retardants, as well as heavy metals included in plastics are of concern to human health. The increased surface area/volume ratio of microplastics in combination with their hydrophobicity, results in a high affinity with a broad range of hydrophobic and persistent organic pollutants, antibiotics, and heavy metals that could be introduced into the human body through the uptake of microplastics.

“We have created three types of food films based on the well-known naturally occurring seaweed biopolymer sodium alginate. Its molecules have film-forming properties. Sodium alginate is an auspicious carbohydrate macromolecule that has the potential film-forming properties upon hydrolysis and abundantly existed in cell walls as a mixture of various salts. The greatest advantage of sodium alginate is that it performs as liquid-gel in an aqueous medium.”

Rammohan Aluru, Study Co-Author and Senior Researcher of Organic Synthesis Laboratory, Ural Federal University

The researchers cross-linked alginate molecules with a natural antioxidant ferulic acid, resulting in a strong and homogeneous film that is more rigid and prolongs the life of the products. However, being able to produce edible, naturally sourced films also has other benefits.

“Food stays fresh longer due to the antioxidant components that slow down the oxidation processes,” said Grigory Zyryanov, professor of the Department of Organic and Biomolecular Chemistry at Ural Federal University. “In addition, we can add to the films natural antiviral agents that will also extend the shelf life of food. Garlic, turmeric, and ginger contain compounds that may prevent the spread of the viruses.”

No special equipment for the production of films is required, the authors claim, and can be scaled up to an industrial scale by manufacturers of  food products and films.

“It can also be produced at a polymer production plant. The only condition is that it must meet the standards that apply to food production. And if an inexhaustible source of algae the ocean is nearby it will be quite simple to create such films,” said Prof Zyryanov.

Source: News-Medical.Net

Journal information: Yerramathia, B. B., et al. (2021) Structural studies and bioactivity of sodium alginate edible films fabricated through ferulic acid crosslinking mechanism. Journal of Food Engineering. doi.org/10.1016/j.jfoodeng.2021.110566.

Categories : Cancer Environmental EffectsTags :

Brominated Flame Retardants May Raise Breast Cancer Risk

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Brominated flame retardants (BFRs) are present in a wide variety of household fixtures and furniture, and particles of this may increase the risk of breast cancer through prolonged exposure at critical times in a woman’s life.

BFRs are endocrine disruptors, and since they are not tightly bound to the substances they are included into, they are able to escape into the household environment. Endocrine disruptors can be problematic to protect against since they can exert harmful effects even at low doses. Exposure to endocrine disruptors is most disruptive in the foetal stage and during infancy; these compounds also easily cross the placental boundary and are found in breast milk. At high exposures, cells have a toxic response, but at a low dose, similar to the levels of naturally occurring hormones, endocrine dysregulation is the outcome.

Exposure to these compounds can cause problems for organs such as mammary glands, which are sensitive to hormones, which BFRs can mimic. “BFRs pose a significant risk, particularly during sensitive periods, from intrauterine life to puberty and during pregnancy,” said Professor Plante, co-director of the Intersectoral Centre for Endocrine Disruptor Analysis and environmental toxicologist.

The researchers exposed female rodents to a mixture of BFRs, similar to that found in house dust, prior to mating, during gestation and during lactation. Biologists were able to observe the effects on the offspring at two stages of development and on the mothers.

Early development of mammary glands was seen in prepubertal rats. For pubescent rats, the results, published in 2019, showed a deregulation of intercellular communication. Similar effects were observed in female genitors in a 2017 study. All of these effects are associated with an increased risk of breast cancer.

In the early 2000s, observation showed that human exposure to BFRs peaked, Professor Isabelle Plante pointed out. “Young women exposed to BFRs in utero and through breastfeeding are now in the early stages of fertility. Their mothers are in their fifties, a period of increased risk for breast cancer,” said Prof Plante. This is why the team is currently studying endocrine disruptors related to a predisposition to breast cancer, funded by the Breast Cancer Foundation and the Cancer Research Society.

In all three studies, most of the effects were observed at a low dose, raising questions about the current legislation for endocrine disruptors. “To evaluate the ‘safe’ dose, experts give an increasing dose and then, when they observe an effect, identify it as the maximum dose. With endocrine disruptors, the long-term consequences would be caused by lower doses,” reported Prof Plante.

Source: Medical Xpress

Journal information: Rita-Josiane Gouesse et al, In Utero and Lactational Exposure to an Environmentally Relevant Mixture of Brominated Flame Retardants Induces a Premature Development of the Mammary Glands, Toxicological Sciences (2020). DOI: 10.1093/toxsci/kfaa176

Categories : Environmental Effects Neurodegenerative DiseasesTags :

With Climate Change, Heat May Worsen Multiple Sclerosis Symptoms

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As average global temperatures increase due to climate change, multiple sclerosis (MS) patients can experience worsening symptoms resulting in an increase in hospital visits.

Some 60% to 80% of MS patients experience heat sensitivity. Increased body temperature slows or stops nerve signals in damaged nerves, which has a number of impacts such as blurred vision and other neurological effects. Heat sensitivity is also correlated with fatigue. Together with fatigue, divided attention from heat sensitivity can contribute to falls.

“We know that heat sensitivity is common in multiple sclerosis, and climate scientists expect that periods of anomalously warm weather will become more frequent with climate change,” said study author Holly Elser, PhD. of Stanford University School of Medicine. “Our study suggests that warming trends could have serious health implications over the long term for people living with MS.”

The study defined anomalously warm weather as a month in which local average temperatures were higher than the long-term average temperature for that month by at least 1.5C.

The researchers drew data on insurance claims for 106 225 people with MS living in the US, and then calculated the estimated effect of anomalously warm weather on MS-related emergency department, inpatient and outpatient visits. Then, the number of medical visits for each person during anomalously warm weather periods was compared to those for periods of normal weather periods.

During anomalously warm weather periods, there was a 4% increased chance of an emergency department visit compared to periods of normal weather. Participants had a 3% increased chance of having an inpatient visit and a 1% increased chance of having an outpatient visit during anomalously warm periods compared to periods of normal weather.

Researchers estimate that during the follow-up period, anomalously warm weather periods were linked to an estimated excess of at least 592 emergency department visits, 1260 inpatient visits and 1960 outpatient visits related to MS.

“While the relative increase in risk of visits is small, the associated absolute effect on people with MS and the health care system is meaningful,” concluded Dr Elser.

Source: Medical Xpress