Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

G Assennato

Publications and source records attributed to G Assennato.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMedDate not supplied

[Exposure to PAHs, urinary 1-pyrenol and DNA adducts in samples from a population living at different distances from a steel plant].

This study aims at measuring association between environmental exposure to PAHs and internal or biologically effective dose biomarkers among 212 individuals living at different distance from the industrial area of Taranto, Italy. Environmental PAH exposure was determined by area monitoring. PAH levels was measured by HPLC UV/FL. Urinary 1-hydroxypyrene levels were measured by HPLC/Fluorescence. The levels of DNA adducts were determined by 32P. post-labelling. A questionnaire was administered to gather personal data, residence, occupational history, alcohol, tobacco smoke, and diet, to control for other sources of exposure to PAH. Blood and urinary samples, drawn from the subjects studied were collected and analysed. A multivariate regression model was used to investigate the influence of several confounding factors. Housing was placed within 1 km from smokestacks in Taranto and Statte, whereas they were more far away in Locorotondo and in Alberobello. The prevalence of current smokers was 31.6%.

DNA Adducts↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Neurotoxic effect of 7,8-oxide styrene on striatal neuron culture].

The present study was undertaken to test the hypothesis that the neurotoxic action of styrene may be primarily presynaptic in nature and may involve impaired regulation of DA content and stimulation of DA release. Primary striatal neurons were grown in vitro and exposed to styrene oxide at different concentrations to evaluate the minimal effective dose able to induce these synaptic alterations.

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[The experience of the Operative Unit SETIL in Puglia].

(Epidemiological study on childhood tumors and leukaemia) study is an epidemiological case-control study, conducted in 15 Italian regions, including Apulia, to assess the possible risk of childhood cancer (leukaemia, LNH, and Neuroblastomes) resulting from exposures to electromagnetic fields (EMFs).

Child↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Semiautomatic defibrillators at the workplace health service].

Implementation of automated external defibrillators (AEDs) in workplace can help to revive victims of sudden cardiac arrest. The American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, the American Heart Association have all issued guidelines for medical management of AED programs. The School of Occupational Health-University of Bari--is currently involved in a programme to be developed with the regional 118 emergency team and the Health Department of Region Apulia aiming at establishing a well controlled use of AED in the workplace.

Electric Countershock↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Biologically effective dose biomarkers].

Biologically effective dose markers--DNA and protein adducts--are classified among exposure biomarkers, and are currently used to assess the biologically active fraction of xenobiotics, which is capable of interacting with cellular macromolecules at the target site. Macromolecular adducts should not only be considered as exposure indicators; indeed, their biological significance can also be extended to biomarkers of effect and of susceptibility. The achievement of such a goal needs research programs aimed both at studying molecular mechanisms related to each step along the continuum of events between exposure and disease, and at establishing quantitative relationships between exposure levels and adduct formation, between adducts and early biological effects, effects and cellular structural/functional modifications, leading to the development and eventual increase in incidence of specific diseases. Moreover, different factors must be considered during data evaluation, such as interindividual variability, the background levels of biomarkers in non occupationally exposed population, the gradually decreasing doses of genotoxic agents involved in occupational exposure, and confounding factors such as diet and smoking habits. Despite the large body of literature documenting DNA and protein adduct molecular dosimetry for many carcinogen exposures, many authors highlight the need for systematic interlaboratory comparison and collaboration by measuring the same biomarkers using different techniques and/or different biomarkers related to the same exposure levels. There is also general agreement about reducing costs, so that dosimetric analyses can become economically more advantageous and accessible in all cases where they prove to be useful in preventing health risks.

Biomarkers↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Role of biological monitoring in health and epidemiological surveillance: a proposal].

Biological markers can be used at an individual level for medical surveillance or at group level within the context of epidemiological surveillance. However, the use of biological monitoring for medical and epidemiological surveillance is heavily conditioned by the critical issue of biomarker validation. One effective means for combining biological monitoring with medical and epidemiological surveillance is the mandatory annual report on anonymous and collective data; this will be made possible after providing adequate training schemes for the occupational physicians involved and the definition of appropriate guidelines, aimed at improving the quality of occupational health services. It will then be possible to design multicentric surveys to assess the quality of occupational health services using validated indicators.

Environmental Monitoring↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Occupational Medicine Programme in the university degree on prevention techniques in living and working environments].

This document has been prepared by a working group of University Professors belonging to the Italian Society of Occupational Medicine and Industrial Hygiene, with the aim of defining the role of this discipline in the university course on Prevention Techniques in Working and Living Environments. The course trains health professionals to apply risk assessment techniques, preventive measures and legislative tools for safety and health in working and living environments, food and beverages hygiene, and Public Health. The document describes the organization and the structure of the course, general and specific learning objectives, occupational medicine teaching and other organization aspects. Also, training of non-graduate technicians working for local health authorities is discussed.

Curriculum↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Acute pneumonia caused by aspiration of hydrocarbons in a fire-eater].

Accidental aspiration of fuel in fire eaters can cause an acute chemical pneumonitis known as 'fire-eater's pneumonia". We report a case in a 29 year-old fire-eater. Six hours after aspiration of kerosene, he developed fever up to 39,5 degrees C, dyspnea, cough and chest pain. Chest radiograph showed infiltrates in the middle and lower parts of the lungs and left pleural effusion. He was treated with an antibiotic and antipiretic therapy and then with corticosteroids. The acute stage lasted four weeks and the patient recovered without sequelae within 3 months. Hazard related to main fuels used for fire eating is discussed.

Acute Disease↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Total and partial O2 and CO2 ductances in workers exposed to inhalation of cement-asbestos].

The aim of the study was to assess the efficiency of the respiratory system in ensuring the correct dynamics of respiratory gases in subjects chronically exposed to the inhalation of asbestos-cement dust but not yet suffering from parenchymal asbestosis, via measurement of total and partial O2 and CO2 ductance coefficients (Du). Two groups of male workers of working age were selected, the first consisting of 22 workers employed on the manufacture of asbestos-cement products, the second consisting of 26 workers who had never been exposed to the inhalation of significant concentrations of occupational respiratory irritants. The two groups were comparable for age, smoking, and normal spirometric parameters for FVC, FEV1 and PEF, and were free of any type on interstitial lung disease according to ILO standards. In the exposed group, all O2 and CO2 ductance coefficients were significantly lower than in the non-exposed, except DuBCO2 (alveolar-capillary ductance for CO2). Measurement of O2 and CO2 lung ductances at rest thus revealed an impairment of the diffusion and of the interpulmonary exchange of blood and air in subjects chronically exposed to the inhalation of asbestos-cement dust. In the sample under study, such impairment preceded lung damage detectable by spirometric and radiological tests and was an obstacle not only to oxygen intake but also to the elimination of carbon dioxide.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Evaluation of the effects on the nervous system from exposure to low concentrations of mercury in employees manufacturing fluorescent lights].

In order to evaluate the effects of low inorganic mercury concentrations on workers employed in the manufacture of fluorescent lamps, a stratified sample of workers was selected at random and assigned to three groups according to the level of exposure. In all three groups, the urinary mercury values were within the normal range for unexposed population. Among the indicators of effect the simple reaction times test showed statistically significant differences between the three groups. Also "state anxiety" and "trait anxiety", investigated by the S.T.A.I. questionnaires, differed between the unexposed group and the other two. A positive correlation was found between simple reaction times and the state and trait anxiety scores in the whole sample and in the subsample of women. Moreover, the prevalence of symptoms related to low mercury exposure, collected by a questionnaire, was higher in the two exposed groups. Due to the absence of group-differences for the urinary mercury levels, interpretation of the results is cumbersome. On the one hand it cannot be ruled out that the unexposed group (mainly white collar workers) had some characteristics which could explain the difference in the simple reaction times test and in anxiety. Conversely, if a true mercury effect does indeed exist, the similarity of the performance between the second and third groups (both consisting of exposed blue collar workers) could be explained if we assume that the high turn-over inside the factory could have caused a similar previous exposure to mercury vapours.

Anxiety↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[Health status of shift workers in oil refineries].

Within a cross-sectional epidemiologic study in an oil refinery the "mean health score" in shift and daily workers was estimated, following a method developed by the authors and based on the mean health score technique processed by M. Koller for an Austrian refinery. No significant difference was observed in the mean health score between the shift-workers and the daily-workers. However analysis of the results shows, some meaningful trends to be considered: the mean health score would seen higher in shift-workers than in daily ones for lower class of age (30; 30-40 years), while an inverse trend is observed in higher class of age. In the Austrian refinery the shift-workers mean health score is uniformly lower in all class of age. The difference observed in the study refinery could be due to the lower class of length of employment of the young shift workers with regard to the young daily ones, while in the Austrian refinery the greater damage for the shift-workers state of health could be due to a greatly more irregular shift with less adaptability.

Adult↗
PubMedDate not supplied

[What is the prognostic significance of histomorphology in small cell lung carcinoma?].

What is the prognostic significant of the histomorphology in the small cell carcinomas of the lung? After the WHO classification of the lung cancer (1981), several studies criticized the subdivision of the small cell carcinoma in three sub-types (oat-cell, intermediate cell and combined types). The role of histology in the prognostic predition has been devaluated. In order to verify the prognostic value of the morphology of the small cell types of lung cancer, we performed a multivariate analysis in 62 patients. The survival rate was analytically compared with the following parameters: nuclear maximum diameter, nuclear form, nuclear chromatism, chromatine distribution, presence of nucleolus, evidence of cytoplasm. The results showed that none of these parameters are able to express a prognostic value. According to the recent studies, we think that the small cell carcinoma of the lung is a neoplasia with a multiform histologic pattern. Differences observed in clinical management are not correlate with the morphology, but with other biological parameters still unknown.

Carcinoma, Small Cell↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Increased sensitivity for determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-DNA adducts in human DNA samples by dissociation-enhanced lanthanide fluoroimmunoassay (DELFIA).

A competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), the most frequently used immunoassay for the determination of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-DNA adducts in human tissues, has been modified to achieve approximately a 6-fold increase in sensitivity. The new assay, a competitive dissociation-enhanced lanthanide fluoroimmunoassay (DELFIA) has utilized the same rabbit antiserum as the ELISA, antiserum elicited against DNA modified with benzo[a]pyrene. However, the alkaline phosphatase conjugate has been replaced with a biotin-europium-labeled streptavidin signal amplification system, and the release of europium into the solution forms a highly fluorescent chelate complex that is measured by time-resolved fluorometry. The DELFIA has achieved a 5- to 6-fold increase in sensitivity for measurement of DNA samples modified in vitro with benzo[a]pyrene, for cultured cells exposed to radiolabeled benzo[a]pyrene, and for human samples from occupationally exposed workers. The assay has been validated by comparison of adduct levels determined by DELFIA, ELISA, and radioactivity in DNA from mouse keratinocytes exposed to radiolabeled benzo[a]pyrene. Human lymphocyte DNA samples from 104 Hungarian aluminum plant workers were assayed by ELISA and compared to blood cell DNA samples from 69 Italian coke oven workers assayed by DELFIA. The standard curves demonstrated that the limit of detection of 4.0 adducts in 10(8) nucleotides for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-DNA adducts by ELISA, using 35 micrograms of DNA/microtiter plate well, has been decreased to 1.3 adducts in 10(8) nucleotides by DELFIA, using 20 micrograms of DNA/microtiter well. If 35 micrograms of DNA were used in the DELFIA, the calculated detection limit would be 0.7 adducts in 10(8) nucleotides.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Aluminum↗