Environmental thiocyanate exposure was associated with oral health-related productivity loss among US adults: results from NHANES

Phthalate exposure aggravates periodontitis by activating NFκB pathway

BACKGROUND

Phthalates are widely used plasticizers, which were identified as risk factors in the development of many human diseases. However, the effects of phthalates in the periodontitis are unknown. We aimed to investigated the relationship of periodontitis and phthalate exposure as well as the underlying mechanisms.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Univariate and multivariate logistic regressions were employed to evaluate the association between phthalate metabolites and periodontitis. The generalized additive model and piecewise logistic regression were conducted to investigate the dose-response relationship. Cell and animal models were used to explore the role and mechanism of DEHP in the development of periodontitis. Transcriptome sequencing, bioinformatics analysis, western blot, immunofluorescence and mice model of periodontitis were also employed.

RESULTS

MEHP (OR 1.14, 95% CI 1.05-1.24), MCPP (OR 1.08, 95% CI 1.00-1.17), MEHHP (OR 1.18, 95% CI 1.08-1.29), MEOHP (OR 1.18, 95% CI 1.07-1.29), MiBP (OR 1.15, 95% CI 1.04-1.28), and MECPP (OR 1.20, 95% CI 1.09-1.32) were independent risk factors. And MEHHP, the metabolite of DEHP, showed the relative most important effects on periodontitis with the highest weight (0.34) among all risk factors assessed. And the increase of inflammation and the activation of NFκB pathway in the periodontitis model mice and cells were observed.

CONCLUSION

Exposure to multiple phthalates was positively associated with periodontitis in US adults between 30 and 80 years old. And DEHP aggravated inflammation in periodontitis by activating NFκB pathway.

Analysis of environmental pollutants using ion chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry: A review

The rise of emerging pollutants in the current environment and requirements of trace analysis in complex substrates pose challenges to modern analytical techniques. Ion chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (IC-MS) is the preferred tool for analyzing emerging pollutants due to its excellent separation ability for polar and ionic compounds with small molecular weight and high detection sensitivity and selectivity. This paper reviews the progress of sample preparation and ion-exchange IC-MS methods in the analysis of several major categories of environmental polar and ionic pollutants including perchlorate, inorganic and organic phosphorus compounds, metalloids and heavy metals, polar pesticides, and disinfection by-products in past two decades. The comparison of various methods to reduce the influence of matrix effect and improve the accuracy and sensitivity of analysis are emphasized throughout the process from sample preparation to instrumental analysis. Furthermore, the human health risks of these pollutants in the environment with natural concentration levels in different environmental medias are also briefly discussed to raise public attention. Finally, the future challenges of IC-MS for analysis of environmental pollutants are briefly discussed.

Associations of thiocyanate, nitrate, and perchlorate exposure with dyslipidemia: a cross-sectional, population-based analysis

The aim of this study was to assess the associations of urinary thiocyanate, nitrate, and perchlorate concentrations with dyslipidemia, individually and in combination, which has not previously been studied. Data from the 2001-2002 and 2005-2016 National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) were analyzed in this cross-sectional study. The dependent variables were continuous serum lipid variables (triglycerides [TG], total cholesterol [TC], low-density lipoprotein cholesterol [LDL-C], high-density lipoprotein cholesterol [HDL-C], non-HDL-C, and apolipoprotein B [Apo B]) and binary serum lipid variables, with the latter reflecting dyslipidemia (elevated TG, ≥ 150 mg/dL; elevated TC, ≥ 200 mg/dL; elevated LDL-C, ≥ 130 mg/dL; lowered HDL-C, < 40 mg/dL in men and < 5 0 mg/dL in women; elevated non-HDL-C, ≥ 160 mg/dL; and elevated Apo B, ≥ 130 mg/dL). Multivariate logistic, linear, and weighted quantile sum (WQS) regression analyses were used to explore the associations of thiocyanate, nitrate, and perchlorate with the continuous and binary serum lipid variables. The linearity of the associations with the binary serum lipid variables was assessed using restricted cubic spline (RCS) regression. A total of 15,563 adults were included in the analysis. The multivariate linear and logistic regression analyses showed that thiocyanate was positively associated with multiple continuous (TG, TC, LDL-C, non-HDL-C, and Apo B, but not HDL-C) and binary (elevated TG, TC, LDL-C, and non-HDL-C) serum lipid variables, whereas perchlorate was negatively associated with elevated LDL-C. Multivariate RCS logistic regression revealed a linear dose-response relationship between thiocyanate and elevated TG, TC, LDL-C, non-HDL-C, and Apo B, but a nonlinear relationship with lowered HDL-C (inflection point = 1.622 mg/L). WQS regression showed that a mixture of thiocyanate, nitrate, and perchlorate was positively associated with all binary serum lipid variables except for Apo B. Our findings indicate that urinary thiocyanate, nitrate, and perchlorate concentrations, individually and in combination, were associated with dyslipidemia.