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Ramesh R, Amanmahanya C, Krishnamoorthy V, Krishnan V, Palani S, Narasimhan Ranganathan L. Oculomasticatory rhythmic movements, insomnia and stroke-like episodes in a patient with POLG mutation. BMJ Case Rep 2024; 17:e259426. [PMID: 38684350 PMCID: PMC11146406 DOI: 10.1136/bcr-2023-259426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/19/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024] Open
Abstract
The POLG mutation, a leading cause of mitochondrial diseases, exhibits a wide-ranging age of onset and a complex clinical presentation. We encountered an atypical clinical profile in an elderly man with a POLG mutation, characterised by a stroke-like episode, chronic insomnia and transient oculomasticatory rhythmic movement. History revealed chronic constipation since his 50s and progressive bilateral ophthalmoplegia since his early 60s. Subsequently, he had experienced acute encephalopathy and later developed chronic insomnia. The present neurological examination showed bilateral complete ophthalmoplegia, ptosis, and rhythmic ocular and jaw movements. Imaging indicated findings suggestive of a stroke-like episode and eventual genetic analysis revealed a homozygous missense mutation in the POLG gene. This case expands the clinical spectrum of POLG mutations in individuals over 60 years, showcasing the rare combination of a stroke-like episode, chronic insomnia and oculomasticatory rhythmic movement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rithvik Ramesh
- Neurology, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (Deemed to be University), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Chitneni Amanmahanya
- Neurology, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (Deemed to be University), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Vengadakrishnan Krishnamoorthy
- Internal Medicine, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (Deemed to be University), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Vasanthan Krishnan
- Internal Medicine, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (Deemed to be University), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Sathyamoorthy Palani
- Internal Medicine, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (Deemed to be University), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
| | - Lakshmi Narasimhan Ranganathan
- Neurology, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research (Deemed to be University), Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
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Weerasekera A, Knight PC, Alshelh Z, Morrissey EJ, Kim M, Zhang Y, Napadow V, Anzolin A, Torrado-Carvajal A, Edwards RR, Ratai EM, Loggia ML. Thalamic neurometabolite alterations in chronic low back pain: a common phenomenon across musculoskeletal pain conditions? Pain 2024; 165:126-134. [PMID: 37578456 PMCID: PMC10841327 DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2023] [Accepted: 06/14/2023] [Indexed: 08/15/2023]
Abstract
ABSTRACT Recently, we showed that patients with knee osteoarthritis (KOA) demonstrate alterations in the thalamic concentrations of several metabolites compared with healthy controls: higher myo-inositol (mIns), lower N-acetylaspartate (NAA), and lower choline (Cho). Here, we evaluated whether these metabolite alterations are specific to KOA or could also be observed in patients with a different musculoskeletal condition, such as chronic low back pain (cLBP). Thirty-six patients with cLBP and 20 healthy controls were scanned using 1 H-magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) and a PRESS (Point RESolved Spectroscopy) sequence with voxel placement in the left thalamus. Compared with healthy controls, patients with cLBP demonstrated lower absolute concentrations of NAA ( P = 0.0005) and Cho ( P < 0.05) and higher absolute concentrations of mIns ( P = 0.01) when controlling for age, as predicted by our previous work in KOA. In contrast to our KOA study, mIns levels in this population did not significantly correlate with pain measures (eg, pain severity or duration). However, exploratory analyses revealed that NAA levels in patients were negatively correlated with the severity of sleep disturbance ( P < 0.01), which was higher in patients compared with healthy controls ( P < 0.001). Additionally, also in patients, both Cho and mIns levels were positively correlated with age ( P < 0.01 and P < 0.05, respectively). Altogether, these results suggest that thalamic metabolite changes may be common across etiologically different musculoskeletal chronic pain conditions, including cLBP and KOA, and may relate to symptoms often comorbid with chronic pain, such as sleep disturbance. The functional and clinical significance of these brain changes remains to be fully understood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akila Weerasekera
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Paulina C. Knight
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
| | - Zeynab Alshelh
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Erin J. Morrissey
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
| | - Minhae Kim
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
| | - Yi Zhang
- Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Vitaly Napadow
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alessandra Anzolin
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Angel Torrado-Carvajal
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Medical Image Analysis and Biometry Laboratory, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Madrid, Spain
| | - Robert R. Edwards
- Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Eva-Maria Ratai
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Marco L. Loggia
- Department of Radiology, Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, USA
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Anesthesia, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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Voumvourakis KI, Sideri E, Papadimitropoulos GN, Tsantzali I, Hewlett P, Kitsos D, Stefanou M, Bonakis A, Giannopoulos S, Tsivgoulis G, Paraskevas GP. The Dynamic Relationship between the Glymphatic System, Aging, Memory, and Sleep. Biomedicines 2023; 11:2092. [PMID: 37626589 PMCID: PMC10452251 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines11082092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2023] [Revised: 07/16/2023] [Accepted: 07/19/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
The process of memory entails the activation of numerous neural networks and biochemical pathways throughout the brain. The phenomenon of memory decline in relation to aging has been the subject of extensive research for several decades. The correlation between the process of aging and memory is intricate and has various aspects to consider. Throughout the aging process, there are various alterations that take place within the brain and, as expected, affect other functions that have already been linked to memory and its function such as involving microcirculation and sleep. Recent studies provide an understanding of how these mechanisms may be interconnected through the relatively new concept of the glymphatic system. The glymphatic system is strongly correlated to sleep processes. Sleep helps the glymphatic system remove brain waste solutes. Astrocytes expand and contract to form channels for cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) to wash through the brain and eliminate waste. However, the details have not been totally elusive, but the discovery of what we call the glymphatic system enables us to connect many pieces of physiology to understand how such factors are interconnected and the interplay between them. Thus, the purpose of this review is to discuss how the glymphatic system, sleep, memory, and aging are interconnected through a network of complex mechanisms and dynamic interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Konstantinos I. Voumvourakis
- 2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece; (K.I.V.); (E.S.); (A.B.)
| | - Eleni Sideri
- 2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece; (K.I.V.); (E.S.); (A.B.)
- Applied Psychology Department, Llandaff Campus, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Western Avenue, Cardiff CF5 2YB, UK
| | - Georgios N. Papadimitropoulos
- 2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece; (K.I.V.); (E.S.); (A.B.)
| | - Ioanna Tsantzali
- 2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece; (K.I.V.); (E.S.); (A.B.)
| | - Paul Hewlett
- Applied Psychology Department, Llandaff Campus, Cardiff Metropolitan University, Western Avenue, Cardiff CF5 2YB, UK
| | - Dimitrios Kitsos
- 2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece; (K.I.V.); (E.S.); (A.B.)
| | - Marianna Stefanou
- 2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece; (K.I.V.); (E.S.); (A.B.)
| | - Anastasios Bonakis
- 2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece; (K.I.V.); (E.S.); (A.B.)
| | - Sotirios Giannopoulos
- 2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece; (K.I.V.); (E.S.); (A.B.)
| | - Georgios Tsivgoulis
- 2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece; (K.I.V.); (E.S.); (A.B.)
| | - George P. Paraskevas
- 2nd Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, “Attikon” General University Hospital, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, 12462 Athens, Greece; (K.I.V.); (E.S.); (A.B.)
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de Azevedo PG, Guimarães MDLR, Albuquerque ALB, Alves RB, Gomes Fernandes B, Marques de Melo F, Guimaraes Corrêa Do Carmo Lisboa Cardenas R, Friedman E, De Marco L, Bastos-Rodrigues L. Whole-exome identifies germline variants in families with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome. Front Genet 2023; 14:1137817. [PMID: 37229194 PMCID: PMC10203477 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2023.1137817] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2023] [Accepted: 04/26/2023] [Indexed: 05/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) (OMIM #107650) is characterized by complete or partial obstruction of the upper airways, resulting in periods of sleep associated apnea. OSAS increases morbidity and mortality risk from cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. While heritability of OSAS is estimated at ∼40%, the precise underlying genes remain elusive. Brazilian families with OSAS that follows as seemingly autosomal dominant inheritance pattern were recruited. Methods: The study included nine individuals from two Brazilian families displaying a seemingly autosomal dominant inheritance pattern of OSAS. Whole exome sequencing of germline DNA were analyzed using Mendel, MD software. Variants selected were analyzed using Varstation® with subsequent analyses that included validation by Sanger sequencing, pathogenic score assessment by ACMG criteria, co-segregation analyses (when possible) allele frequency, tissue expression patterns, pathway analyses, effect on protein folding modeling using Swiss-Model and RaptorX. Results: Two families (six affected patients and three unaffected controls) were analyzed. A comprehensive multistep analysis yielded variants in COX20 (rs946982087) (family A), PTPDC1 (rs61743388) and TMOD4 (rs141507115) (family B) that seemed to be strong candidate genes for being OSAS associated genes in these families. Conclusion: Sequence variants in COX20, PTPDC1 and TMOD4 seemingly are associated with OSAS phenotype in these families. Further studies in more, ethnically diverse families and non-familial OSAS cases are needed to better define the role of these variants as contributors to OSAS phenotype.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pedro Guimarães de Azevedo
- Centro de Tecnologia em Medicina Molecular, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | | | - Anna Luiza Braga Albuquerque
- Centro de Tecnologia em Medicina Molecular, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Rayane Benfica Alves
- Centro de Tecnologia em Medicina Molecular, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Bianca Gomes Fernandes
- Centro de Tecnologia em Medicina Molecular, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Flavia Marques de Melo
- Centro de Tecnologia em Medicina Molecular, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | | | - Eitan Friedman
- The Preventive Personalized Medicine Center, Assuta Medical Center and the Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Luiz De Marco
- Centro de Tecnologia em Medicina Molecular, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
- Department of Surgery, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Luciana Bastos-Rodrigues
- Centro de Tecnologia em Medicina Molecular, Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
- Department of Nutrition, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
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Cade BE, Gharib SA. Breath of Fresh Air: Toward Unraveling the Molecular Underpinnings of Sleep Apnea. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2022; 206:1450-1451. [PMID: 35944212 PMCID: PMC9757082 DOI: 10.1164/rccm.202207-1410ed] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Brian E. Cade
- Division of Sleep and Circadian DisordersBrigham and Women’s HospitalBoston, Massachusetts,Division of Sleep MedicineHarvard Medical SchoolBoston, Massachusetts
| | - Sina A. Gharib
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep MedicineUniversity of WashingtonSeattle, Washington
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Liu Q, Hao T, Li L, Huang D, Lin Z, Fang Y, Wang D, Zhang X. Construction of a mitochondrial dysfunction related signature of diagnosed model to obstructive sleep apnea. Front Genet 2022; 13. [PMID: 36468038 PMCID: PMC9714559 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2022.1056691] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2022] [Accepted: 10/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: The molecular mechanisms underlying obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and its comorbidities may involve mitochondrial dysfunction. However, very little is known about the relationships between mitochondrial dysfunction-related genes and OSA. Methods: Mitochondrial dysfunction-related differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between OSA and control adipose tissue samples were identified using data from the Gene Expression Omnibus database and information on mitochondrial dysfunction-related genes from the GeneCards database. A mitochondrial dysfunction-related signature of diagnostic model was established using least absolute shrinkage and selection operator Cox regression and then verified. Additionally, consensus clustering algorithms were used to conduct an unsupervised cluster analysis. A protein-protein interaction network of the DEGs between the mitochondrial dysfunction-related clusters was constructed using STRING database and the hub genes were identified. Functional analyses, including Gene Ontology (GO) analysis, Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis, gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA), and gene set variation analysis (GSVA), were conducted to explore the mechanisms involved in mitochondrial dysfunction in OSA. Immune cell infiltration analyses were conducted using CIBERSORT and single-sample GSEA (ssGSEA). Results: we established mitochondrial dysfunction related four-gene signature of diagnostic model consisted of NPR3, PDIA3, SLPI, ERAP2, and which could easily distinguish between OSA patients and controls. In addition, based on mitochondrial dysfunction-related gene expression, we identified two clusters among all the samples and three clusters among the OSA samples. A total of 10 hub genes were selected from the PPI network of DEGs between the two mitochondrial dysfunction-related clusters. There were correlations between the 10 hub genes and the 4 diagnostic genes. Enrichment analyses suggested that autophagy, inflammation pathways, and immune pathways are crucial in mitochondrial dysfunction in OSA. Plasma cells and M0 and M1 macrophages were significantly different between the OSA and control samples, while several immune cell types, especially T cells (γ/δ T cells, natural killer T cells, regulatory T cells, and type 17 T helper cells), were significantly different among mitochondrial dysfunction-related clusters of OSA samples. Conclusion: A novel mitochondrial dysfunction-related four-gen signature of diagnostic model was built. The genes are potential biomarkers for OSA and may play important roles in the development of OSA complications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian Liu
- Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China
- Department of Cardiology, The Affiliated Hospital of Binzhou Medical University, Binzhou, Shandong Province, China
| | - Tao Hao
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Lei Li
- Department of Cardiology, The Affiliated Hospital of Binzhou Medical University, Binzhou, Shandong Province, China
| | - Daqi Huang
- Department of Cardiology, The Affiliated Hospital of Binzhou Medical University, Binzhou, Shandong Province, China
| | - Ze Lin
- Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China
- Laboratory of Molecular Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China
| | - Yipeng Fang
- Laboratory of Molecular Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China
| | - Dong Wang
- Department of Cardiology, The Affiliated Hospital of Binzhou Medical University, Binzhou, Shandong Province, China
| | - Xin Zhang
- Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China
- Laboratory of Molecular Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China
- Laboratory of Medical Molecular Imaging, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China
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He B, Chen Y, Yu S, Hao Y, Wang F, Qu L. Food plant extracts for sleep-related skin health: Mechanisms and prospects. FOOD BIOSCI 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.fbio.2022.101951] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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8
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Anderson L, Camus MF, Monteith KM, Salminen TS, Vale PF. Variation in mitochondrial DNA affects locomotor activity and sleep in Drosophila melanogaster. Heredity (Edinb) 2022; 129:225-232. [PMID: 35764697 PMCID: PMC9519576 DOI: 10.1038/s41437-022-00554-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2021] [Revised: 06/15/2022] [Accepted: 06/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Mitochondria are organelles that produce cellular energy in the form of ATP through oxidative phosphorylation, and this primary function is conserved among many taxa. Locomotion is a trait that is highly reliant on metabolic function and expected to be greatly affected by disruptions to mitochondrial performance. To this end, we aimed to examine how activity and sleep vary between Drosophila melanogaster strains with different geographic origins, how these patterns are affected by mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variation, and how breaking up co-evolved mito-nuclear gene combinations affect the studied activity traits. Our results demonstrate that Drosophila strains from different locations differ in sleep and activity, and that females are generally more active than males. By comparing activity and sleep of mtDNA variants introgressed onto a common nuclear background in cytoplasmic hybrid (cybrid) strains, we were able to quantify the among-line variance attributable to mitochondrial DNA, and we establish that mtDNA variation affects both activity and sleep, in a sex-specific manner. Altogether our study highlights the important role that mitochondrial genome variation plays on organismal physiology and behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucy Anderson
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - M Florencia Camus
- Research Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Katy M Monteith
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Tiina S Salminen
- Faculty of Medicine and Health Technology, Tampere University, Tampere, Finland
| | - Pedro F Vale
- Institute of Ecology and Evolution, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
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The Toxicity of Wiped Dust and Airborne Microbes in Individual Classrooms Increase the Risk of Teachers' Work-Related Symptoms: A Cross-Sectional Study. Pathogens 2021; 10:pathogens10111360. [PMID: 34832514 PMCID: PMC8624243 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens10111360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2021] [Revised: 10/06/2021] [Accepted: 10/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: The causes and pathophysiological mechanisms of building-related symptoms (BRS) remain open. Objective: We aimed to investigate the association between teachers’ individual work-related symptoms and intrinsic in vitro toxicity in classrooms. This is a further analysis of a previously published dataset. Methods: Teachers from 15 Finnish schools in Helsinki responded to the symptom survey. The boar sperm motility inhibition assay, a sensitive indicator of mitochondrial dysfunction, was used to measure the toxicity of wiped dust and cultured microbial fallout samples collected from the teachers’ classrooms. Results: 231 teachers whose classroom toxicity data had been collected responded to the questionnaire. Logistic regression analysis adjusted for age, gender, smoking, and atopy showed that classroom dust intrinsic toxicity was statistically significantly associated with the following 12 symptoms reported by teachers (adjusted ORs in parentheses): nose stuffiness (4.1), runny nose (6.9), hoarseness (6.4), globus sensation (9.0), throat mucus (7.6), throat itching (4.4), shortness of breath (12.2), dry cough (4.7), wet eyes (12.7), hypersensitivity to sound (7.9), difficulty falling asleep (7.6), and increased need for sleep (7.7). Toxicity of cultured microbes was found to be associated with nine symptoms (adjusted ORs in parentheses): headache (2.3), nose stuffiness (2.2), nose dryness (2.2), mouth dryness (2.8), hoarseness (2.2), sore throat (2.8), throat mucus (2.3), eye discharge (10.2), and increased need for sleep (3.5). Conclusions: The toxicity of classroom dust and airborne microbes in boar sperm motility inhibition assay significantly increased teachers’ risk of work-related respiratory and ocular symptoms. Potential pathophysiological mechanisms of BRS are discussed.
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