Helena Mussalo-Rauhamaa

Mycotoxins in Crude Building Materials from Water-Damaged Buildings

ABSTRACT We analyzed 79 bulk samples of moldy interior finishes from Finnish buildings with moisture problems for 17 mycotoxins, as well as for fungi that could be isolated using one medium and one set of growth conditions. We found the aflatoxin precursor, sterigmatocystin, in 24% of the samples and trichothecenes in 19% of the samples. Trichothecenes found included satratoxin G or H in five samples; diacetoxyscirpenol in five samples; and 3-acetyl-deoxynivalenol, deoxynivalenol, verrucarol, or T-2-tetraol in an additional five samples. Citrinine was found in three samples. Aspergillus versicolor was present in most sterigmatocystin-containing samples, and Stachybotrys spp. were present in the samples where satratoxins were found. In many cases, however, the presence of fungi thought to produce the mycotoxins was not correlated with the presence of the expected compounds. However, when mycotoxins were found, some toxigenic fungi usually were present, even if the species originally responsible for producing the mycotoxin was not isolated. We conclude that the identification and enumeration of fungal species present in bulk materials are important to verify the severity of mold damage but that chemical analyses are necessary if the goal is to establish the presence of mycotoxins in moldy materials.

Dog allergen in indoor air and dust during dog shows

Background and methods:  Dog dander is one of the most important indoor allergens in Nordic countries. Due to the population flow into cities, the number of dogs in urban areas has increased. Dog allergens can be found practically everywhere indoors. We measured allergen content in indoor air and dust during dog shows.

Association of cadmium with human breast cancer

The carcinogenic potential of cadmium might be affected by several factors such as smoking, hormones and presence of other metals, such as selenium and zinc. Cadmium was analyzed in breast-fat tissue of 43 breast cancer patients and 32 healthy control subjects. Patients were thoroughly characterized according to such variables as stage of cancer, smoking habits, and number of children. Correlation of cadmium levels with these variables, with hormone receptors, and with previously reported selenium and zinc were all analyzed. The mean cadmium concentration found in breast cancer patients (20.4 +/- 17.5 micrograms/g) did not differ significantly from that of the healthy controls (31.7 +/- 39.4 micrograms/g). However, unexpectedly high concentrations of cadmium (3.2-86.9 vs. 0.1-160.4 micrograms/g) were found in breast samples, which may indicate that cadmium binding proteins exist in human breast tissue. Correlation of cadmium with smoking rate of cancer patients was positive (Rs = 0.0505, p < 0.05). Correlation of cadmium with estrogen receptors in breast cancer was suggestive (Rs = 0.309, 28 cases, P = 0.06). No correlation was found with other trace elements such as selenium, zinc and copper. These results seem neither to prove nor to disprove the role of cadmium in breast cancer initiation, promotion or progression.

Partitioning and levels of neutral organochlorine compounds in human serum, blood cells, and adipose and liver tissue

Concentrations of neutral organochlorine compounds (OCs) in blood compartments and adipose tissue were determined in three groups of subjects. In 12 healthy volunteers a positive correlation was found between DDT residue levels in paired serum/adipose tissue samples when the concentrations were calculated on a fat-weight basis (r = 0.74, p less than 0.05); positive correlations were also found for PCB and HCB when the calculations were based on a wet-weight basis (r = 0.68, p less than 0.01; r = 0.69, p less than 0.01). For lindane the correlation coefficient for paired serum/adipose tissue samples was -0.94 (p less than 0.01). The association between adipose tissue and blood cells was weaker than that obtained for serum. These readily obtainable samples are adequate for estimating, or monitoring, the total burden of neutral organochlorines in adipose tissue, especially in cases of low chronic exposure, such as those found in epidemiological studies. In paired liver-adipose tissue samples from 23 autopsy cases, no correlation was found either on a wet- or fat-weight basis. In 131 adults resident in southern and eastern Finland the concentration medians for serum were 1.8, 2.0 and 0.3 ng g-1 wet wt for DDT compounds. PCB and HCB, respectively. This study indicates that monitoring of fat/serum ratios may provide, with tissue concentrations, more information about human exposure to OCs.

IgE-mediated allergy to fungal allergens in Finland with special reference toAlternaria alternata and Cladosporium herbarum

BACKGROUND Alternaria alternata and Cladosporium herbarum are common fungi in outdoor environments, but their clinical significance has not been elucidated in Finland. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the prevalence of IgE-mediated allergy and clinical outcomes caused by sensitization to fungal allergens in patients with suspected allergy. METHODS Skin prick tests (SPTs) were performed with C. herbarum in 6,376 patients and also with A. alternata in 1,504 of these patients. SPTs were repeated in 40 patients who showed a positive reaction to either allergen using commercial and in-house extracts. The association of SPT with allergen-specific IgE antibodies in serum was evaluated. Seven patients also underwent a conjunctival challenge test with these fungal allergens. RESULTS The prevalence of positive SPT results to A. alternata and C. herbarum was low (2.8% and 2.7%, respectively). Among the 40 patients, atopic eczema/dermatitis syndrome was found in 58%, asthma in 44%, and rhinitis in 31%. Most of the patients displayed SPT reactions also to several other fungal allergens, and 75% to 80% showed a positive SPT reaction to allergens of pet animals or pollens. Four patients had a positive reaction to A. alternata and 6 to C. herbarum in the conjunctival challenge test. CONCLUSION In the Finnish population with allergic symptoms, IgE-mediated sensitization to 2 common fungal allergens was rare and of minor clinical importance. SPT reactions to fungi are mostly observed in patients with multiple sensitivity to various allergens.

Genetic component of noise sensitivity.

We investigated the genetic component of noise sensitivity using a twin-study design. The study sample consisted of 573 same-sexed twin pairs from the Finnish Twin Cohort. The 131 monozygotic (MZ) and 442 dizygotic (DZ) twin pairs with an age range of 31 to 88 years replied to a questionnaire on noise and health-related items in 1988. The noise sensitivity of respondents was defined as high, quite high, quite low or low. MZ pairs were more similar with regards noise sensitivity than DZ pairs, and quantitative genetic modeling indicated significant familiality. The best z-fitting genetic model provided an estimate of heritability of 36% (95% CI = .20-.50) and when hearing impaired subjects were excluded this rose to 40% (95% CI = .24-.54). In conclusion, noise sensitivity does aggregate in families and probably has a genetic component.

Influence of diet and other factors on the levels of organochlorine compounds in human adipose tissue in Finland

One hundred and five human adipose tissue samples were recovered during surgical operations or postmorten examinations of patients experiencing death due to traumatic injury. The sample donors were between the ages of 2 mo and 91 yr. Samples were analyzed by GLC-MS techniques for polychlorobiophenyl (PCB) and dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane (DDT) compounds, chlordanes, hexachlorobenzene, and chlorinated phenols. Special attention was paid to the concentration of hepatchlor epoxide, a metabolite of heptachlor, commonly used as an insecticide in the Finnish plywood industry. The mean concentrations of PCB, DTTs, HCB, and chlordanes were 0.26, 0.33, 0.02, and 0.007 mg/kg fresh weight, respectively, while the mean concentration of heptachlor epoxide was 2.3 micrograms/kg. The geometric means were 0.20, 0.28, 0.018, 0.0055, and 0.002 mg/kg, respectively. The concentrations of PCB and DDT compounds in Finnish human adipose tissue has rapidly decreased during the last 10 yr. The average concentrations were higher in south Finland than those in north Finland, and the results clearly indicate the prominent influence of fish meals and the age of sample donors on the pollutant concentrations in adipose tissue. The results were further analyzed and discussed with respect to sex, smoking habits, and number of childbirths of the sample donors.

Intranasal exposure to a damp building mould, Stachybotrys chartarum, induces lung inflammation in mice by satratoxin-independent mechanisms

Background Stachybotrys chartarum is a damp building mould and a potent toxin producer that has been related to serious cases of respiratory health problems. However, the direct link between exposure and health symptoms has not been established.

In vivo effects of bisphenol A on the polecat (mustela putorius).

Bisphenol A (BPA), an environmental estrogen derived from the plastic industry, was given orally via incorporation into the food of 30 male and female polecats at 3 different doses (10, 50, or 250 mg/kg body weight/day) for 2 wk with 10 animals acting as controls. Several hormone levels in the plasma were determined as well as the activities of the phase I and II biotransformation enzymes 7-ethoxyresorufin O-deethylase (EROD), cytosolic glutathione S-transferase (GST), and UDP-glucuronosyltransferase (UDPGT). BPA did not cause any macroscopic effects on body mass or the health of the animals. UDPGT and GST activities increased significantly in direct correlation with increasing BPA exposure in females and UDPGT increased in a dose-related manner in males. There was no change in the plasma T4 and testosterone concentrations of the males with increasing BPA exposure. Discriminant analysis indicated that the group receiving 10 mg BPA/kg body weight/d was not different from the control group but the groups receiving 50 and 250 mg/kg body weight/d were different from the control group. This suggests physiological changes in the groups receiving 50 or 250 mg BPA/kg body weight/d.

Trace and heavy metal analyses of a skeletal population representing the town people in Turku (Åbo), Finland in the 16th–17th centuries: with special reference to gender, age and social background

The Julin site in the city of Turku, Finland, was excavated in 1964, 1983-1985 and 1987. On this site are the remains of the church of the Holy Spirit with its cemetery. The burial period of the excavated skeletons lasted most probably from the 1580s to the 1650s. Sodium, phosphorus, calcium, manganese, iron, copper, zinc, bromine, strontium and lead concentrations of ribs from skeletal remains of 141 individuals were analyzed. The main finding is that the concentrations of Sr and Zn in younger women tend to be lower than that in men of a corresponding age, and in older people both the strontium and zinc values tend to be higher in women than men. On the basis of this study the Pb exposure in the early modern population in Finland was at a very low level. We conclude that the role of migration and the source of grain supply on the variation of the elemental values are more difficult to evaluate than the role of diagenesis.