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Gaceta Medica de Mexico 2023In countries where the consumption of mushrooms is common, hundreds of mushroom poisonings occur every year, which represents a public health problem. In Mexico,...
BACKGROUND
In countries where the consumption of mushrooms is common, hundreds of mushroom poisonings occur every year, which represents a public health problem. In Mexico, mushroom poisoning is classified as a non-bacterial gastrointestinal poisoning, which prevents timely care.
OBJECTIVE
To create a free-access platform that synthesizes and standardizes the information on mycetism cases and offers tools for diagnosis and timely treatment.
MATERIAL AND METHODS
In locations where cases of mycetism have occurred, information was obtained on the fungi involved, the poisonings that occurred, care protocols, and sample processing.
RESULTS
Records were generated that synthesize and describe the types of mycetism with the highest probability of occurrence in Mexico. Therein, the biological characteristics of fungi, the symptoms they cause and their treatment are described. A protocol proposal for patient care and for the processing of biological samples is presented. Finally, a form is included to collect information on cases of poisoning.
CONCLUSIONS
Systematized and analyzed information on mycetism allows to simplify its diagnosis, attention and treatment. The protocols for clinical care and sample processing are the basis for generating strategies that prevent deaths due to mycetism.
Topics: Humans; Mushroom Poisoning; Mexico; Central America; Public Health
PubMed: 37699209
DOI: 10.24875/GMM.M23000786 -
International Journal of Molecular... Apr 2023Industrial production of food for animals and humans needs increasing amounts of pesticides, especially of organophosphates, which are now easily available worldwide.... (Review)
Review
Industrial production of food for animals and humans needs increasing amounts of pesticides, especially of organophosphates, which are now easily available worldwide. More than 3 million cases of acute severe poisoning are estimated to occur worldwide every year, and even more cases remain unreported, while 200,000-350,000 incidentally or intentionally poisoned people die every year. Diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in organophosphate poisoning have, however, remained unchanged. In addition to several neurologic symptoms (miosis, fasciculations), hypersecretion of salivary, bronchial, and sweat glands, vomiting, diarrhea, and loss of urine rapidly induce dehydration, hypovolemia, loss of conscience and respiratory distress. Within hours, signs of acidosis due to systemic hypoxia can be observed at first laboratory investigation after hospitalization. While determination of serum-cholinesterase does not have any diagnostic value, it has been established that hypoalbuminemia alone or accompanied by an increase in creatinine, lactate, or C-reactive protein serum levels has negative prognostic value. Increased serum levels of C-reactive protein are a sign of systemic ischemia. Protective mechanical ventilation should be avoided, if possible. In fact, acute respiratory distress syndrome characterized by congestion and increased weight of the lung, accompanied by heart failure, may become the cause of death. As the excess of acetylcholine at the neuronal level can persist for weeks until enough newly, locally synthesized acetylcholinesterase becomes available (the value of oximes in reducing this time is still under debate), after atropine administration, intravenous albumin and fluid infusion should be the first therapeutic interventions to reestablish normal blood volume and normal tissue oxygenation, avoiding death by cardiac arrest.
Topics: Animals; Humans; Organophosphate Poisoning; Acetylcholinesterase; C-Reactive Protein; Cause of Death; Respiratory Distress Syndrome; Heart Failure; Poisoning
PubMed: 37047631
DOI: 10.3390/ijms24076658 -
Journal of Medical Toxicology :... Oct 2020
Topics: Anticoagulants; Antidotes; Cannabinoids; Disease Outbreaks; Drug Contamination; Humans; Patient Care Team; Pharmacists; Poisoning; Professional Role; Rodenticides; Vitamin K 1
PubMed: 32638283
DOI: 10.1007/s13181-020-00793-5 -
Developmental Neuroscience 2021Developmental and epileptic encephalopathies (DEEs) describe a subset of neurodevelopmental disorders categorized by refractory epilepsy that is often associated with... (Review)
Review
Developmental and epileptic encephalopathies (DEEs) describe a subset of neurodevelopmental disorders categorized by refractory epilepsy that is often associated with intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder. The majority of DEEs are now known to have a genetic basis with de novo coding variants accounting for the majority of cases. More recently, a small number of individuals have been identified with intronic SCN1A variants that result in alternative splicing events that lead to ectopic inclusion of poison exons (PEs). PEs are short highly conserved exons that contain a premature truncation codon, and when spliced into the transcript, lead to premature truncation and subsequent degradation by nonsense-mediated decay. The reason for the inclusion/exclusion of these PEs is not entirely clear, but research suggests an autoregulatory role in gene expression and protein abundance. This is seen in proteins such as RNA-binding proteins and serine/arginine-rich proteins. Recent studies have focused on targeting these PEs as a method for therapeutic intervention. Targeting PEs using antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs) has shown to be effective in modulating alternative splicing events by decreasing the amount of transcripts harboring PEs, thus increasing the abundance of full-length transcripts and thereby the amount of protein in haploinsufficient genes implicated in DEE. In the age of personalized medicine, cellular and animal models of the genetic epilepsies have become essential in developing and testing novel precision therapeutics, including PE-targeting ASOs in a subset of DEEs.
Topics: Animals; Autism Spectrum Disorder; Brain Diseases; Exons; Humans; Mutation; Poisons
PubMed: 33971653
DOI: 10.1159/000516143 -
EMBO Molecular Medicine May 2023Neurodegenerative diseases are increasingly prevalent in the aging population, yet no disease-modifying treatments are currently available. Increasing the expression of...
Neurodegenerative diseases are increasingly prevalent in the aging population, yet no disease-modifying treatments are currently available. Increasing the expression of the cold-shock protein RBM3 through therapeutic hypothermia is remarkably neuroprotective. However, systemic cooling poses a health risk, strongly limiting its clinical application. Selective upregulation of RBM3 at normothermia thus holds immense therapeutic potential. Here we identify a poison exon within the RBM3 gene that is solely responsible for its cold-induced expression. Genetic removal or antisense oligonucleotide (ASO)-mediated manipulation of this exon yields high RBM3 levels independent of cooling. Notably, a single administration of ASO to exclude the poison exon, using FDA-approved chemistry, results in long-lasting increased RBM3 expression in mouse brains. In prion-diseased mice, this treatment leads to remarkable neuroprotection, with prevention of neuronal loss and spongiosis despite high levels of disease-associated prion protein. Our promising results in mice support the possibility that RBM3-inducing ASOs might also deliver neuroprotection in humans in conditions ranging from acute brain injury to Alzheimer's disease.
Topics: Humans; Mice; Animals; Aged; Temperature; Oligonucleotides, Antisense; Poisons; RNA-Binding Proteins; Cold Temperature
PubMed: 36946385
DOI: 10.15252/emmm.202217157 -
Environmental Health Perspectives Aug 2023Childhood lead poisoning remains an important public health issue in the United States, as well as elsewhere in the world. Although primary prevention is a major goal...
BACKGROUND
Childhood lead poisoning remains an important public health issue in the United States, as well as elsewhere in the world. Although primary prevention is a major goal and it is critically important to keep children from getting poisoned, it is also important to explore ways to reduce the neurotoxic effects of lead in those children already poisoned. Whether lead-induced neurotoxicity and its related adverse outcomes are viewed as "permanent" or "persistent" may influence the way in which potential remediation efforts are considered for improving outcomes from childhood lead poisoning.
OBJECTIVES
The objective of this commentary was to discuss the ideas of permanence and persistence in relation to the direct neurotoxic effects of lead on the brain and the resulting adverse outcomes from these effects. Recent new insights regarding potential mitigation of lead-induced neurotoxic effects on brain and behavior are considered along with clinical information on neurorehabilitation to suggest potential strategies for improving cognitive/behavioral outcomes in lead-poisoned children.
DISCUSSION
The distinction between permanent and persistent in regard to lead-induced neurotoxicity and its resulting outcomes may have broad implications for public health policies in response to the problem of childhood lead exposure. The term permanent implies that the damage is irreversible with little chance of improvement. However, there is evidence that at least some of the adverse cognitive/behavioral outcomes from lead exposure are persistent rather than permanent and potentially amenable, under the appropriate circumstances, to some level of mitigation. This author recommends that clinical, interventional research efforts be devoted to exploring optimal neurorehabilitative and enrichment conditions to stimulate plasticity and enhance functioning to determine the extent to which promising results from preclinical studies of lead-induced brain damage and the mitigation of these effects can be successfully translated to humans. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP12371.
Topics: Child; Humans; Lead; Brain; Lead Poisoning; Neurotoxicity Syndromes; Public Health
PubMed: 37639477
DOI: 10.1289/EHP12371 -
Frontiers in Public Health 2022Little evidence is available on the epidemiological and economical dimensions of certain foodborne diseases such as wild mushroom poisoning. This study aimed to...
Little evidence is available on the epidemiological and economical dimensions of certain foodborne diseases such as wild mushroom poisoning. This study aimed to investigate the epidemiology and estimate the costs of poisoning with cyclopeptide-containing mushrooms in Kermanshah province in 2018. In this study, poisoning was investigated in different subgroups. The cost of illness method with a bottom-up approach was used to estimate the poisoning costs. Both direct and indirect costs of the poisoning were included in the analysis. The perspective of the study was society. Required data were obtained from the medical records of Imam Khomeini hospital and completed through a line survey with the patients. Two hundred eighty-three patients were poisoned in Kermanshah due to poisoning with cyclopeptide-containing mushrooms. Of 283 patients, 143 (50.53%) were men and 59.01% of patients were rural residents. About 43% of admissions were out-patient cases and ~40% of patients were hospitalized within 1-3 days. Also, eight patients were pronounced dead in the area. The total cost of poisoning with cyclopeptide-containing mushrooms in Kermanshah province was $ 1,259,349.26. Of that, $ 69,281.65 was related to direct medical costs and $ 10,727.23 was direct non-medical costs. The indirect costs of death were estimated to be $ 1,125,829.7. The current study revealed that there is a significant financial burden due to cyclopeptide-containing mushrooms on patients, the health system, and society as a whole. Further studies are recommended to clarify the epidemiological and economic burden of foodborne illnesses related to wild mushroom poisonings. Sharing the outputs with health authorities, and informing the general public are warranted to reduce the burden of such diseases.
Topics: Agaricales; Disease Outbreaks; Female; Financial Stress; Humans; Iran; Male; Mushroom Poisoning; Peptides, Cyclic
PubMed: 35910917
DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2022.910024 -
Toxins Jul 2023Exposure to phytotoxins that are present in imported ornamental or native plants is an important cause of animal disease. Factors such as animal behaviors (especially... (Review)
Review
Exposure to phytotoxins that are present in imported ornamental or native plants is an important cause of animal disease. Factors such as animal behaviors (especially indoor pets), climate change, and an increase in the global market for household and ornamental plants led to the appearance of new, previously unreported plant poisonings in Europe. This has resulted in an increase in the incidence of rarely reported intoxications. This review presents some of the emerging and well-established plant species that are responsible for poisoning episodes in companion animals and livestock in Europe. The main plant species are described, and the mechanism of action of the primary active agents and their clinical effects are presented. Data reflecting the real incidence of emerging poisoning cases from plant toxins are scarce to nonexistent in most European countries due to a lack of a centralized reporting/poison control system. The diversity of plant species and phytotoxins, as well as the emerging nature of certain plant poisonings, warrant a continuous update of knowledge by veterinarians and animal owners. The taxonomy and active agents present in these plants should be communicated to ensure awareness of the risks these toxins pose for domestic animals.
Topics: Animals; Plant Poisoning; Animals, Domestic; Europe; Toxins, Biological; Animal Diseases; Poisoning
PubMed: 37505711
DOI: 10.3390/toxins15070442 -
Toxicon : Official Journal of the... Jun 2021An epidemiological study on animal poisoning due to plants and zootoxins has been carried out by the Poison Control Centre of Milan (CAV) in collaboration with the...
An epidemiological study on animal poisoning due to plants and zootoxins has been carried out by the Poison Control Centre of Milan (CAV) in collaboration with the University of Milan (Italy). During the period January 2015-March 2019, the CAV received 932 calls on animal poisonings, 12.66% (n = 118) of which were related to plants and zootoxins. Among these, 95 enquiries (80.51%) concerned exposures to plants and 23 (19.49%) to zootoxins. The dog was the species most frequently involved (67.80% of the calls, n = 80), followed by the cat (26.27%, n = 31). As for the plants, several poisoning episodes were related to glycoside-, alkaloid-, oxalate- and diterpenoid-containing species. Cycas revoluta, Euphorbia pulcherrima and Hydrangea macrophylla were the most often reported plants. The outcome has been reported for half of the episodes (51.58%, n = 49) and it was fatal for 3 animals (6.12%). Regarding the zootoxins, the majority of the enquiries were related to asp viper (Vipera aspis), but exposures to pine processionary moth (Thaumetopoea pityocampa), common toad (Bufo), fire salamander (Salamandra), and jellyfish (phylum Cnidaria) were also reported. The outcome was known in 65.22% of the cases with just one fatal episode. This epidemiological investigation depicts an interesting overview on the issue of plant and zootoxin exposures in domestic animals, highlighting the relevance of these agents as causes of animal poisoning and providing useful information for prevention and diagnosis.
Topics: Animals; Animals, Domestic; Cats; Cnidaria; Cycas; Dogs; Italy; Poison Control Centers; Poisoning
PubMed: 33798604
DOI: 10.1016/j.toxicon.2021.03.019 -
BMC Pharmacology & Toxicology Sep 2022Mushroom poisoning can cause gastrointestinal, renal, and hepatic symptoms and even death. This descriptive study examined the demographic, clinical, and laboratory...
BACKGROUND
Mushroom poisoning can cause gastrointestinal, renal, and hepatic symptoms and even death. This descriptive study examined the demographic, clinical, and laboratory findings of patients with fungal poisoning, a type of fungus causing the poisoning, and the incidence and mortality rates of fungal poisoning in Kermanshah province, western Iran, from 2014 to 2018.
METHODS
The medical records of 193 patients with mushroom poisoning from 2014 to 2018 were evaluated. The liver and kidney function tests, electrolytes, abdominal and pelvic ultrasound, chest x-ray, coagulation tests, and coagulation factors (fibrinogen, prothrombin) were assessed. Data were collected from the medical records of patients admitted to the Poisoning Center of Imam Khomeini Hospital in Kermanshah, Iran using a researcher-made checklist. Data were analyzed by SPSS (version 16) using descriptive statistics, including mean, standard deviation, and frequency distribution tables. Trend analysis for proportion was done by chi-square statistics in STATA-14 software (ptrend command).
RESULTS
Of cases, 51.3% were male, 92.6% were city dwellers, 38.3% were aged 21-40 years, and 92.5% were poisoned during the spring. The fungus that caused poisoning was Amanita virosa. The gastrointestinal, nervous, and visual systems were the most common systems involved. The most common gastrointestinal symptoms included nausea and vomiting (72.0%) and abdominal pain (71.0%). Vertigo (11.9%) and headache (9.3%) were the most common neurological symptoms. The most common visual manifestation was blurred vision (7.8%). Of cases, 23.7% had metabolic acidosis. The increased alkaline phosphatase level was the most common liver disorder in 98.7% of the cases. Increased blood urea nitrogen and creatinine levels were also reported in 21.0% and 17.7% of the cases, respectively. The serum lactic dehydrogenase and creatine phosphokinase levels also increased in 99.3% and 30.2% of the patients, respectively. The mortality rate was 1.6% (n = 3).
CONCLUSION
The fungal poisoning diagnosis should always be considered in young patients referred to the emergency department with gastrointestinal complaints, a history of consuming wild self-picked mushrooms, and high liver and kidney test values. Since most fungal poisonings occur in the spring, it is necessary to inform the community of the dangers of consuming self-picked wild mushrooms, especially in this season.
Topics: Alkaline Phosphatase; Creatine Kinase; Creatinine; Female; Fibrinogen; Gastrointestinal Diseases; Humans; Incidence; Iran; Male; Mushroom Poisoning; Oxidoreductases; Prothrombin
PubMed: 36163273
DOI: 10.1186/s40360-022-00614-1