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Environmental Health Perspectives Jul 1993Reproductive ecology is defined as "the study of causes and mechanisms of the effects of environmental risk factors on reproductive health and the methods of their... (Review)
Review
Reproductive ecology is defined as "the study of causes and mechanisms of the effects of environmental risk factors on reproductive health and the methods of their prevention and management." Major areas of concern, within the purview of this paper, relate to adverse pregnancy outcomes, effects on target tissues in the male and the female, and alterations in the control and regulatory mechanisms of reproductive processes. Teratogenic potential of chemicals, released as a result of accidents and catastrophes, is of critical significance. Congenital Minamata disease is due to transplacental fetal toxicity caused by accidental ingestion of methyl mercury. Generalized disorders of ectodermal tissue following prenatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls have been reported in Taiwan and Japan. The Bhopal gas disaster, a catastrophic industrial accident, was due to a leak of toxic gas, methyl isocyanate (MIC), in the pesticide manufacturing process. The outcome of pregnancy was studied in female survivors of MIC exposure. The spontaneous abortion rate was nearly four times more common in the affected areas as compared to the control area (24.2% versus 5.6%; p < 0.0001). Furthermore, while stillbirth rate was found to be similar in the affected and control areas, the perinatal and neonatal mortality rates were observed to be higher in the affected area. The rate of congenital malformations in the affected and control areas did not show any significant difference. Chromosomal aberrations and sister chromatid exchange (SCE) frequencies were investigated in human survivors of exposure. The observed SCE frequencies in control and exposed groups indicated that mutagenesis has been induced. Strategies for the management, prediction, and preventability of such disasters are outlined.
Topics: Abortion, Spontaneous; Accidents, Occupational; Disasters; Environmental Exposure; Environmental Monitoring; Female; Fetal Death; Hazardous Substances; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Isocyanates; Male; Mercury Poisoning; Pregnancy; Reproduction
PubMed: 8243381
DOI: 10.1289/ehp.93101s2125 -
Bulletin of the World Health... Apr 2022Multiple environmental health issues resulting from pollution and climate change threaten public health in India.
PROBLEM
Multiple environmental health issues resulting from pollution and climate change threaten public health in India.
APPROACH
The Government of India recognized the need for a permanent environmental health research institute; the Indian Council of Medical Research therefore established the National Institute for Research in Environmental Health in Bhopal in 2010. Scientists at the institute assessed the multiple long-term health effects of exposure to methyl isocyanate, and are now conducting research on a wide array of locally relevant environmental health issues.
LOCAL SETTING
The Union Carbide India Limited pesticide factory in Bhopal was the site of a methyl isocyanate gas leak in 1984, which affected half a million people. The Indian Council of Medical Research set up a coordinating unit in the immediate aftermath, which was upgraded to the Bhopal Gas Disaster Research Centre in 1986 and then the Centre for Rehabilitation Studies in 1995.
RELEVANT CHANGES
Scientists at the institute undertake environmental monitoring and health risk assessment studies among communities located near polluted areas, such as industrial areas. They are also assessing the training needs of practising physicians, with the aim of developing a curated curriculum to meet the deficiencies in environmental health education in the country.
LESSONS LEARNT
Environmental legislation was introduced in the wake of the disaster and a research institute in environmental health was established. Researchers at the institute have recognized the importance of engaging communities in environmental health research, as well as knowledge dissemination to relevant stakeholders.
Topics: Academies and Institutes; Environmental Exposure; Environmental Health; Environmental Pollution; Humans; India; Industry
PubMed: 35386553
DOI: 10.2471/BLT.21.286680 -
Environmental Health Perspectives Jun 1987Although press reports indicate that the leakage of methyl isocyanate (MIC) on December 3, 1984, in Bhopal has led to an increase in spontaneous abortions, stillbirths,...
Although press reports indicate that the leakage of methyl isocyanate (MIC) on December 3, 1984, in Bhopal has led to an increase in spontaneous abortions, stillbirths, infant mortality, and fetal abnormalities, no clinical or experimental studies on the reproductive toxicity of MIC were reported in scientific journals for several months after the accident. We therefore conducted, 9 months after the accident, a preliminary survey of 3270 families in Bhopal and experimental studies on the effects of MIC in pregnant mice. It was found that 43% of pregnancies in women residing near the Union Carbide pesticide plant did not result in the birth of a live child. Likewise, exposure of mice to relatively low concentrations of MIC (9 and 15 ppm) for 3 hr caused complete resorption in more than 75% of animals. A decrease in fetal and placental weights was observed at 2 to 15 ppm MIC. In general, the experimental findings in mice corroborate the epidemiological data from Bhopal. The mechanism of the fetal toxicity of MIC remains to be established.
Topics: Abnormalities, Drug-Induced; Abortion, Spontaneous; Animals; Cyanates; Epidemiologic Methods; Female; Fetal Death; Humans; India; Infant Mortality; Isocyanates; Maternal-Fetal Exchange; Mice; Pregnancy; Pregnancy Complications
PubMed: 3622430
DOI: 10.1289/ehp.8772153 -
International Journal of Occupational... Jun 2013The world's worst industrial disaster, at Union Carbide, Bhopal, India, took place on 2-3 December 1984, leading to the leakage of poisonous methyl-isocyanate into the... (Review)
Review
The world's worst industrial disaster, at Union Carbide, Bhopal, India, took place on 2-3 December 1984, leading to the leakage of poisonous methyl-isocyanate into the environment, causing thousands of deaths, pregnancy loss and for some, incapacitation for life. More than a quarter of a century later, the Indian Council of Medical Research undertook to redefine the abysmal consequences of the toxic gas exposure on the exposed population. This invigorated the interest of scientific community in the evaluation of the long-term effects, with reference to cytogenetic parameters. The thrust area was identified in terms of genetic disorders, low birth weight, developmental/growth disorders and congenital malformations. Also the impact on epigenetic factors, which may have contributed to variations in the functional expression of genes, was not negated, stimulating intense scientific research on in utero exposure and the progeny of the exposed population. To accomplish this mammoth task, molecular cytogenetic investigations must be undertaken in conjunction with conventional cytogenetics, using techniques such as FISH, Immuno-FISH, SKY and SNP analysis, to build up a cytogenetic database of the surviving population.
Topics: Animals; Bhopal Accidental Release; Cytogenetic Analysis; DNA Damage; Female; Humans; Isocyanates; Lymphocytes; Pregnancy; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects
PubMed: 23857370
DOI: 10.2478/s13382-013-0110-6 -
Nature Communications Jul 2018The 6,6-quinolone scaffolds on which viridicatin-type fungal alkaloids are built are frequently found in metabolites that display useful biological activities. Here we...
The 6,6-quinolone scaffolds on which viridicatin-type fungal alkaloids are built are frequently found in metabolites that display useful biological activities. Here we report in vitro and computational analyses leading to the discovery of a hemocyanin-like protein AsqI from the Aspergillus nidulans aspoquinolone biosynthetic pathway that forms viridicatins via a conversion of the cyclopenin-type 6,7-bicyclic system into the viridicatin-type 6,6-bicyclic core through elimination of carbon dioxide and methylamine through methyl isocyanate.
Topics: Alkaloids; Aspergillus nidulans; Binding Sites; Biosynthetic Pathways; Carbon Dioxide; Cloning, Molecular; Crystallography, X-Ray; Cyclization; Escherichia coli; Fungal Proteins; Gene Expression; Genetic Vectors; Hemocyanins; Hydroxyquinolines; Isocyanates; Kinetics; Methylamines; Models, Molecular; Protein Binding; Protein Conformation, alpha-Helical; Protein Interaction Domains and Motifs; Quinolones; Recombinant Proteins; Substrate Specificity; Zinc
PubMed: 30026518
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-05221-5 -
The millimeter wave spectrum of methyl cyanate: a laboratory study and astronomical search in space.Astronomy and Astrophysics Jul 2016The recent discovery of methyl isocyanate (CHNCO) in Sgr B2(N) and Orion KL makes methyl cyanate (CHOCN) a potential molecule in the interstellar medium. The aim of this...
AIMS
The recent discovery of methyl isocyanate (CHNCO) in Sgr B2(N) and Orion KL makes methyl cyanate (CHOCN) a potential molecule in the interstellar medium. The aim of this work is to fulfill the first requirement for its unequivocal identification in space, i.e. the availability of transition frequencies with high accuracy.
METHODS
The room-temperature rotational spectrum of methyl cyanate was recorded in the millimeter wave domain from 130 to 350 GHz. All rotational transitions revealed - splitting owing to methyl internal rotation and were globally analyzed using the ERHAM program.
RESULTS
The data set for the ground torsional state of methyl cyanate exceeds 700 transitions within = 10 - 35 and [Formula: see text] and newly derived spectroscopic constants reproduce the spectrum close to the experimental uncertainty. Spectral features of methyl cyanate were then searched for in Orion KL, Sgr B2(N), B1-b, and TMC-1 molecular clouds. Upper limits to the column density of methyl cyanate are provided.
PubMed: 27721514
DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201628140 -
Environmental Health Perspectives Jun 1987The accidental release of methyl isocyanate (MIC) in Bhopal, India, was reportedly responsible for the deaths of more than 2,000 people. To study the pathology of acute...
The accidental release of methyl isocyanate (MIC) in Bhopal, India, was reportedly responsible for the deaths of more than 2,000 people. To study the pathology of acute inhalation exposure to MIC, the tissues of male and female Fischer 344 rats were evaluated immediately after a single 2-hr exposure to 0, 3, 10, or 30 ppm MIC, and through day 91. Early gross pathologic changes in the 30 ppm-exposed rats included a reddish white encrustation around the mouth and nose, a small thymus, and distension of the gastrointestinal tract with gas. Lungs (middle and median lobes) showed consolidation and hemorrhage and failed to deflate when the chest cavity was opened. Microscopic changes in the upper respiratory tract 3 hr after exposure included marked erosion and separation of olfactory and respiratory epithelia from the basement membrane with accumulation of serofibrinous fluid. On day 1, acute inflammation and fibrinopurulent exudate partially blocked the nasal passages. Epithelial cells had sloughed from the nasopharynx, trachea, bronchi, and major bronchioles, leaving the basement membrane covered with fibrin and exudate. Granulomatous inflammation and intraluminal fibrosis of the airways were observed by day 3, with increased intraluminal fibrosis by day 7. Lower airways became blocked by exfoliated cells, mucous plugs, and/or intraluminal fibrosis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Topics: Animals; Cyanates; Digestive System; Female; Isocyanates; Lung; Male; Rats; Rats, Inbred F344; Respiratory System; Thymus Gland; Time Factors
PubMed: 3622446
DOI: 10.1289/ehp.877271 -
Environmental Health Perspectives Aug 2003The Southeast Asia and Western Pacific regions contain half of the world's children and are among the most rapidly industrializing regions of the globe. Environmental... (Review)
Review
The Southeast Asia and Western Pacific regions contain half of the world's children and are among the most rapidly industrializing regions of the globe. Environmental threats to children's health are widespread and are multiplying as nations in the area undergo industrial development and pass through the epidemiologic transition. These environmental hazards range from traditional threats such as bacterial contamination of drinking water and wood smoke in poorly ventilated dwellings to more recently introduced chemical threats such as asbestos construction materials; arsenic in groundwater; methyl isocyanate in Bhopal, India; untreated manufacturing wastes released to landfills; chlorinated hydrocarbon and organophosphorous pesticides; and atmospheric lead emissions from the combustion of leaded gasoline. To address these problems, pediatricians, environmental health scientists, and public health workers throughout Southeast Asia and the Western Pacific have begun to build local and national research and prevention programs in children's environmental health. Successes have been achieved as a result of these efforts: A cost-effective system for producing safe drinking water at the village level has been devised in India; many nations have launched aggressive antismoking campaigns; and Thailand, the Philippines, India, and Pakistan have all begun to reduce their use of lead in gasoline, with resultant declines in children's blood lead levels. The International Conference on Environmental Threats to the Health of Children, held in Bangkok, Thailand, in March 2002, brought together more than 300 representatives from 35 countries and organizations to increase awareness on environmental health hazards affecting children in these regions and throughout the world. The conference, a direct result of the Environmental Threats to the Health of Children meeting held in Manila in April 2000, provided participants with the latest scientific data on children's vulnerability to environmental hazards and models for future policy and public health discussions on ways to improve children's health. The Bangkok Statement, a pledge resulting from the conference proceedings, is an important first step in creating a global alliance committed to developing active and innovative national and international networks to promote and protect children's environmental health.
Topics: Asia, Southeastern; Child; Child Welfare; Cost of Illness; Demography; Environmental Exposure; Environmental Health; Geography; Guidelines as Topic; Health Promotion; Health Services Needs and Demand; Humans; Industry; Pacific Islands; Urbanization
PubMed: 12896856
DOI: 10.1289/ehp.6059 -
Ciencia & Saude Coletiva Oct 2020There is credible evidence that the 1984-Bhopal-methyl isocyanate (MIC)-gas-exposed long-term survivors and their offspring born post-exposure are susceptible to...
There is credible evidence that the 1984-Bhopal-methyl isocyanate (MIC)-gas-exposed long-term survivors and their offspring born post-exposure are susceptible to infectious/communicable and non-communicable diseases. Bhopal's COVID-19 fatality rate suggests that the MIC-gas tragedy survivors are at higher risk, owing to a weakened immune system and co-morbidities. This situation emboldened us to ponder over what we know, what we don't, and what we should know about their susceptibility to COVID-19. This article aims at answering these three questions that emerge in the minds of public health officials concerning prevention strategies against COVID-19 and health promotion in the Bhopal MIC-affected population (BMAP). Our views and opinions presented in this article will draw attention to prevent and reduce the consequences of COVID-19 in BMAP. From the perspective of COVID-19 prophylaxis, the high-risk individuals from BMAP with co-morbidities need to be identified through a door-to-door visit to the severely gas-affected regions and advised to maintain good respiratory hygiene, regular intake of immune-boosting diet, and follow healthy lifestyle practices.
Topics: Betacoronavirus; COVID-19; Communicable Disease Control; Coronavirus Infections; Disasters; Disease Susceptibility; Environmental Exposure; Humans; Immunocompromised Host; India; Isocyanates; Pandemics; Pneumonia, Viral; SARS-CoV-2; Self Care; Survivors; Vulnerable Populations
PubMed: 33027359
DOI: 10.1590/1413-812320202510.2.28682020 -
International Journal of Occupational... Mar 2011The potential toxic effects on the immune system exerted by occupational and accidental environmental exposures and underlying molecular regulatory mechanisms involved...
OBJECTIVE
The potential toxic effects on the immune system exerted by occupational and accidental environmental exposures and underlying molecular regulatory mechanisms involved in the etiology and progression of infectious diseases are now being characterized. The Bhopal gas tragedy is undoubtedly one of the worst industrial disasters in the history of mankind. After 25 years of accidental exposure to methyl isocyanate (MIC), severe systemic ailments still continue to pre-occupy the lives of the affected population that survived this tragedy. We have performed a molecular surveillance study to characterize hepatitis and tuberculosis infections amongst the first and the second generation of survivors exposed to MIC.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Both outdoor and indoor patients referred for molecular diagnosis of hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV) and Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) were examined. Qualitative analysis for HBsAg, anti-HBc, anti-HCV through ELISA was performed, while BacT/ALERT and Ziehl-Neelson technique were utilized for the assessment of tuberculosis. Detection and quantification of viral and bacterial nucleic acid and characterization of hepatitis genotypes were analyzed using real-time and end-point PCR techniques.
RESULTS
The results suggest that HBV infections are most common among the MIC-exposed cohort, followed by extra-pulmonary and pulmonary MTB and HCV infections. Genotype 3 is the most prevalent HCV genotype among the survivors. Failure to detect HBsAg, anti-HBc and anti-HCV through ELISA, and tuberculosis by culture and Ziehl-Neelson stain, indicates higher prevalence of occult hepatitis and latent tuberculosis in the affected population.
CONCLUSIONS
Our study underscores the importance of hospital-based records used as a data source for monitoring possible environmental health hazards. As the risk of progress of infection is often influenced by conditions and periods of environmental chemical exposure, therefore, insights of interconnected molecular pathways will further illuminate the gene-environment association and might offer valuable information for rational drug design.
Topics: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Air Pollutants; Bhopal Accidental Release; Cohort Studies; DNA, Bacterial; DNA, Viral; Female; Hepacivirus; Hepatitis B; Hepatitis B Antibodies; Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; Hepatitis B virus; Hepatitis C; Hepatitis C Antibodies; Humans; India; Isocyanates; Male; Middle Aged; Molecular Epidemiology; Mycobacterium tuberculosis; RNA, Viral; Tuberculosis
PubMed: 21468906
DOI: 10.2478/s13382-011-0006-2