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Indoor house dust is considered an important human exposure route to polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), which has raised concern about their environmental persistence and toxicity properties. In this study, eight PBDEs (BDE-28, -47, -99, -100, -153, -154, -183, and -209) were determined in house dust from two cities with different socio-demographic characteristics from Brazil, examining possible relationships with factors that potentially influence contamination (population density, economic activities, presence of electronic equipment, and so on) and also estimating the risk of human exposure through oral ingestion and dermal contact. The Σ 8 PBDE concentration in Sorocaba city ranged between 380 and 4269 ng/g dw, while in Itapetininga city ranged from 106 to 1000 ng/g dw. In both regions, BDE-209 was the most abundantly found congener, followed by BDE-99. House dust from Sorocaba presented significantly greater concentrations of BDE-183 and BDE-209 than Itapetininga. Regarding risk exposure assessment, the estimated daily intake (EDI) of PBDEs was much lower than their respective reference doses (RfDs) in all pathways estimated (non-dietary ingestion and dermal contact). This study provided valuable data to improve the knowledge about the presence and exposure to PBDEs in Brazilian house dust in comparison to other developing countries and the need to control environmental pollution and protect human health., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Brominated flame retardants (BFRs) have been widely used as additives in polymeric products such as electronic and electrical equipment (EEE) to help meet fire safety regulations. However, some BFRs like polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), are now listed under the Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and banned in many countries, due to their adverse health impacts, environmental persistence, and capacity for bioaccumulation and long-range atmospheric transport. Despite this, in Brazil, only a few studies exist of the presence of these contaminants in the environment, and even fewer in waste EEE (WEEE). Against this backdrop, this study measured the presence of PBDEs in samples (n = 159) of WEEE in the metropolitan region of Sorocaba, Sao Paulo, Brazil. PBDEs were detected in 149 samples, with concentrations in 18 samples exceeding the European Union's Low POP Content Limit (LPCL) of 1000 mg/kg. Decabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-209) was the congener present at the highest concentration in most samples, with those of other PBDEs such as BDE-47 much lower. In general, samples containing >1000 mg/kg are those categorised as display items and miscellaneous EEE (n = 15.27 %), comprising: parts from cathode ray tube TVs (n = 11), audio systems (n = 2), and LCD TVs (n = 2). In addition, in 5 % (n = 3) of IT and telecommunications equipment samples (computer parts) PBDE concentrations exceeded 1000 mg/kg. Our results show the need for greater control and monitoring of the presence of these pollutants in WEEE before recycling and final disposal, to prevent PBDEs entering the recycling stream., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Andre Henrique Rosa reports was provided by State of Sao Paulo Research Foundation. Hansel David Burgos Melo reports was provided by Coordination of Higher Education Personnel Improvement. Juliana de Souza Araujo reports was provided by State of Sao Paulo Research Foundation., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The present study evaluated As, Hg, Pb and Cd burdens in both ecologically and commercially important 314 marine fishes belonging to 47 species sampled along the Amazon Coast. We specifically investigated variations in these four elements among different habitats and their relationships with trophic position and estimated potential human health risk by calculating the hazard quotient (HQ), hazard index (HI), and target cancer risk (TR). Our analyses revealed that Hg concentrations in reef-associated fish were over 2-fold those recorded in demersal fish (p < 0.001). A stable isotope analysis indicated that most of the fish species analyzed herein are secondary consumers (i.e., TP > 2.9) and their trophic positions exhibited a significant negative correlation to As, Pb and Cd. Positive significant relationships were noted between As-Cd, As-Pb, As-Hg, Hg-Cd and Cd-Pb, suggesting that these elements exhibit similar dispersion properties and bioaccumulation homology, probably arising from natural fluvial inputs from the Amazon basin system. Detected As concentrations were higher than established guidelines and legal limits in 63.8% of the examined species (n = 30), whereas Cd, Hg and Pb levels were generally very low. Estimated daily intake (EDI) of iAs, Hg and Pb were above reference dose (RfD) in more almost half of species analyzed and HQ values were each found to pose potential non-carcinogenic health risks if high amounts are consumed over time. HI indicates that the determined elements attained levels considered as potential human health hazards trough consumption of eight cartilaginous fish. The TR values of iAs and Pb were higher than the guideline value and given this, individuals who continuously consume cartilaginous fish contaminated with the toxic elements determined here will likely be under increased cancer risks in the long term., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Background : The adverse effects of antiretroviral therapy associated with complications generated by human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) promote impairments in physical fitness in adolescents. Objective : To analyze the aerobic capacity, muscle strength, and body composition of adolescents living with HIV compared with a healthy population of the same age. Methods : Searches were performed in the MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, Scopus and SportDiscus databases until September 2019 and updated in April 2020. Eligibility Criteria: adolescents of both sexes in the age group from 10 to 19 years; living with HIV; cross-sectional, case-control, cohort studies; comparing with a healthy population. Mean differences and 95% Confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using RevMan (software for systematic reviews). Results : Five articles were included, involving 197 adolescents living with HIV (16 to 18 years) and 185 without infection (13 to 18 years), with the sample in each study ranging from 15 to 65 adolescents. Aerobic capacity and muscle strength were reduced in adolescents with HIV, and body mass index was also significantly lower in this group. Conclusion : Adolescents living with HIV have impaired cardiorespiratory fitness, muscle strength, and body composition when compared to their uninfected peers. However, this systematic review provides limited evidence on the differences between the physical fitness outcomes of adolescents living with HIV compared to healthy adolescents.

Here, we evaluate maternal offloading of 16 trace elements (Essential: Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Se and Zn; Nonessential: Al, As, Ba, Cd, Hg, Pb, Tl and U) and determine mother-offspring isotopic fractionation of δ 13 C and δ 15 N in muscle and liver tissue of four pregnant Mustelus higmani and 18 associated embryos sampled from the Amazon Coast of Brazil. Embryo muscle tissue had significantly higher concentrations of most trace elements when compared to mothers, with the exception of Hg. Embryo liver accumulated more nonessential elements than muscle (n = 7 vs. 0, respectively), while the Se:Hg molar ratio was >1 in liver and muscle of both mothers and embryos. Livers of embryos were moderately enriched in δ 13 C and δ 15 N when compared to that of their mother. Negative correlations were observed between embryo body length and δ 13 C and trace elements concentrations. We conclude that mothers offload a large portion of all essential elements and Al, As and Pb to their young and that the isotopic fractionation of embryos reflects maternal diet and habitat occupied, with δ 13 C diluted with embryonic growth. We also show that muscle and liver accumulate trace elements at different rates relative to the body length of embryos. The Se:Hg molar ratio suggests that Se could play a protective role against Hg toxicity during early stages of M. higmani embryonic development., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)