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Objectives Numbers of studies have shown that human aging is related to environmental factors, among which workplace is an important living environment in people's life. However, there is still a lack of causal exploration research on the effect of workplace factors on human aging. From the perspective of genetic polymorphism, we explore the association between human aging and risk factors in the workplace,and the possible pathways of aging caused by risk factors in the workplace. Methods To systematically explore the association between workplace risk factors and aging, we used a two-sample Mendelian randomization method to examine the association of nine common workplace risk factors with telomere length and accelerated DNA methylation GrimAge clock. We used the corresponding single nucleotide polymorphisms screened as instrumental variables to enable causal associations between exposing to workplace factors and aging. Results According to our tests, "Heavy physical work" and "Noise" are associated with telomere length, which shows statistics as OR [95% CI] = -0.136[-0.229, -0.043], p = 0.004 and the OR [95% CI] = 0.014 [0.002, 0.027], p = 0.025) respectively. Meanwhile, the P value of the phenotype "Asbestos" was close to 0.05 (P = 0.059), and the OR value was OR [95%CI] = -1.098[-2.241, 0.044].The factor "diesel exhaust"(ukb-d-22615_2) associated with GrimAge acceleration was OR [95%CI] = 8.238[-0.023, 16.450], p = 0.05. Conclusions Our finding suggests that there existing causal relationship between workplace exposure to risk factors (noise, heavy physical activity, fuel engine exhaust) and aging.

BACKGROUND: Although the Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ-22) has been translated into numerous languages and applied in various countries, its cultural applicability in China remains unclear. OBJECTIVE: To adjust the JCQ-22 for cross-cultural use and optimize the scoring method for suitability for Chinese working populations. METHODS: We first used the original JCQ-22 questionnaire to measure occupational stress. Cross-cultural adjustment involved reorganization of scale items (adjusted-I scale) and deletion of inefficient redundant items during reorganization of scale items (adjusted-II scale). Structural validity and the relationship between stress and health outcomes (insomnia and self-conscious symptoms) before and after adjustment were compared. RESULTS: Exploratory factor analysis revealed that the two-factor cumulative variance contribution rate of job demand and control of the adjusted-II scale was 52.47%, compared with 48.44% and 48.44% in the original version and adjusted-I scale, respectively. Among the 16 fitness indicators in confirmatory factor analysis, 9 items of the adjusted-II scale met the standard, compared with 4 items of the original and adjusted-I scales. The Pearson’s correlation coefficients between occupational stress and insomnia as well as self-conscious symptoms from the adjusted-II scale were 0.15 and 0.32, respectively, which were higher than those of the original scale (0.10 and 0.20). Receiver operating characteristic analysis revealed that the adjusted-II scale exhibited a better area under the curve and Youden index values than the original scale. CONCLUSION: The adjusted-II scale exhibited superior structural validity with more reasonable health outcome predictions and fewer items, making it more suitable for measuring occupational stress in Chinese populations.

Objective To summarise the dynamic characteristics of COVID-19 transmissibility; To analyse and quantify the effect of control measures on controlling the transmissibility of COVID-19; To predict and compare the effectiveness of different control measures. Methods We used the basic reproduction number ($${R}_{0}$$ R 0 ) to measure the transmissibility of COVID-19, the transmissibility of COVID-19 and control measures of 176 countries and regions from January 1, 2020 to May 14, 2022 were included in the study. The dynamic characteristics of COVID-19 transmissibility were summarised through descriptive research and a Dynamic Bayesian Network (DBN) model was constructed to quantify the effect of control measures on controlling the transmissibility of COVID-19. Results The results show that the spatial transmissibility of COVID-19 is high in Asia, Europe and Africa, the temporal transmissibility of COVID-19 increases with the epidemic of Beta and Omicron strains. Dynamic Bayesian Network (DBN) model shows that the transmissibility of COVID-19 is negatively correlated with control measures. Restricting population mobility has the strongest effect, nucleic acid testing (NAT) has a strong effect, and vaccination has the weakest effect. Conclusion Strict control measures are essential for controlling the COVID-19 outbreak; Restricting population mobility and nucleic acid testing (NAT) have significant impacts on controlling the COVID-19 transmissibility, while vaccination has no significant impact. In light of these findings, future control measures may include the widespread use of new NAT technology and the promotion of booster immunization.

Degenerative dementia, of which Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form, is characterized by the gradual deterioration of cognitive function. The events that trigger and promote degenerative dementia are not clear, and treatment options are limited. Experimental and epidemiological studies have revealed chronic noise exposure (CNE) as a potential risk factor for cognitive impairment and degenerative dementia. Experimental studies have indicated that long-term exposure to noise might accelerate cognitive dysfunction, amyloid-β deposition, and tau hyperphosphorylation in different brain regions such as the hippocampus and cortex. Epidemiological studies are increasingly examining the possible association between external noise exposure and dementia. In this review, we sought to construct a comprehensive summary of the relationship between CNE, cognitive dysfunction, and degenerative dementia. We also present the limitations of existing evidence as a guide regarding important prospects for future research.

The burden of acute respiratory infections is still considerable, and virus-virus interactions may affect their epidemics, but previous evidence is inconclusive. To quantitatively investigate the interactions among respiratory viruses at both the population and individual levels, we use data from the pathogen surveillance for febrile respiratory syndrome (FRS) in China from February 2011 to December 2020. Cases tested for influenza virus (IV), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), human parainfluenza virus (PIV), human Adenovirus (AdV), human coronavirus (CoV), human bocavirus (BoV), and rhinovirus (RV) were collected. We used spearman's rank correlation coefficients and binary logistic regression models to analyze the interactions between any two of the viruses at the population and individual levels, respectively. Among 120 237 cases, 4.5% were coinfected with two or more viruses. Correlation coefficients showed seven virus pairs were positively correlated, namely: IV and RSV, PIV and AdV, PIV and CoV, PIV and BoV, PIV and RV, AdV and BoV, and CoV and RV. Regression models showed positive interactions for all virus pairs, except for the negative interaction between IV and RV (odds ratio = 0.70, 95% confidence interval: 0.61-0.81). Most of the respiratory viruses interact positively, while IV and RV interact negatively.

The relationship between colorectal cancer and asbestos exposure has not been fully clarified. This study aimed to determine the associations between asbestos exposure and colorectal cancer. We performed a meta-analysis to quantitatively evaluate this association. A fixed effects model was used to summarize the relative risks across studies. Sources of heterogeneity were explored through subgroup analyses and meta-regression. We analyzed the dose-effect relationship using lung cancer standardized mortality ratio (SMR) and the risk of mesothelioma as a percent (%) as exposure surrogates. A total of 47 cohort studies were included. We identified 28 incidence cohort studies from 17 separate papers and extracted colorectal cancer standardized incidence ratio (SIR). Cancer mortality data were extracted from 19 separate cohorts among 13 papers. The overall colorectal cancer SMR for synthesis cohort was 1.07 (95% CI 1.02–1.12). Statistically significant excesses were observed in exposure to mixed asbestos (SMR/SIR=1.07), exposure to production (SMR/SIR=1.11), among asbestos cement workers (SMR/SIR=1.18) and asbestos textile workers (SMR/SIR=1.11). Additionally, we determined that the SMR for lung cancer increased with increased exposure to asbestos, as did the risk for colorectal cancer. This study confirms that colorectal cancer has a positive weak associations with asbestos exposure.

ObjectiveOccupational stress is generally acknowledged as a global phenomenon with significant health and economic consequences. The medical worker is a vulnerable group at a high-level risk for depression symptoms. This study aimed to examine the mediating effect of worker-occupation fit (WOF) in relation to occupational stress and depression symptoms among 1988 medical workers in China.MethodsA multi-center cross-sectional study was conducted during June and October 2020 in Henan Province, China. The participants were medical workers from four targeted hospitals (included one general and three specialized hospitals). The Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS-21 Scale), Worker-Occupation Fit Inventory (WOFI), as well as questions about demographic and occupational information were administered in questionnaires distributed to 1988 medical workers. Hierarchical linear regression analysis was used to examine the mediating role of worker occupation fit.ResultsIn this study, there are 43.5% (n = 864) of medical workers experienced depression symptoms. The mean score of WOF was 31.6 ± 7.1, characteristic fit, need supply fit and demand ability fit were 11.3 ± 2.5, 10.1 ± 2.7, 12.9 ± 2.2, respectively. The occupational stress was negatively related to worker occupation fit (r = −0.395, P < 0.001), characteristic fit (r = −0.529, P < 0.001), need supply fit (r = −0.500, P < 0.001), and demand ability fit (r = −0.345, P < 0.001). The occupational stress and depression symptoms have a positive relationship (r = 0.798, P < 0.001). The proportion of worker occupation fit mediation was 6.5% of total effect for depression symptoms.ConclusionOccupational stress has been identified as a risk factor for depression symptoms. Practical strategies for improving medical workers' WOF level would help them better cope with various work-related stressors to reduce depression symptoms. Hospital administrators could reduce medical workers' depression symptoms by taking comprehensive measures to improve the WOF.

Background High-frequency hearing loss is a significant occupational health concern in many countries, and early identification can be effective for preventing hearing loss. The study aims to construct and validate a risk model for HFHL, and develop a nomogram for predicting the individual risk in noise-exposed workers. Methods The current research used archival data from the National Key Occupational Diseases Survey-Sichuan conducted in China from 2014 to 2017. A total of 32,121 noise-exposed workers completed the survey, of whom 80% workers (n = 25,732) comprised the training cohort for risk model development and 20% workers (n = 6389) constituted the validation cohort for model validation. The risk model and nomogram were constructed using binary logistic models. The effectiveness and calibration of the model were evaluated with the receiver operating characteristic curve and calibration plots, respectively. Results A total of 10.06% of noise-exposed workers had HFHL. Age (OR = 1.09, 95% CI: 1.083–1.104), male sex (OR = 3.25, 95% CI: 2.85–3.702), noise exposure duration (NED) (OR = 1.15, 95% CI: 1.093–1.201), and a history of working in manufacturing (OR = 1.50, 95% CI: 1.314–1.713), construction (OR = 2.29, 95% CI: 1.531–3.421), mining (OR = 2.63, 95% CI: 2.238–3.081), or for a private-owned enterprise (POE) (OR = 1.33, 95% CI: 1.202–1.476) were associated with an increased risk of HFHL (P Conclusions The risk model and nomogram for HFHL can be used in application-oriented research on the prevention and management of HFHL in workplaces with high levels of noise exposure.

Despite increasing evidence suggesting a role for the miR‑29 family in the suppression of fibrosis, its role in silicosis remains unknown. The present study aimed to examine the anti‑fibrotic effects and specific mechanism of action of microRNA (miR)‑29c in pulmonary silicosis using animal and cell models. miR‑29c expression levels were examined in the lungs of silicotic rats via reveres transcription‑quantitative (RT‑q)PCR. A Transwell system employing co‑cultures of pulmonary fibroblasts and macrophages was used to establish an in vitro cell model of silicosis, and lentivirus was used to overexpress or knockdown miR‑29c in cultured cells. Changes in collagen type I α I (COL1α1), COL3α1, α‑smooth muscle actin (α‑SMA) and TGF‑β1 expression levels were determined via RT‑qPCR and western blotting. Data analysis was performed using R software. miR‑29c expression was significantly downregulated in the lungs of silicotic rats and in the pulmonary fibroblasts of the in vitro model of silicosis. Furthermore, COL1α1, COL3α1, α‑SMA and TGF‑β1 expression levels were significantly increased in cultured fibroblasts following 12 or 18 h exposure to SiO2. Lentiviral‑mediated knockdown of miR‑29c resulted in increased the expression levels of COL1α1, COL3α1, α‑SMA and TGF‑β1, while lentiviral‑mediated miR‑29c overexpression significantly suppressed the expression levels of these fibrosis‑related genes. Taken together, these results demonstrated that miR‑29c was significantly associated with silica‑induced pulmonary fibrosis and the expression levels of COL1α1, COL3α1, TGF‑β1 and α‑SMA are under the regulation of miR‑29c to different extents. This study therefore identified possible candidate molecular targets for preventing or delaying the occurrence and progression of silicosis.

Background: Occupational hearing loss is a significant occupational health concern in many countries, and high frequency hearing loss (HFHL) is an early symptom. Based on realistic demands, we aimed to build a prediction risk model of HFHL and developed the related risk point score (RPS). The results of this study are expected to provide technological support for interventions and management to enhance application-oriented research of HFHL.Methods: A total of 32121 participants who were noise exposed workers were enrolled. The datasets from the National key occupational diseases survey (NKODS) performed from 2014 to 2017 in Sichuan Province in China were utilized. The sociodemographic and occupational characteristics were assessed by standardized questionnaires, and the level of HFHL were collected by audiometric testing and was defined as a binaural high frequency threshold average (BHFTA) over 40 dB in the right and left ears. The risk prediction models were generated by linear logistic regression, and based on the models, the risk point score (RPS) of HFHL were calculated. Results: Of the 32121 participants in the study, 9.97% (n=4029) of workers had HFHL (BHFTA ≥ 40 dB). Age (OR=1.08, 95% CI: 1.071–1.083), sex (OR=3.34, 95% CI: 2.880–3.636), noise exposure time (OR=1.01, 95% CI: 1.008–1.018), manufacturing industry (OR=1.46, 95% CI: 1.302–1.647), construction industry (OR=2.14, 95% CI: 1.488–3.069), mining industry (OR=2.57, 95% CI: 2.225–2.957), foreign enterprise (OR=0.94, 95% CI: 0.781–1.122), and private enterprise (OR=1.32, 95% CI: 1.200–1.442) were predictors of HFHL (PConclusion: The study found that the prevalence of HFHL was moderate in Sichuan Province. Sex, age, noise exposure years, and employment in the manufacturing industry, construction industry, mining industry, foreign enterprise, or private enterprise were predictors of HFHL, and the development of the RPS of HFHL is necessary for application-oriented research on HFHL.

Background Noise induced hearing loss (NIHL) is a significant occupational health concern in many countries. Based on the realistic demands, we aimed to build the prediction risk model of noise induced hearing loss (NIHL) and developed the related risk point score (RPS). The results of this study expect to provide technology support for interventions and management, in order to enhance the application-orientated research on NIHL. Methods A total of 40433 participants of noise exposed workers were enrolled. The datasets from The National Key Occupational Diseases Survey (NKODS) from 2014 to 2017 in Sichuan province of China. The socio-demographic and occupational characteristics used the standardized questionnaires, and the level of NIHL were collected by audiometric testing, which was defined as binaural high-frequency threshold average (BHFTA) over 40dB. The prediction model expressed by linear format of logistic regression and based on model calculated the risk point score (RPS) of NIHL. Results Of the 40433 participants in the study, there are 9.97%(n=4029) of workers have NIHL (BHFBA >40). Age (OR=1.08, 95%CI: 1.071-1.083), sex (OR=3.34, 95%CI:2.997-3.715), noise exposure time (OR=1.01, 95%CI: 1.008-1.017), manufacturing industry(OR=1.35, 95%CI:1.207-1.500), construction industry (OR=2.59, 95%CI: 1.941-3.458), mining industry (OR=2.42, 95%CI: 2.132-2.740), foreign enterprise(OR=1.14, 95%CI: 0.962-1.353), private enterprise(OR=1.48, 95%CI: 1.361-1.603) are predictors of NIHL( P

Background: Food safety is one of the most important public health problems in the world, and pathogenic bacterium is a major factor causing serious foodborne diseases. Objective: Two methods of duplex PCR combined with capillary electrophoresis laser-induced fluorescence detector (CE-LIF) and microchip capillary electrophoresis laser-induced fluorescence detector (MCE-LIF) have been developed for the simultaneous detection of Yersinia Enterocolitica and Listeria Monocytogenes in various foods. The specific conservative sequences of these two bacteria were amplified. Methods: After labelled with nucleic acid dye SYBR Gold and SYBR Orange, the PCR products were analyzed by CE-LIF and MCE-LIF, respectively. Under the optimal conditions, the detection of PCR products of the target bacteria was achieved in less than 15 min by CE-LIF and within 6 min by MCE-LIF. Results: The alignment analysis demonstrated that the PCR products had good agreement with the sequences published in GenBank. The CE-LIF method could detect 10 CFU/mL Y. enterocolitica and L. monocytogenes, and the MCE-LIF method could detect 100 CFU/mL Y. enterocolitica and L. monocytogenes. The intraday precisions of migration time and peak area of DNA markers and PCR products were in the range of 1.13 to 1.18% and 1.60 to 6.29%, respectively, for CE-LIF and 1.18 to 1.48% and 2.85 to 4.06%, respectively, for MCE-LIF. Conclusions: The proposed methods could be applied to target bacterial detection infood samples rapidly, sensitively, and specifically. Highlights: Two new methods based on CE and MCE have been developed for the simultaneous detection of Y. enterocolitica and L. monocytogenes in foodstuffs, and they can detect the bacteria directly without any enrichment because of their high sensitivity.

Acute respiratory infections (ARIs), with viral pathogens as the major contributors, are the most common illnesses worldwide, and increase the morbidity and mortality among the elderly population. The clinical and pathological features of elderly people with ARIs need to be identified for disease intervention. From January 1st , 2012 through December 31st , 2015, respiratory specimens from patients above 60 years old with ARIs were collected from the outpatient and inpatient settings of six sentinel hospitals in Pudong New Area. Each specimen was tested via multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for eight target viral etiologies including influenza, human rhinovirus (HRV), human para-influenza virus (PIV), adenovirus (ADV), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), human metapneumovirus (hMPV), human coronavirus (hCoVs) and human bocavirus (hBoV). A total of 967 elderly patients with ARIs were enrolled, including 589 (60.91%) males, and the median age was 73 years old. 306 (31.64%) patients were tested positive for any one of the eight viruses, including 276 single infections and 30 co-infections. Influenza was the predominant virus (14.17%, 137/967), detected from 21.35% (76/356) of the outpatients and 9.98% (61/611) of the inpatients. Influenza infections presented two annual seasonal peaks during winter and summer. Compared with non-influenza patients, those with influenza were more likely to have fever, cough, sore throat and fatigue. This study identified influenza as the leading viral pathogen among elderly with ARIs, and two seasonal epidemic peaks were observed in Shanghai. An influenza vaccination strategy needs to be advocated for the elderly population.

BackgroundFrom 2013 to 2017, more than one thousand avian influenza A (H7N9) confirmed cases with hundreds of deaths were reported in mainland China. To identify priorities for epidemic prevention and control, a risk assessing framework for subnational variations is needed to define the epidemic potential of A (H7N9).MethodsWe established a consolidated two-stage framework that outlined the potential epidemic of H7N9 in humans: The Stage 1, index-case potential, used a Boosted Regression Trees model to assess population at risk due to spillover from poultry; the Stage 2, epidemic potential, synthesized the variables upon a framework of the Index for Risk Management to measure epidemic potential based on the probability of hazards and exposure, the vulnerability and coping capacity.ResultsProvinces in southern and eastern China, especially Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Guangzhou, have high index-case potential of human infected with A (H7N9), while northern coastal provinces and municipalities with low morbidity, i.e. Tianjin and Liaoning, have an increasing risk of A (H7N9) infection. Provinces in central China are likely to have high potential of epidemic due to the high vulnerability and the lack of coping capacity.ConclusionsThis study provides a unified risk assessment of A (H7N9) to detect the two-stage heterogeneity of epidemic potential among different provinces in mainland China, allowing proactively evaluate health preparedness at subnational levels to improve surveillance, diagnostic capabilities, and health promotion.

Background To identify differentially expressed miRNAs profiles in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) from patients with silicosis and consider the potential contribution of miRNAs to silicosis. Methods miRNAs expression profiling were performed in the cell fraction of BALF samples obtained from 9 subjects (3 silicosis observation subjects, 3 stage I and stage II silicosis patients, respectively). The differential expression of two selected miRNAs hsa-miR-181c-5p and hsa-miR-29a-3p were confirmed by RT-qPCR. Furthermore, miRNAs Gene Ontology Enrichment categories and target mRNAs were determined based on miRWalk. Results We found 110 dysregulated miRNAs in silicosis samples, most of which showed a down-regulation trend. Microarray results were confirmed by RT-qPCR. With the observation group samples set as standards, stage I samples showed 123 differentially expressed miRNAs, and stage II 46. 23 miRNAs were dysregulated in both stages. Finally, functional enrichment analysis indicated that these miRNAs played an important role in various biological processes, including ECM-receptor interaction and endocytosis. Conclusions This is the first time to acquire the BALF-derived microRNAs expression profiling targeting to human silicosis. These results contribute to unravelling miRNAs involved in the pathogenesis of silicosis, and provide new tools of potential use of as biomarkers for diagnosis and/or therapeutic purposes.

Arsenic is a confirmed human lung carcinogen with estrogenic activity. There are gender differences in the incidence of lung cancer. Estrogen receptors (ER) play an important role in the process of the development of lung cancer. In order to understand the gender difference effects of ER during carcinogenesis of lung induced by arsenic, the effects of arsenic and estrogen receptor antagonist (ICI182780) on expression levels of estrogen receptor beta (ERβ), extracellular regulated protein kinase (ERK1/2) and nuclear factor κB (NF-κB/P65) in type II alveolar epithelial cells (AECII) from different sex ICR fetal mice lung were detected. Results showed that arsenic increased the expression levels of mRNA and protein of ERβ, ERK1/2 and NF-κB/P65, and ICI182780 inhibited the increase. Furthermore, there remains a gender difference in these changes. To summarize, the observations here strongly suggested that estrogen receptor and its mediated signal pathway molecules might have critical roles of the gender difference of incidence of lung cancer in arsenic induced.

Insomnia has become one of the foremost health concerns among workers. Despite a significant number of epidemiological studies have reported on the correlation between insomnia and job stress, comprehensive evidence remains insufficient. Therefore, this research seeks to provide evidence with greater reliability, through summarizing relevant contemporary literature via a meta-analysis. Literature from across Europe and Asia that was of both a prospective and cross-sectional design was included, if well-controlled odds ratios were available. The meta-analysis was undertaken in accordance with the guidelines devised by PRISMA, including tests for publication bias and heterogeneity. High job stress was associated with a greater risk of suffering from insomnia (random OR = 1.73, 95% CI 1.46–2.05), and the correlation between effort-reward imbalance and insomnia was statistically significant (random OR = 2.63, 95% CI 1.22–5.69). Higher demand was correlated to a relatively greater risk of insomnia (random OR = 1.35, 95% CI 1.20–1.51), while the pooled effect of low control was not found to be statistically significant. The summary random odds ratio of heavy workload was 2.76, and a pooled odds ratio of 1.67 (fixed, 95% CI 1.11–2.52) was calculated in low social support. With regard to the overall population, work-family conflict was correlated with insomnia (random OR = 2.32, 95% CI 1.53–3.51). The subgroup analysis provided comparable outcomes, for both males (fixed OR = 1.97, 95% CI 1.50–2.57) and females (random OR = 2.80, 95% CI 1.30–6.05). Egger’s regression indicated that publication bias may be apparent in the syntheses of effort-reward imbalance, low social support, and work-family conflict (p

Work-related stress factors are commonly considered to be increasing the risk of insomnia. But the association between circadian-rhythm gene period2 (per2) and insomnia remains unknown. The paper aimed to examine the relationships among the polymorphism in rs7602358 of Per2 gene, work stress, and insomnia. In the cross-sectional study of a total of 364 Chinese workers recruited, 218 had insomnia tested by the Athens Insomnia Scale (AIS-5). Work stress was assessed using the General Job Stress Questionnaire (GJSQ). Per2 genotypes were determined by SNaPshot technology. Unconditional logistic regression analysis was used to examine the interaction between polymorphism of Per2 and work stress in insomnia. The genotype AC or allele C of Per2 significantly increased the risk of insomnia (OR, 5.41; 95 % CI, 2.23–13.1) (OR, 3.29; 95 % CI, 1.55–6.98). Compared to low work stress, high work stress had a higher risk of insomnia (OR, 2.73; 95 % CI, 1.77–4.22). A significant interaction between Per2 and work stress in the risk of insomnia was found. Compared to workers with low work stress and genotype AA, those with high work stress and genotype AC had a higher risk of insomnia (OR, 15.12; 95 % CI, 3.46–66.09). The effect of genotype AC or allele C of Per2 on insomnia was relatively stronger than that of high work stress, suggesting that individual’s susceptibility should be taken into consideration when intervening and controlling insomnia of workers.

Despite increasing evidence to suggest that microRNA (miR)-146a and miR-181b are involved in the regulation of immune responses and tumor progression, their roles in silicosis remain to be fully elucidated. Therefore, the present study examined the roles of miR-146a and miR-181b in inflammatory responses, and their effect on the expression of the tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) inflammatory chemokines in silicon dioxide (SiO2)-induced NR8383 rat macrophages. Alterations in the expression levels of miR-146a and miR-181b in rats with silicosis have been previously investigated using miRNA arrays. In the present study, the expression levels of miR-146a and miR-181b were assessed using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). The NR8383 cells were transfected with miRNA-146a and miR-181b mimics or inhibitors, and the cells and culture supernatants were collected following SiO2 treatment for 12 h. The expression levels of TNF-α and IL-1β were detected using western blotting, RT-qPCR and ELISA. Analysis of variance and Student's two-tailed t-test were used to perform statistical analyses. The expression level of miR-146a was significantly increased, while the expression level of miR-181b was significantly decreased in the fibrotic lungs of the rats with silicosis, compared with the levels in the normal rats. It was observed that, following treatment of the NR8383 cells with SiO2 for 12 h, the levels of TNF-α were significantly increased following miR-181b knockdown and the levels of IL-1β were significantly increased following miR-146a knockdown, compared with the inhibitor-treated controls (P

The performance of outbreak detection could be affected by the adoption of different temporal models, and the length of baseline data and parameter values. This chapter described three studies, which compared the accuracy and timeliness of outbreak detection with different models, baseline data, and parameters. Firstly, two models, the Ratio Chart Method and Moving Percentile Method (MPM), were compared. Models using long baseline data were then compared with models using short baseline data. Finally, the impact of parameter values was evaluated using the MPM.

Effectiveness evaluation is a systematic way to improve early warning system and ensure system's effective work. On technical level, early warning system is composed of five procedures, including goal setting, information collection, data analysis, information distribution, and early warning response. This chapter shows how to evaluate these procedures: providing evaluation strategy and indicators. On the viewpoint of administration level, seven evaluation indictors are proposed, including simplicity, flexibility, acceptability, portability, stability, security, and system costs. These indictors make conducting sound and fair valuations practical and help to assess whether a set of evaluative activities are well-designed and working to their potential.

This chapter provides brief introductions to the basic models and algorithms for the early warning of infectious diseases. First, it describes several types and principles of early warning models. It then discusses several indicators for evaluating the effectiveness of early warning models.

This chapter introduces the history, design, technical elements, and functional framework of China Infectious Diseases Automated-alert and Response System (CIDARS). The targeted diseases, early warning methods, and response steps are also described. Based on the running data of the system from 2011 to 2013, the performance of CIDARS is analyzed and evaluated, and further direction of CIDARS is also discussed.

Solvent exposure has been inconsistently linked to the risk for non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). The aim of this study was to determine whether the association is modified by genetic variation in immune genes. A population-based case-control study involving 601 incident cases of NHL and 717 controls was carried out in 1996-2000 among women from Connecticut. Thirty single nucleotide polymorphisms in 17 immune genes were examined in relation to the associations between exposure to various solvents and the risk for NHL. The study found that polymorphism in interleukin 10 (IL10; rs1800890) modified the association between occupational exposure to organic solvents and the risk for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (P(for interaction)=0.0058). The results remained statistically significant after adjustment for false discovery rate. Compared with women who were never occupationally exposed to any organic solvents, women who were exposed to organic solvents at least once had a significantly increased risk for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma if they carried the IL10 (rs1800890) TT genotype (odds ratio=3.31, 95% confidence interval: 1.80-6.08), but not if they carried the AT/AA genotype (odds ratio=1.14, 95% confidence interval: 0.72-1.79). No significant interactions were observed for other immune gene single nucleotide polymorphisms and various solvents in relation to NHL overall and its major subtypes. The study provided preliminary evidence supporting a role of immune gene variations in modifying the association between occupational solvent exposure and the risk for NHL.

Chrysotile asbestos has continued to be mined and used in China, but its health effects on exposed workers have not been well documented. This study was conducted to give a complete picture about cause-specific mortality in Chinese asbestos workers. A cohort of 586 males and 279 females from a chrysotile textile factory were prospectively followed for 37 years. Their vital status was identified, and the date and underlying cause of death were verified from death registry. Cause-specific standardized mortality ratios by gender were computed with nationwide gender- and cause-specific mortality rates as reference. Male workers were 11 years older, and had 6 years longer exposure duration than females; 79% in males and 1% in females smoked. In males, the mortality rate of all cancers doubled; both larynx and lung cancer were four-fold, and mesothelioma was 33-fold. In females, there was slightly excess mortality from lung cancer and all cancers, and significant increase in mesothelioma and ovarian cancer. Other significantly increased mortality was seen from cancers of thymus, small intestine and penis in males, and cancers of bone and bladder in females. In addition to asbestosis, mortality from pulmonary heart disease was significantly elevated in both genders. The data confirmed significantly excess mortality from mesothelioma in either gender, lung and larynx cancers in males, and ovarian cancer in females. A gender difference in mortality from lung cancer and all cancers could be mainly due to the discrepancies in age, exposure duration and smoking between the male and female workers.

Background Syndromic surveillance has been widely used for the early warning of infectious disease outbreaks, especially in mass gatherings, but the collection of electronic data on symptoms in hospitals is one of the fundamental challenges that must be overcome during operating a syndromic surveillance system. The objective of our study is to describe and evaluate the implementation of a symptom-clicking-module (SCM) as a part of the enhanced hospital-based syndromic surveillance during the 41st World Exposition in Shanghai, China, 2010. Methods The SCM, including 25 targeted symptoms, was embedded in the sentinels’ Hospital Information Systems (HIS). The clinicians used SCM to record these information of all the visiting patients, and data were collated and transmitted automatically in daily batches. The symptoms were categorized into seven targeted syndromes using pre-defined criteria, and statistical algorithms were applied to detect temporal aberrations in the data series. Results SCM was deployed successfully in each sentinel hospital and was operated during the 184-day surveillance period. A total of 1,730,797 patient encounters were recorded by SCM, and 6.1 % (105,352 visits) met the criteria of the seven targeted syndromes. Acute respiratory and gastrointestinal syndromes were reported most frequently, accounted for 92.1 % of reports in all syndromes, and the aggregated time-series presented an obvious day-of-week variation over the study period. In total, 191 aberration signals were triggered, and none of them were identified as outbreaks after verification and field investigation. Conclusions SCM has acted as a practical tool for recording symptoms in the hospital-based enhanced syndromic surveillance system during the 41st World Exposition in Shanghai, in the context of without a preexisting electronic tool to collect syndromic data in the HIS of the sentinel hospitals.

To analyze the correlation between population characteristics and work ability of employees with a multilevel model, to investigate the important influencing factors for work ability, and to provide a basis for improvement in work ability.Work ability index (WAI)was applied to measure the work ability of 1686 subjects from different companies (n=6). MLwi N2.0 software was applied for two-level variance component model fitting.The WAI of employees showed differences between various companies (χ2=3.378 6, P=0.0660); working years was negatively correlated with WAI (χ2=38.229 2, P=0.0001), and the WAI of the employees with 20 or more working years was 1.63 lower than that of the employees with less than 20 working years; the work ability of manual workers was lower than that of mental-manual workers (χ2=8.2726, P=0.0040), and the work ability showed no significant difference between mental workers and mental-manual workers (χ2=2.086 0, P=0.148 7).From the perspective of probability, the multilevel model analysis reveals the differences in work ability of employees between different companies, and suggests that company, work type, and working years are the important influencing factors for work ability of employees. These factors should be improved and adjusted to protect or enhance the work ability of employees.