Publications by authors named "Ana Navas Acien"
Background: Humans are primary drivers of environmental-contaminant exposures worldwide, including in drinking-water (DW). In the United States, point-of-use DW (POU-DW) is supplied via private tapwater (TW), public-supply TW, and bottled water (BW). Differences in management, monitoring, and messaging and lack of directly-intercomparable exposure data influence the actual and perceived quality and safety of different DW supplies and directly impact consumer decision-making.
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- Uranium, a toxic element found in U.S. drinking water, was studied to see if its levels in urine are linked to heart health in American Indian young adults.
- The study analyzed data from over 1,300 participants, measuring urinary uranium and assessing heart function through echocardiography over several years.
- Results showed higher urinary uranium levels were associated with negative changes in heart structure and function, indicating a possible risk for cardiovascular issues that merits further research.
Background And Aim: Although considerable progress has been made regarding the implementation of smoke-free policies (SFPs), many people continue to be exposed to second-hand smoke (SHS) in the home environment. The aim of this study was to conduct a systematic review on the association of SFPs in multi-unit housing (MUH) with smoking behavior and SHS exposure.
Methods: In August 2022, we searched five online databases: PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, PsycINFO and CENTRAL.
Importance: Metals are established neurotoxicants, but evidence of their association with cognitive performance at low chronic exposure levels is limited.
Objective: To investigate the association of urinary metal levels, individually and as a mixture, with cognitive tests and dementia diagnosis, including effect modification by apolipoprotein ε4 allele (APOE4).
Design, Setting, And Participants: The multicenter prospective cohort Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) was started from July 2000 to August 2002, with follow-up through 2018.
Background: The association of overall cardiovascular health (CVH) with changes in DNA methylation (DNAm) has not been well characterized.
Methods: We calculated the American Heart Association's Life's Essential 8 (LE8) score to reflect CVH in five cohorts with diverse ancestry backgrounds. Epigenome-wide association studies (EWAS) for LE8 score were conducted, followed by bioinformatic analyses.
Article Synopsis
- There is a shared relationship between cardiovascular disease (CVD) and cancer, tied to common risk factors and biological pathways, which the study aims to explore across three diverse ethnic cohorts.
- The researchers employed a two-stage methodology involving epigenome-wide association studies and targeted analysis of differentially methylated positions (DMPs), unveiling significant epigenetic markers for CVD and cancer.
- The findings indicate interconnected biological pathways for CVD and cancer, suggesting potential for precision prevention strategies, including screening based on epigenetic signatures to identify at-risk patients in early diagnosis stages.
Article Synopsis
- Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a major health issue in the U.S., and improved prediction models could help in early detection and intervention.
- Researchers developed a deep learning autoencoder survival analysis model (AESurv) that analyzes DNA methylation and clinical data to predict CHD events more accurately.
- The AESurv model outperformed traditional survival analysis models in two studies, showing strong potential for improving early CHD prediction and aiding healthcare professionals in managing patient care.
Article Synopsis
- A study investigated the link between urinary metal levels (both nonessential and essential) and the progression of coronary artery calcium (CAC), a marker for cardiovascular disease, in participants from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA).
- Results showed that higher levels of metals like cadmium, tungsten, uranium, and cobalt were associated with significantly increased CAC levels over 10 years, indicating a potential risk factor for cardiovascular disease.
- The findings suggest that exposure to certain metals has a comparable impact on coronary calcification as traditional cardiovascular risk factors, emphasizing the need for further research into environmental influences on heart health.
Arsenic is a ubiquitous toxic metalloid causing serious health problems. Speciation analysis of arsenic in human urine provides valuable insights for large-scale epidemiological studies and informs on sources of exposure as well as human metabolism. The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) is a valuable cohort for assessing chronic low-moderate arsenic exposure and health effects in an ethnically diverse US population.
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- A study was conducted on heart failure (HF) risk factors among American Indian communities, revealing a lack of existing research in this area despite high diabetes and cardiovascular issues.
- The study analyzed data from 3,059 participants, identifying key predictors of HF over time, including age, smoking, kidney damage, and history of heart attacks, with strong predictive performance indicated.
- The findings highlight that diabetes control and kidney damage indicators are significant in determining HF risks, which could help improve risk prediction and management in these communities.
Article Synopsis
- Selenium is a crucial nutrient that can have negative health effects at both low and high levels, prompting research into how it affects DNA methylation and related diseases in a specific population (American Indians).
- In a study involving 1,357 participants, researchers measured urinary selenium levels and conducted DNA methylation analysis, identifying five key CpG sites significantly associated with these levels.
- The results showed only minor changes in DNA methylation linked to urinary selenium, indicating that its health impacts might involve mechanisms beyond just DNA methylation alterations.
Article Synopsis
- - The study aimed to replicate a previous finding that EDTA-based chelation therapy reduces cardiovascular disease (CVD) events in individuals with diabetes and a history of myocardial infarction (MI).
- - Conducted at 88 sites in the US and Canada, the trial involved 959 participants who were randomly assigned to receive either chelation therapy or a placebo, with a median follow-up of 48 months.
- - Results showed no significant difference in CVD events between the chelation group (35.6% experienced a primary event) and the placebo group (35.7%), indicating that chelation may not provide the hoped-for benefits in this population.
Article Synopsis
- - This study examined how exposure to various metals in urine relates to cardiovascular disease (CVD) and overall mortality, involving a diverse group of 6,599 U.S. adults over nearly two decades.
- - Researchers found significant links between higher urinary levels of metals like cadmium, copper, and uranium and increased risks for developing CVD and higher all-cause mortality rates.
- - Specifically, those in the highest quartile of metal exposure had up to 1.68 times greater risk of all-cause mortality compared to those with the lowest levels, highlighting a concerning relationship between metal exposure and health outcomes.
Article Synopsis
- AI communities experience uranium exposure from abandoned mines and contaminated water, but dietary impacts are under-researched.
- The study assessed urinary uranium levels among American Indians from different regions, finding geographical variations and specific dietary factors influencing uranium levels in urine.
- Results showed higher uranium levels were linked to organ meat and cereals, particularly in North Dakota and South Dakota, while some foods like fries and chips were associated with lower levels; dietary factors accounted for just 1.71% of variability in urinary uranium.
Chronic arsenic exposure is associated with adverse health outcomes, and early life exposure is particularly damaging. Households with pregnant people and young children drinking from unregulated wells in arsenic-prevalent regions are therefore a public health priority for outreach and intervention. A partnership between Columbia University, New Jersey government partners, and Hunterdon Healthcare has informed Hunterdon County residents of the risks faced from drinking arsenic-contaminated water and offered free well testing through a practice-based water test kit distribution and an online patient portal outreach.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Inorganic arsenic is metabolized to monomethyl- (MMAs) and dimethyl- (DMAs) species via one-carbon metabolism (OCM); this facilitates urinary arsenic elimination. OCM is influenced by folate and vitamin B12 and previous randomized control trials (RCTs) showed that folic acid (FA) supplementation increases arsenic methylation in adults. This RCT investigated the effects of FA + B12 supplementation on arsenic methylation in children, a key developmental stage where OCM supports growth.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: More than 700 million people worldwide suffer from diseases of the pancreas, such as diabetes, pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer. Often dysregulation of potassium (K) channels, co-transporters and pumps can promote development and progression of many types of these diseases. The role of K transport system in pancreatic cell homeostasis and disease development remains largely unexplored.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Although COVID-19 infection has been associated with a number of clinical and environmental risk factors, host genetic variation has also been associated with the incidence and morbidity of infection. The CRP gene codes for a critical component of the innate immune system and CRP variants have been reported associated with infectious disease and vaccination outcomes. We investigated possible associations between COVID-19 outcome and a limited number of candidate gene variants including rs1205.
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- The study explored the link between arsenic levels in community water systems and private wells and the incidence of type 2 diabetes (T2D) among participants in two major studies: the Strong Heart Family Study (SHFS) and the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA).
- A total of 7,568 participants (1,791 from SHFS and 5,777 from MESA) without T2D at baseline were monitored for new cases, finding a higher incidence of T2D associated with increased arsenic levels in the water supplies, particularly among certain demographics.
- Results indicated that even low to moderate levels of arsenic in drinking water (<10 µ
Background: The reduction in cardiovascular disease (CVD) events with edetate disodium (EDTA) in the Trial to Assess Chelation Therapy (TACT) suggested that chelation of toxic metals might provide novel opportunities to reduce CVD in patients with diabetes. Lead and cadmium are vasculotoxic metals chelated by EDTA. We present baseline characteristics for participants in TACT2, a randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled trial designed as a replication of the TACT trial limited to patients with diabetes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Chronic arsenic exposure has been associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease; diabetes; cancers of the lung, pancreas and prostate; and all-cause mortality in American Indian communities in the Strong Heart Study.
Objective: The Strong Heart Water Study (SHWS) designed and evaluated a multilevel, community-led arsenic mitigation program to reduce arsenic exposure among private well users in partnership with Northern Great Plains American Indian Nations.
Methods: A cluster randomized controlled trial (cRCT) was conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the SHWS arsenic mitigation program over a 2-y period on ) urinary arsenic, and ) reported use of arsenic-safe water for drinking and cooking.
Article Synopsis
- - The research addresses the challenge of analyzing omics data, which is complex due to its high dimensions and correlated features, by enhancing the ISIS algorithm with different elastic-net variants for better feature selection in omics studies.
- - Using DNA methylation data from a large study on American Indians, the authors found that ISIS-AEnet provided superior predictive accuracy and identified significant epigenomic markers related to body mass index (BMI) compared to traditional methods.
- - The extended ISIS R package also includes options for logistic and Cox regression, enabling it to handle various research scenarios, while maintaining efficient feature selection and supporting biological discoveries.