[Long-/Post-COVID symptoms in a hotspot collective of the first wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in Germany].

Introduction: Despite a high number of long/post-COVID cases and an enormous psychological strain on the part of the patients, no scientific consensus has yet been reached on a clearly defined disease entity. The comprehensive media coverage has made the public more sensitive to this topic, which makes it more difficult to take an objective perspective.

Methods: We report on long/post-COVID symptoms in a hotspot collective of the first SARS-CoV-2 wave of infections in Germany; these infections began in Spring 2020 and therefore preceded the start of an intensive media coverage.

How reduction temperature influences the structure of perovskite-oxide catalysts during the dry reforming of methane.

Dry reforming of methane is a promising reaction to convert CO and combat climate change. However, the reaction is still not feasible in large-scale industrial applications. The thermodynamic need for high temperatures and the potential of carbon deposition leads to high requirements for potential catalyst materials.

Intradermal and transdermal absorption of beta-naphthylamine and N-Phenyl-beta-naphthylamine in a viable human skin model.

Technical products containing N-Phenyl-beta-naphthylamine (PBNA) are contaminated with beta-naphthylamine (BNA), a known carcinogen. Both amines penetrate the skin to different degrees, but little is known about their dermal-depot formation. This study investigated the dermal penetration of PBNA and its degradation product BNA using a viable human-skin model.

Ionizing radiation and skin cancer - a review of current evidence.

Cancer of the skin represents a challenge for radiological protection, as it is very common and involves the largest organ of the human body, which is exposed to environmental stress, including ionizing radiation. The most common subtypes, basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) have very low mortality. Current consideration of skin cancer in radiological protection is mainly based on data from the 1990s, which indicate that BCC may be induced by ionizing radiation, SCC is only weakly associated with ionizing radiation, and malignant melanoma (MM) is not considered as ionizing radiation-induced.

[Risk factors for a severe course of COVID-19 in a hotspot clinic during the first and second wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in Germany].

Background: During the first wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, Weiden Hospital was a hotspot and was thus in an exceptional medical situation. This study deals with the question of whether the recognized risk factors for a severe course of COVID-19 also apply to the patients treated in Weiden Hospital during this time or whether other factors could have influenced patient outcomes.

Methods: In a retrospective analysis, data on 669 patients of Weiden Hospital with proven SARS-CoV-2 infections in the first year of the pandemic were evaluated.

The Use of Single-Use Medical Gloves in Doctors' Practices and Hospitals.

Background: Single-use medical gloves achieve their purpose only when properly used. Proper use also helps avoid undesired consequences such as excessive waste and CO2 emissions, as well as inadequate hand hygiene.

Methods: In this selective review of the primary scientific literature, we summarize the current state of knowledge on the use of single-use medical gloves in the health-care sector.

Immunity against vaccine-preventable diseases among pregnant employees in Germany. A situation analysis before the introduction of the Measles Protection Act.

Background: Immunization against vaccine-preventable diseases prior to pregnancy is an important measure of primary prevention both for the mother and the unborn child. We analyzed immunity rates against measles, mumps, rubella, varicella, and pertussis in pregnant employees in Germany prior to significant changes in legal conditions in 2020, to provide a basis of comparison for future research.

Methods: We analyzed occupational-medical routine data in three collectives of pregnant women with an occupational risk of infection in the years 2018 and 2019: 1: hospital staff with regular access to an in-house company physician (n = 148); 2: employees in childcare with regular access to external occupational-health services (n = 139); 3: teachers with no regular access to occupational healthcare (n = 285).

The Mechanism of Rh(I)-Catalyzed Coupling of Benzotriazoles and Allenes Revisited: Substrate Inhibition, Proton Shuttling, and the Role of Cationic vs Neutral Species.

Direct coupling of benzotriazole to unsaturated substrates such as allenes represents an atom-efficient method for the construction of biologically and pharmaceutically interesting functional structures. In this work, the mechanism of the -selective Rh complex-catalyzed coupling of benzotriazoles to allenes was investigated in depth using a combination of experimental and theoretical techniques. Substrate coordination, inhibition, and catalyst deactivation was probed in reactions of the neutral and cationic catalyst precursors [Rh(μ-Cl)(DPEPhos)] and [Rh(DPEPhos)(MeOH)] with benzotriazole and allene, giving coordination, or coupling of the substrates.

Post-transcriptional splicing can occur in a slow-moving zone around the gene.

Splicing is the stepwise molecular process by which introns are removed from pre-mRNA and exons are joined together to form mature mRNA sequences. The ordering and spatial distribution of these steps remain controversial, with opposing models suggesting splicing occurs either during or after transcription. We used single-molecule RNA FISH, expansion microscopy, and live-cell imaging to reveal the spatiotemporal distribution of nascent transcripts in mammalian cells.

Health Literacy and Environmental Risks Focusing Air Pollution: Results from a Cross-Sectional Study in Germany.

(1) Background: Environmental risks such as air pollutants pose a threat to human health and must be communicated to the affected population to create awareness, such as via health literacy (HL); (2) Methods: We analyzed HL in the context of environmental health risks, including sources of information and prior knowledge, in a sample from the German general population using Kendall's rank correlations, regression analyses, and explorative parallel mediation analysis; (3) Results: The survey included 412 German participants aged between 18 and 77. HL was found to be problematic to inadequate. The internet, family and friends, and newspapers were the most frequently cited sources of information.

[Economic Relevance of Preventable Prohibitions of Employment in Bavarian Schools].

Introduction: According to the Maternity Protection Act, an occupational risk of infection (e. g. in childcare) - combined with individual immunity gaps - can result in an irresponsible risk for pregnant women in the workplace.

Elevated aluminum excretion in patients by long-term subcutaneous immunotherapy - A cross-sectional case-control study.

Background: Aluminum (Al) adjuvants have been used in vaccines and subcutaneous immunotherapy (SCIT) for decades. Despite indisputable neurotoxic properties of Al, there is no clear evidence of a causal relationship between their use and any neurotoxic side effects. However, recent rat studies have shown an accumulation of Al from adjuvants in tissues, especially in bones.

Author Correction: Toll-like receptor 9 protects non-immune cells from stress by modulating mitochondrial ATP synthesis through the inhibition of SERCA2.

[Image: see text]

Intracellular fraction of zona pellucida protein 3 is required for the oocyte-to-embryo transition in mice.

In oocyte biology, the zona pellucida has long been known to operate three extracellular functions downstream of the secretory pathway, namely, encasing the oocytes in ovarian follicles, mediating sperm-oocyte interaction, and preventing premature embryo contact with oviductal epithelium. The present study uncovers a fourth function that is fundamentally distinct from the other three, being critical for embryonic cell survival in mice. Intriguingly, the three proteins of the mouse zona pellucida (ZP1, ZP2, ZP3) were found abundantly present also inside the embryo 4 days after fertilization, as shown by mass spectrometry, immunoblotting, and immunofluorescence.

[Environmental risks and health literacy: a systematic review].

Background: Environmental factors can play an important role in pathogenesis. However, the understanding of the relationship between environmental risks and health in the general population appears to be poor. The aim of this systematic review is to describe the state of research on the relationship between health literacy (HL) or environmental health literacy (EHL) and environmental risks differentiated by the researched environmental risks, the affected population, the measurement and level of HL or EHL, and their interaction with other variables.

Understanding Alterations and Expression Profiles in Hematological Malignancies.

is a true chameleon, both acting as an oncogene and tumor suppressor. As its exact role in leukemogenesis is still ambiguous, research with model systems representing natural conditions surrounding the genetic alterations in WT1 is necessary. In a cohort of 59 leukemia/lymphoma cell lines, we showed aberrant expression for mRNA, which does not always translate into protein levels.

Effect of an aluminum foil-processed diet on internal human aluminum burden.

Background And Purpose: Aluminum can be released into food by aluminum-containing food-contact materials (Al-FCM) during preparation or storage. There is considerable concern that extra aluminum intake may have negative effects on public health, especially with regard to its high background exposure and neurotoxic properties of aluminum in high exposures. Human in-vivo data on the additional aluminum load from Al-FCM, however, are lacking.

[Occupational obstructive airway diseases: How can early diagnosis be made to avoid chronic courses?].

Since abolishing the obligation to terminate the harmful professional activity from January 1st, 2021 onwards for some occupational diseases including obstructive respiratory diseases in Germany, the recognition of occupational diseases coded under 4301, 4302 and 1315 according the Occupational Diseases Ordinance has increased significantly. By the time these diseasese are recognized, they are usually already at an advanced stage. Therefore, early detection will play a greater role in the future, as the statutory accident insurance can offer individual preventive measures in order to minimize the consequences of illness and thus also the socio-economic burden.

Setting-based skin cancer prevention at the workplace: A survey among German outdoor workers.

Background: Outdoor workers are at increased risk of developing skin cancer. Setting-based prevention at the workplace can reduce the UV exposure of outdoor workers through appropriate technical or organizational measures. We explored the implementation of setting-based UV protection at the workplace in Germany from the perspective of outdoor workers.

Degree of Actinic Elastosis Is a Surrogate of Exposure to Chronic Ultraviolet Radiation and Correlates More Strongly with Cutaneous Squamous Cell Carcinoma than Basal Cell Carcinoma.

(1) Background: Keratinocyte cancer (KC) is associated with exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation. However, data are controversial as to whether chronic UV exposure or high intermittent UV exposure are key drivers of carcinogenesis in cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC) and basal cell carcinoma (BCC). Prolonged sun exposure of the skin causes photo-aging, which is associated with actinic elastosis, a condition characterized by the degeneration of elastin in the upper dermis, which is assessable via conventional histology.

Sun Protection in German Outdoor Workers: Differences by Sex and Job-Related Characteristics.

Background: Ultraviolet (UV) exposure during outdoor work increases the risk of developing skin cancer. Therefore, the uptake of recommended sun protection behaviors is important to prevent UV-related skin damage in the population of outdoor workers. To develop targeted prevention campaigns, information on the use of sun protection behaviors in different industries is needed.

Science communication on the public health risks of air pollution: a computational scoping review from 1958 to 2022.

Background: Air pollutants are a health risk for the entire population. Particulate matter (PM) including the smallest fraction, ultra-fine particles (UFP), therefore continue to be the focus of scientific research in this area. To protect the population from the harmful effects of exposure to PM, communication and information of research results are of special relevance as individuals with heightened awareness of the harms of poor air quality are more likely to take action to improve their exposure.