Toxicity of wastewater from health care facilities assessed by different bioassays.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine toxicity of wastewater from hospitals in the Czech Republic using traditional and alternative toxicological methods. The pilot study comprised weekly dynamics of sewage ecotoxicity of treated wastewater from one hospital in two different seasons. A detailed investigation of wastewater ecotoxicity, genotoxicity and reprotoxicity followed in five different hospitals.

Platinum, palladium, rhodium, molybdenum and strontium in blood of urban women in nine countries.

Background: There is little reliable information on human exposure to the metals platinum (Pt), palladium (Pd) and rhodium (Rh), despite their use in enormous quantities in catalytic converters for automobile exhaust systems.

Objectives: To evaluate blood concentrations of Pt (B-Pt), Pd (B-Pd) and Rh (B-Rh) in women from six European and three non-European countries, and to identify potentially influential factors. In addition, molybdenum (Mo) and strontium (Sr) were analysed.

Urinary Cadmium and Cotinine Levels and Hair Mercury Levels in Czech Children and Their Mothers Within the Framework of the COPHES/DEMOCOPHES Projects.

The COPHES/DEMOCOPHES twin project was performed in 2011-2012 in 17 European countries to harmonize all steps of the human biomonitoring survey. Urinary cadmium, cotinine, phthalate metabolites, and hair mercury were measured in children (N = 120, 6-11 years) and their mothers of reproductive age, living in urban or rural areas. Cadmium in mothers' and children's urine was detected at a geometric mean (GM) concentration 0.

Behaviour of silver nanoparticles in simulated saliva and gastrointestinal fluids.

Continuously increasing application of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) requires information on their safety and performance under biological conditions. Assessment of AgNPs in biological systems is also related to availability of robust toxicological methods for evaluation of toxic potential of AgNPs and information on their physicochemical state. Silver nanoparticles were subjected to action of simulated saliva, gastric and intestinal fluids, appropriately supplemented with digestive enzymes pepsin or pancreatin.

[Iodine supply and iodinuria among the Czech population between the years 1995 and 2016].

Monitoring of Ioduria and Iodine saturation are essential tools for evaluation of effectivness of measures aimed at elimination of diseases caused by iodine deficiency. Between 1995 and 2016 monitoring of ioduria was udertaken in various population groups in Czech Republic. The most recent study (2015) found only 37 % of pregnant women in optimal range of ioduria (150-300 mcg/l), in iodopenic range 27 %, while 6 % of these had severe iodopenia below 50 mcg/l.

Characteristics of titanium dioxide microdispersions with different photo-activity suitable for sunscreen formulations.

The aim of the study was the comparison of photo-activity of three types of titanium dioxide (TiO2) micro-dispersions intended for use as UV filters for cosmetic sunscreen products. The dispersions were also investigated with regard to their influence on the stability of photo-protective systems in cosmetic emulsions, their skin penetration/absorption and their photo-toxicity for humans and skin bacterial flora. All the tested micro-dispersions of rutile TiO2 type (agglomerates with diameter 120-150 nm), with primary particle size lower than 100 nm, demonstrated no phototoxic effect and insignificant antimicrobial behaviour.

[Novel approach to treatment of lagophthalmos-associated neuroparalytic keratitis].

Unlabelled: Aim - to develop effective treatment approaches to lagophthalmos-associated neuroparalytic keratitis.

Material And Methods: A total of 34 patients (36 eyes) with neuroparalytic keratitis were enrolled. Group 1 consisted of 20 patients (21 eyes), in whom autoconjunctivoplasty was performed in combination with eyelid surgery.

Mercury analysis in hair: Comparability and quality assessment within the transnational COPHES/DEMOCOPHES project.

Human biomonitoring (HBM) is an effective tool for assessing actual exposure to chemicals that takes into account all routes of intake. Although hair analysis is considered to be an optimal biomarker for assessing mercury exposure, the lack of harmonization as regards sampling and analytical procedures has often limited the comparison of data at national and international level. The European-funded projects COPHES and DEMOCOPHES developed and tested a harmonized European approach to Human Biomonitoring in response to the European Environment and Health Action Plan.

The European COPHES/DEMOCOPHES project: towards transnational comparability and reliability of human biomonitoring results.

COPHES/DEMOCOPHES has its origins in the European Environment and Health Action Plan of 2004 to "develop a coherent approach on human biomonitoring (HBM) in Europe". Within this twin-project it was targeted to collect specimens from 120 mother-child-pairs in each of the 17 participating European countries. These specimens were investigated for six biomarkers (mercury in hair; creatinine, cotinine, cadmium, phthalate metabolites and bisphenol A in urine).

Higher aluminum concentration in Alzheimer's disease after Box-Cox data transformation.

Evidence regarding the role of mercury and aluminum in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD) remains controversial. The aims of our project were to investigate the content of the selected metals in brain tissue samples and the use of a specific mathematical transform to eliminate the disadvantage of a strong positive skew in the original data distribution. In this study, we used atomic absorption spectrophotometry to determine mercury and aluminum concentrations in the hippocampus and associative visual cortex of 29 neuropathologically confirmed AD and 27 age-matched controls.

Metal, EMF, and brain energy metabolism.

Some implications of cooperative potential of metal ions and electromagnetic fields' radiation (EMF) in carcinogenic processes are discussed. It is known that these factors, chemical and physical individually have connections with processes of oxidative stress. Special attention was paid to possible manifestation within the brain.

Metals - impact and implications.

Impact of metal in vitro administration on rat tissue oxygen consumption is referred in the first part. Toxicological implications of in vivo metal administration to rats and the study of potential penetration of metal into the rat brain, which may eventually result in oxygen radical production are presented in second part.

Switching from zidovudine to didanosine in patients with symptomatic HIV infection and disease progression. ddI Iberian Study Group.

This study evaluated the efficacy of switching to didanosine in patients who were clinically or immunologically progressing despite zidovudine therapy. This multicenter, open-label study involved 400 patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) or AIDS-related complex (ARC), who had tolerated zidovudine for at least 12 weeks and had signs of clinical or immunological disease progression. They were randomly assigned to receive 600 mg/d of zidovudine (n=133), 500 mg/d of didanosine (n=131), or 200 mg/d of didanosine (n=136).

The study of exposure to cadmium in the general population. I. Autopsy studies.

From 1982 to 1986 samples of materials (liver tissue, kidney cortex) were collected from 438 autopsies in Prague. The age of persons was over 50 years and residence time in the area was at least 10 years Concentrations of Cd and Zn were determined in the kidney cortex and the liver tissue using the AAS method. On the basis of the Questionnaire for Relatives, data on smoking habits, and occupational history of the investigated persons were obtained.

Dose-related proximal tubular dysfunction in male rats chronically exposed to lead.

Male Wistar rats were given 0.5 and 2% lead acetate in drinking water for 2 months, 1% lead acetate for 3 months and sodium acetate equimolar to 2% lead acetate for 3 months. Glucose, total proteins, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), lysozyme and beta 2-microglobulin (beta 2-m) were measured in 24-h urine every month.

Synergistic enhancement of the biliary excretion of cadmium by the simultaneous administration of two dithiocarbamates.

The simultaneous i.p. administration of the two chelating agents bis(2-hydroxyethyl)dithiocarbamate (DEDTC) and 4-carboxamidopiperidinedithiocarbamate (INADTC) to rats given cadmium in their drinking water at a level of 50 mg cadmium/liter for 39 days led to a large synergistic effect on the biliary excretion of cadmium.