Publications by authors named "Wen-Qing Lu"

Article Synopsis
  • - The study investigated how phthalate exposure affects reproductive outcomes in women undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART) by examining blood coagulation function as a potential mediator.
  • - Analyzing data from 735 women, researchers found that specific phthalate metabolites were positively linked to platelet indices and negatively correlated with successful implantation and live birth rates.
  • - Mediation analysis revealed that elevated platelet levels could partially explain the negative impact of phthalate exposure on ART outcomes, suggesting that phthalates might disrupt normal blood coagulation processes affecting fertility.
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Although much progress has been made in chemotherapy or target therapy for advanced gastric cancer, the prognosis is still poor. It is necessary to screen biomarkers for early diagnosis and prognosis prediction. However, the prognostic value of LOX family in gastric cancer and the underlying molecular mechanisms for promoting the progression of gastric cancer remains unclear.

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Sex and thyroid hormones are critical for male reproductive health. However, the associations between haloacetic acid (HAA) exposure - a known endocrine disruptor - and sex and thyroid hormones in humans remains unclear. We thus recruited 502 male participants seeking fertility evaluation from a reproductive center.

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Article Synopsis
  • Experimental studies indicate that disinfection byproducts (DBPs), particularly haloacetic acids (HAAs), can cause liver toxicity, but human evidence is limited.
  • A study of 922 women in Wuhan, China, found that while trichloroacetic acid (TCAA) had little association with liver injury, dichloroacetic acid (DCAA) appeared to increase the risk of liver injury, particularly among nondrinkers.
  • Higher urinary DCAA levels were linked to elevated liver function indicators, such as alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels and were influenced by factors like alcohol consumption and passive smoking.
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Background: Experimental studies show that disinfection byproducts (DBPs) can inhibit oocyte maturation, decrease fertilization capacity, and impair embryo development, but human evidence is lacking.

Objectives: We aimed to evaluate the associations between exposure to drinking water DBPs and fertilization (IVF) outcomes.

Methods: The study included 1,048 women undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART) treatment between December 2018 and January 2020 from a prospective cohort study, the Tongji Reproductive and Environmental study in Wuhan, China.

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Phthalates are widespread endocrine disrupting chemicals that adversely affect female reproductive health. We aimed to investigate the individual and joint associations of phthalate exposures measured by repeated urinary metabolites with polycystic ovary (PCO) and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) (96 PCO cases, 96 PCOS cases and 370 controls). In single-pollutant analyses, mono-isobutyl phthalate (MiBP), monobenzyl phthalate (MBzP) and the sum of di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (∑DEHP) were associated with increased prevalence of PCO.

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Background: Epidemiological studies on phthalate exposures in associations with uterine fibroids (UF) and endometriosis (EMT) are inconsistent. The underlying mechanisms are poorly understood.

Objectives: To investigate the relationships of urinary phthalate metabolites with UF and EMT risks, and further to examine the mediating role of oxidative stress.

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Disinfection byproducts (DBPs) are a class of ubiquitous chemicals in drinking water and inevitably result in widespread human exposures. Potentially adverse health effects of DBP exposures, including reproductive and developmental outcomes, have been increasing public concerns. Several reviews have focused on the adverse pregnancy outcomes of DBPs.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Maternal exposure to specific nitrosamines in drinking water during pregnancy may lead to negative birth outcomes, including lower birth weight, small for gestational age, and an increased risk of preterm delivery.
  • - A study involving 2457 mother-infant pairs in central China revealed that higher levels of certain nitrosamines like NDMA and NDEA were significantly correlated with these adverse outcomes.
  • - These initial findings suggest the need for further research in different populations to confirm the risks associated with drinking water nitrosamines during pregnancy.
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Background: In animal and human studies, exposure to trihalomethanes (THMs) has been associated with reduced semen quality. However, the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood.

Objective: To investigate the associations of blood THM concentrations with sperm mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNAcn) and telomere length (TL) among healthy men.

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Previous studies have reported that exposure to phthalates and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) is individually associated with altered semen quality, but no human studies have evaluated their joint effects of exposure mixtures, a more real-world scenario. We aimed to explore urinary metabolite mixtures of phthalates and PAHs in associations with semen quality. Repeated spot-urine samples gathered from 695 men attending a fertility clinic were analyzed for urinary metabolites of eight phthalates and ten monohydroxylated-PAHs (OH-PAHs).

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Exposure to trichloroacetic acid (TCAA) has been associated with impaired semen quality; however, its association with spermatozoa apoptosis and DNA damage remains unclear. We, therefore, collected single semen and repeated urine samples from male partners of couples attending a reproductive center, which were measured for spermatozoa apoptosis and DNA damage parameters and TCAA concentrations, respectively. Multivariable linear regression models were used to explore the associations between urinary TCAA concentrations and spermatozoa apoptosis ( = 462) and DNA damage parameters ( = 512).

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Human studies on association between bisphenol A (BPA) exposure and semen quality, mostly based on single urinary measurement, are inconsistent. There is limited human evidence on BPA analogues such as bisphenol F (BPF) and bisphenol S (BPS), and little is known on potential effects of bisphenol mixtures. We aimed to explore whether individual or mixtures of BPA, BPS and BPF assessed in repeated urinary measurements were associated with semen quality among 984 Chinese men from an infertility clinic.

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Background: Disinfection by-products (DBPs) have been shown to impair female reproductive function. However, epidemiological evidence on reproductive hormones is scarce.

Objective: To investigate the associations between DBP exposures and reproductive hormones among women undergoing assisted reproductive technology.

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Disinfection byproducts (DBPs) have been shown to alter ovarian steroidogenesis and cause estrous cyclicity disturbance and prolongation in experimental studies, however human studies are lacking. We aimed to evaluate the cross-sectional associations between drinking water DBPs and menstrual cycle characteristics. A total of 1078 women attending an infertility clinic in Wuhan, China were included between December 2018 and January 2020.

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Disinfection byproduct (DBP) exposure has been associated with birth size, pregnancy oxidative stress, and other adverse perinatal outcomes. However, little is known about the potential effect of prenatal DBP exposure on intrauterine growth. The present study included 1516 pregnant women from the Xiaogan Disinfection By-Products (XGDBP) birth cohort who were measured for four blood trihalomethanes [i.

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Studies indicate that phthalates can disrupt spermatogenesis and lead to the reduction of semen quality. However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. This study aimed to examine the associations of phthalate exposures as individual chemicals and mixtures with spermatogenesis-related miRNA106a.

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Background: Toxicological studies suggest that maternal exposure to disinfection by-products (DBPs) can impair fetal neurodevelopment. However, evidence from epidemiological studies is scarce and the underlying mechanisms remain unclear.

Objective: To explore the trimester-specific associations between maternal blood trihalomethane (THM) and urinary haloacetic acid (HAA) concentrations and neonatal neurobehavioral development, and the potential mediating role of oxidative stress (OS).

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Experimental studies have demonstrated that disinfection byproducts (DBPs) can cause ovarian toxicity including inhibition of antral follicle growth and disruption of steroidogenesis, but there is a paucity of human evidence. We aimed to investigate whether urinary biomarkers of exposure to drinking water DBPs were associated with ovarian reserve. The present study included 956 women attending an infertility clinic in Wuhan, China from December 2018 to January 2020.

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Background: Atezolizumab plus chemotherapy has been recommended as a first-line treatment option for patients with advanced non-small cell lung carcinoma (NSCLC) irrespective of programmed cell death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) expression. Currently, little is known about the efficacy and treatment-related adverse effects (TRAEs) of subtracting chemotherapy from the combination for patients with high PD-L1 expression. Thus, we performed an indirect comparison between atezolizumab plus chemotherapy and atezolizumab alone.

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Background: Exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) has been associated with various adverse health outcomes. Recently, an increasing concern on its alternatives such as bisphenol S (BPS) and bisphenol F (BPF) has been aroused due to the restriction use of BPA. Few studies have identified predictors of exposure to BPA alternatives and assessed their health risks.

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Experimental studies have shown that nonradioactive strontium (Sr), in the form of Sr, have a positive effect on semen quality, but human evidence is lacking. This study aimed to examine the associations between nonradioactive Sr exposure and semen quality in Chinese men (n = 394). We recruited men who presented at an infertility clinic in Wuhan, China to seek for semen parameter analyses.

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Background: Bisphenol A (BPA) can cause detrimental effects on fetal growth. However, the effects of BPA alternatives, such as bisphenol F (BPF) and bisphenol S (BPS), on fetal growth are less known.

Objective: To investigate the relationships of prenatal BPA, BPF, and BPS exposures with fetal growth parameters and gestational age.

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Toxicological and epidemiologic evidence has suggested that exposure to disinfection by-products (DBPs) impairs semen quality, while the underlying biological mechanisms remain unclear. This study aimed to examine the mediating role of oxidative stress in association between DBP exposure and semen quality. We measured a urinary biomarker of DBP exposure [trichloroacetic acid (TCAA)] and three urinary biomarkers of oxidative stress [8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), 8-iso-prostaglandin F2 (8-isoPGF2) and 4-hydroxy-2-nonenal-mercapturic acid (HNE-MA)] among men from an infertility clinic (n = 299).

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