Is the association between pet ownership and indoor endotoxin levels confounded or modified by outdoor residential greenspace?

Background: Pet ownership is consistently associated with higher indoor endotoxin concentrations, but may also be related to the amount of greenspace around the home. This study examined whether the association between pet ownership and higher indoor endotoxin concentrations is confounded or modified by residential greenspace.

Methods: Information on pet ownership was collected at the time of recruitment of the German LISA birth cohort.

Airborne allergens, endotoxins, and particulate matter in elementary schools, results from Germany (LUPE 2).

Allergic disorders are the most common childhood-related chronic diseases in developed countries. It is essential to assess the exposure, especially in schools, where children spend a large portion of their time. We aimed to investigate allergen and endotoxin levels in the air of schools and to observe seasonal variations of these factors.

Specific risk factors for contracting Q fever: lessons from the outbreak Jena.

A Q fever outbreak with 331 reported cases in seven weeks occurred in a densely populated residential district in Jena (Germany) in 2005. Prompt identification of a stable infection source follow by an intense information policy, well defined and stable meteorological conditions and a large number of reported cases within one small community all allowed us to study promoting and protecting factors of Q fever. We conducted a cross-sectional study and investigated a part of the affected area for 100% sampling (in-home interviews).

Diagnosis of acute Q fever with emphasis on enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and nested polymerase chain reaction regarding the time of serum collection.

A commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) (Virion/Serion [Wuerzburg, Germany]), an indirect fluorescent antibody test (IFAT) (BIOS/Focus [Cypress, CA]), and a nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) were explored for diagnosis of acute Q fever in reference to time of serum collection. Serum samples of 22 patients with acute Q fever collected around the fifth day of illness were included. A sensitivity of 30% by ELISA and 80% by IFAT (P = 0.

Longitudinal study on cat allergen exposure and the development of allergy in young children.

Background: The influence of cat allergen exposure in early childhood on the development of sensitization and allergic diseases is complex. Little is known about the natural course of the sensitization development within individuals.

Objective: We investigated the association between cat allergen exposure in infancy and cat ownership and cat contact during childhood and the development of cat sensitization and allergic diseases up to age 6 years using a longitudinal analysis approach.

Measurements of endotoxin on ambient loaded PM filters after long-term storage.

At present there exist unsolved questions, whether endotoxin measurements on PM filters show valid measurements after long-term storage of loaded PM filters. As part of the TRAPCA study we collected particles with a 50% aerodynamic cut-off diameter of 2.5 microm (PM(2.

Daily time spent indoors in German homes--baseline data for the assessment of indoor exposure of German occupants.

Comprehensive time-activity studies, for use as a basis for estimates of personal exposure, are not readily available in Germany. This analysis of time spent indoors at home is based on data from "Dampness and mould in homes" (2000/ 2001)--a study of about 12,000 persons living in 5530 randomly selected apartments and houses in Germany. The results show the mean times per day people in Germany spend in their homes, classified by gender, age group, building location, city size, region, building type, owner-occupier status, number of people at home, smoking and ventilation habits, moisture emission and ill health factors such as asthma, allergy and number of acute respiratory infections per year.

Relationship between indoor and outdoor levels of fine particle mass, particle number concentrations and black smoke under different ventilation conditions.

Fine particle mass (PM(2.5)), black smoke (BS) and particle number concentration (NC) were measured simultaneously indoors and outdoors at an urban location in Erfurt, Germany. Measurements were conducted during 2-month periods in summer and winter.

Seasonal variability of endotoxin in ambient fine particulate matter.

Endotoxin is a toxic, pro-inflammatory compound that has been detected in indoor air and dust in homes and occupational settings, and also in outdoor air. Data on the outdoor sampling of endotoxin are limited. Currently, little is known about the seasonal variation and influence of temperature on outdoor endotoxin levels.

TLR4 gene variants modify endotoxin effects on asthma.

Background: Environmental exposure to endotoxin might have a crucial role in immune maturation and development of asthma.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate whether the effect of endotoxin concentration in settled house dust on asthma is modified by the presence of variation in the TLR4 gene.

Methods: We performed a cross-sectional study within the German follow-up of the European Community Respiratory Health Survey.

Reproducibility of allergen, endotoxin and fungi measurements in the indoor environment.

Measurements of biocontaminants in settled house dust once a year are commonly used to assess long-term exposure. To examine stability over time and seasonal variation, we measured concentrations of mite and cat allergens, endotoxin and mold spores in living room floor dust in 745 German homes collected twice a year in two different seasons. The study population consisted of adults and children living in five different areas in Germany.

Different effects of endotoxin versus mite and cat allergen exposure on T-cell differentiation in infants.

Background: Early exposure to bacterial endotoxin has been proposed to protect against allergy development in children. Whether endotoxin is able to direct T-cell differentiation into a predominance of type 1 immunity is still unresolved.

Objective: We sought to compare the effects of endotoxin and mite and cat allergens on T-cell differentiation in infants.

House dust endotoxin and allergic sensitization in children.

A higher exposure to endotoxin was hypothesized to contribute to lower prevalence of allergic sensitization and hay fever in children growing up on a farm. We studied the association between house dust endotoxin and allergic sensitization. We randomly selected 740 children, aged between 5 and 10 years, from a group of children who participated in two cross-sectional surveys performed in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany, from 1992 to 1993 and from 1995 to 1996, such that 50% of the children were atopic or had a diagnosis of asthma.

Indoor exposure to molds and allergic sensitization.

Evidence that indoor dampness and mold growth are associated with respiratory health has been accumulating, but few studies have been able to examine health risks in relation to measured levels of indoor mold exposure. In particular, little is known about the contribution of indoor molds to the development of allergic sensitization. As a part of an ongoing study examining the effects of ambient air pollutants on respiratory health and atopic diseases in German school children, we examined the relation between viable mold levels indoors and allergic sensitization in 272 children.