Browsing by Author "Gomes, Bruno"
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- Aula 6: microRNAs association with drug resitancePublication . Gomes, Bruno; Silva, Maria JoãomiRNAs are short (approximately 22 nucleotides) non-coding RNAs with gene regulatory effect
- HBM4EU chromates study - Overall results and recommendations for the biomonitoring of occupational exposure to hexavalent chromiumPublication . Santonen, Tiina; Porras, Simo P.; Bocca, Beatrice; Bousoumah, Radia; Duca, Radu Corneliu; Galea, Karen S.; Godderis, Lode; Göen, Thomas; Hardy, Emilie; Iavicoli, Ivo; Janasik, Beata; Jones, Kate; Leese, Elizabeth; Leso, Veruscka; Louro, Henriqueta; Majery, Nicole; Ndaw, Sophie; Pinhal, Hermínia; Ruggieri, Flavia; Silva, Maria João; van Nieuwenhuyse, An; Verdonck, Jelle; Viegas, Susana; Wasowicz, Wojciech; Sepai, Ovnair; Scheepers, Paul T.J.; Aimonen, Kukka; Antoine, Guillaume; Anzion, Rob; Burgart, Manuella; Castaño, Argelia; Cattaneo, Andrea; Cavallo, Domenico Maria; De Palma, Giuseppe; Denis, Flavien; Gambelunghe, Angela; Gomes, Bruno; Hanser, Ogier; Helenius, Riikka; Ladeira, Carina; López, Marta Esteban; Lovreglio, Piero; Marsan, Philippe; Melczer, Mathieu; Nogueira, Ana; Pletea, Elisabeta; Poels, Katrien; Remes, Jouko; Ribeiro, Edna; Santos, Sílvia Reis; Schaefers, Françoise; Spankie, Sally; Spoek, Robert; Rizki, Mohamed; Rousset, Davy; van Dael, Maurice; Veijalainen, Henna; HBM4EU chromates study teamExposure to hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] may occur in several occupational activities, e.g., welding, Cr(VI) electroplating and other surface treatment processes. The aim of this study was to provide EU relevant data on occupational Cr(VI) exposure to support the regulatory risk assessment and decision-making. In addition, the capability and validity of different biomarkers for the assessment of Cr(VI) exposure were evaluated. The study involved nine European countries and involved 399 workers in different industry sectors with exposures to Cr(VI) such as welding, bath plating, applying or removing paint and other tasks. We also studied 203 controls to establish a background in workers with no direct exposure to Cr(VI). We applied a cross-sectional study design and used chromium in urine as the primary biomonitoring method for Cr(VI) exposure. Additionally, we studied the use of red blood cells (RBC) and exhaled breath condensate (EBC) for biomonitoring of exposure to Cr(VI). Personal measurements were used to study exposure to inhalable and respirable Cr(VI) by personal air sampling. Dermal exposure was studied by taking hand wipe samples. The highest internal exposures were observed in the use of Cr(VI) in electrolytic bath plating. In stainless steel welding the internal Cr exposure was clearly lower when compared to plating activities. We observed a high correlation between chromium urinary levels and air Cr(VI) or dermal total Cr exposure. Urinary chromium showed its value as a first approach for the assessment of total, internal exposure. Correlations between urinary chromium and Cr(VI) in EBC and Cr in RBC were low, probably due to differences in kinetics and indicating that these biomonitoring approaches may not be interchangeable but rather complementary. This study showed that occupational biomonitoring studies can be conducted successfully by multi-national collaboration and provide relevant information to support policy actions aiming to reduce occupational exposure to chemicals.
- New “Omics” Approaches as Tools to Explore Mechanistic NanotoxicologyPublication . Ventura, Célia; Torres, Vukosava; Vieira, Luís; Gomes, Bruno; Rodrigues, António Sebastião; Rueff, José; Penque, Deborah; Silva, Maria JoãoIn the last years, “omics” approaches have been applied to study the toxicity of nanomaterials (NM) with the aim of obtaining insightful information on their biological effects. One of the most developed “omics” field, transcriptomics, expects to find unique profiles of differentially expressed genes after exposure to NM that, besides providing evidence of their mechanistic mode of action, may also be used as biomarkers for biomonitoring purposes. Moreover, several NM have been associated with epigenetic alterations, i.e., changes in the regulation of gene expression caused by differential DNA methylation, histone tail modification and microRNA expression. Epigenomics research focusing on DNA methylation is increasingly common and the role of microRNAs is being better understood, either promoting or suppressing biological pathways. Moreover, the proteome is a highly dynamic system that changes constantly in response to a stimulus. Therefore, proteomics can identify changes in protein abundance and/ or variability that lead to a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms of action of NM while discovering biomarkers. As to genomics, it is still not well developed in nanotoxicology. Nevertheless, the individual susceptibility to NM mediated by constitutive or acquired genomic variants represents an important component in understanding the variations in the biological response to NM exposure and, consequently, a key factor to evaluate possible adverse effects in exposed individuals. By elucidating the molecular changes that are involved NM toxicity, the new “omics” studies are expected to contribute to exclude or reduce the handling of hazardous NM in the workplace and support the implementation of regulation to protect human health.
- Setting up a collaborative European Human biological monitoring study on occupational exposure to Hexavalent ChromiumPublication . Santonen, Tiina; Alimonti, Alessandro; Bocca, Beatrice; Duca, Radu Corneliu; Galea, Karen S.; Godderis, Lode; Göen, Thomas; Gomes, Bruno; Hanser, Ogier; Iavicoli, Ivo; Janasik, Beata; Jones, Kate; Kiilunen, Mirja; Koch, Holger M.; Leese, Liz; Leso, Veruscka; Louro, Henriqueta; Ndaw, Sophie; Porras, Simo P.; Robert, Alain; Ruggieri, Flavia; Scheepers, Paul; Silva, Maria João; Viegas, Susana; Wasowicz, Wojciech; Castano, Argelia; Sepai, OvnairBackground: The EU human biomonitoring initiative, HBM4EU, aims to co-ordinate and advance human biomonitoring across Europe and develop new approaches for biomonitoring. Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) is an important occupational carcinogen, which compounds are currently authorized in Europe. In addition, a binding limit value for occupational exposure to Cr(VI) has been recently agreed in EU. These regulatory actions emphasize the need for EU-wide data on exposure and sensitive biomarkers to assess the exposure. Here we describe the design of the multinational, collaborative project to support management of occupational exposure to Cr(VI). Methods: The study involves eight European countries and aims to recruit 400 workers performing Cr(VI) surface treatment or stainless steel welding. In addition to urinary chromium (U-Cr), exhaled breath condensate (EBC) and blood samples are collected for the analysis of Cr(VI)/Cr. Exposure data will be complemented with data on effect markers. Personal air and wipe samples are collected in parallel to help interpretation of biomonitoring results. Standardized questionnaires are used to collect contextual data, and samplings are done following the standard operational procedures developed to support standardization. Results: This occupational Cr(VI) study is the first that will be performed concurrently in multiple European countries using harmonized protocols for data gathering, sampling and analysis. Combining national standardized surveys the power of the study and the strength of the findings is greatly enhanced. Samplings are currently on-going and include companies ranging from micro-sized companies to large international companies. Final results are expected by the end of 2020. The presentation covers the background data on the tasks covered and the available external exposure data. Conclusions: Using this unique set-up including multiple countries and harmonized protocols we expect to create more comprehensive data for EU decision making. The data allows also the assessment of the feasibility of different biomarkers in the biomonitoring of Cr(VI).
- Setting up a collaborative European human biological monitoring study on occupational exposure to hexavalent chromiumPublication . Santonen, Tiina; Alimonti, Alessandro; Bocca, Beatrice; Duca, Radu Corneliu; Galea, Karen S; Godderis, Lode; Göen, Thomas; Gomes, Bruno; Hanser, Ogier; Iavicoli, Ivo; Janasik, Beata; Jones, Kate; Kiilunen, Mirja; Koch, Holger M; Leese, Elizabeth; Leso, Veruscka; Louro, Henriqueta; Ndaw, Sophie; Porras, Simo P; Robert, Alain; Ruggieri, Flavia; Scheepers, Paul T J; Silva, Maria J; Viegas, Susana; Wasowicz, Wojciech; Castano, Argelia; Sepai, OvnairThe EU human biomonitoring initiative, HBM4EU, aims to co-ordinate and advance human biomonitoring (HBM) across Europe. Within its remit, the project is gathering new, policy relevant, EU-wide data on occupational exposure to relevant priority chemicals and developing new approaches for occupational biomonitoring. In this manuscript, the hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] study design is presented as the first example of this HBM4EU approach. This study involves eight European countries and plans to recruit 400 workers performing Cr(VI) surface treatment e.g. electroplating or stainless steel welding activities. The aim is to collect new data on current occupational exposure to Cr(VI) in Europe and to test new methods for Cr biomonitoring, specifically the analysis of Cr(VI) in exhaled breath condensate (EBC) and Cr in red blood cells (RBC) in addition to traditional urinary total Cr analyses. Furthermore, exposure data will be complemented with early biological effects data, including genetic and epigenetic effects. Personal air samples and wipe samples are collected in parallel to help informing the biomonitoring results. We present standard operational procedures (SOPs) to support the harmonized methodologies for the collection of occupational hygiene and HBM samples in different countries.
- The relevance of effect biomarkers in human biomonitoringPublication . Gomes, Bruno; Louro, Henriqueta; Silva, Maria JoãoA fundamental goal of environmental/occupational health policy is to reduce and, whenever possible, prevent human exposure to chemical substances that may lead to mobility or mortality. Human biomonitoring (HBM) allows the assessment of the levels of certain substances in the body, through the analysis of biomarkers of exposure (chemical substances, metabolites) and it has been considered as an extremely important tool in public health. A great strength of HBM is that it provides unambiguous indication that both exposure and absorption have occurred. On the other hand, measuring uniquely exposure biomarkers does not provide information on preclinical effects that may allow establishing a link between exposure and health effects. This work aims summarizing the most used biomarkers of effect and give evidence of the importance of these biomarkers in HBM and public health protection, based on recently published data. Briefly, these biomarkers consist of biochemical alterations in urine or blood, endocrine changes, cytogenetic alterations [micronuclei, chromosomal aberrations, translocations, sister chromatid exchanges and DNA repair] or interactions with macromolecules such as DNA, RNA and proteins through the recent –omics technologies. The inclusion of biomarkers of effect in HBM studies contributes to bridge the gap between exposure and health effects, because they give information on early biological alterations before the onset of disease. Given that these biomarkers reflect reversible alterations in the organism, the effects detected are likely to be prevented, if exposure to the critical substance (or mixture of substances) is reduced or ceased. Thus, the joint information gathered from biomarkers of exposure and effect in HBM can be used to improve health risk assessment and reinforce the scientific basis to implement preventive policies in occupational and environmental settings.
- The relevance of effect biomarkers in human biomonitoringPublication . Gomes, Bruno; Louro, Henriqueta; Silva, Maria JoãoA fundamental goal of environmental/occupational health policy is to reduce and, whenever possible, prevent human exposure to chemical substances that may lead to morbidity or mortality. Human biomonitoring (HBM) allows the assessment of the levels of certain substances in the body, through the analysis of biomarkers of exposure (chemical substances, metabolites) and it has been considered as an extremely important tool in public health. A great strength of HBM is that it provides unambiguous indication that both exposure and absorption have occurred. On the other hand, measuring uniquely exposure biomarkers does not provide information on preclinical effects that may allow establishing a link between exposure and health effects. This work aims summarizing the most used biomarkers of effect and give evidence of the importance of these biomarkers in HBM and public health protection, based on recently published data. Briefly, these biomarkers consist of biochemical alterations in urine or blood, endocrine changes, cytogenetic alterations [micronuclei, chromosomal aberrations, translocations, sister chromatid exchanges and DNA repair] or interactions with macromolecules such as DNA, RNA and proteins through the recent –omics technologies. The inclusion of biomarkers of effect in HBM studies contributes to bridge the gap between exposure and health effects, because they give information on early biological alterations before the onset of disease. Given that these biomarkers reflect reversible alterations in the organism, the effects detected are likely to be prevented, if exposure to the critical substance (or mixture of substances) is reduced or ceased. Thus, the joint information gathered from biomarkers of exposure and effect in HBM can be used to improve health risk assessment and reinforce the scientific basis to implement preventive policies in occupational and environmental settings. The HBM4EU project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement No 733032.