Browsing by Author "Grajewski, Jan"
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- Exposure assessment in one central hospital: A multi-approach protocol to achieve an accurate risk characterizationPublication . Viegas, Carla; Almeida, Beatriz; Monteiro, Ana; Paciência, Inês; Rufo, João; Aguiar, Lívia; Lage, Bruna; Diogo Gonçalves, Lídia Maria; Caetano, Liliana Aranha; Carolino, Elisabete; Gomes, Anita Quintal; Twarużek, Magdalena; Kosicki, Robert; Grajewski, Jan; Teixeira, João Paulo; Viegas, Susana; Pereira, CristianaThe bioburden in a Hospital building originates not only from patients, visitors and staff, but is also disseminated by several indoor hospital characteristics and outdoor environmental sources. This study intends to assess the exposure to bioburden in one central Hospital with a multi-approach protocol using active and passive sampling methods. The microbial contamination was also characterized through molecular tools for toxigenic species, antifungal resistance and mycotoxins and endotoxins profile. Two cytotoxicity assays (MTT and resazurin) were conducted with two cell lines (Calu-3 and THP-1), and in vitro pro-inflammatory potential was assessed in THP-1 cell line. Out of the 15 sampling locations 33.3% did not comply with Portuguese legislation regarding bacterial contamination, whereas concerning fungal contamination 60% presented I/O > 1. Toxigenic fungal species were observed in 27% of the sampled rooms (4 out of 15) and qPCR analysis successfully amplified DNA from the Aspergillus sections Flavi and Fumigati, although mycotoxins were not detected. Growth of distinct fungal species was observed on Sabouraud dextrose agar with triazole drugs, such as Aspergillus section Versicolores on 1 mg/L VORI. The highest concentrations of endotoxins were found in settled dust samples and ranged from 5.72 to 23.0 EU.mg-1. While a considerable cytotoxic effect (cell viability < 30%) was observed in one HVAC filter sample with Calu-3 cell line, it was not observed with THP-1 cell line. In air samples a medium cytotoxic effect (61-68% cell viability) was observed in 3 out of 15 samples. The cytokine responses produced a more potent average cell response (46.8 ± 12.3 ρg/mL IL-1β; 90.8 ± 58.5 ρg/mL TNF-α) on passive samples than air samples (25.5 ± 5.2 ρg/mL IL-1β and of 19.4 ± 5.2 ρg/mL TNF-α). A multi-approach regarding parameters to assess, sampling and analysis methods should be followed to characterize the biorburden in the Hospital indoor environment. This study supports the importance of considering exposure to complex mixtures in indoor environments.
- Mycotoxins feed contamination in a dairy farm - potential implications for milk contamination and workers' exposure in a One Health approachPublication . Viegas, Susana; Assunção, Ricardo; Twarużek, Magdalena; Kosicki, Robert; Grajewski, Jan; Viegas, CarlaDairy farming feed can be contaminated with mycotoxins, affecting animals' health and milk quality. Dairy farming is also prone to occupational exposure to mycotoxins, and feed is recognized as a source of contamination in the workplace. An exploratory study was developed in a dairy farm located in Portugal intending to assess the mycotoxins present in the feed.
- Occupational Exposure to Mycotoxins in Swine Production: Environmental and Biological Monitoring ApproachesPublication . Viegas, S.; Assunção, R.; Martins, Carla; Nunes, Carla; Osteresch, Bernd; Twaruzek, Magdalena; Kosicki, Robert; Grajewski, Jan; Ribeiro, Edna; Viegas, C.Swine production workers are exposed simultaneously to multiple contaminants. Occupational exposure to aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) in Portuguese swine production farms has already been reported. However, besides AFB1, data regarding fungal contamination showed that exposure to other mycotoxins could be expected in this setting. The present study aimed to characterize the occupational exposure to multiple mycotoxins of swine production workers. To provide a broad view on the burden of contamination by mycotoxins and the workers’ exposure, biological (urine) samples from workers (n = 25) and 38 environmental samples (air samples, n = 23; litter samples, n = 5; feed samples, n = 10) were collected. The mycotoxins biomarkers detected in the urine samples of the workers group were the deoxynivalenol-glucuronic acid conjugate (60%), aflatoxin M1 (16%), enniatin B (4%), citrinin (8%), dihydrocitrinone (12%) and ochratoxin A (80%). Results of the control group followed the same pattern, but in general with a lower number of quantifiable results (