Municipal distribution of bladder cancer mortality in Spain: Possible role of mining and industry

BACKGROUND Spain shows the highest bladder cancer incidence rates in men among European countries. The most important risk factors are tobacco smoking and occupational exposure to a range of different chemical substances, such as aromatic amines. METHODS This paper describes the municipal distribution of bladder cancer mortality and attempts to "adjust" this spatial pattern for the prevalence of smokers, using the autoregressive spatial model proposed by Besag, York and Molliè, with relative risk of lung cancer mortality as a surrogate. RESULTS It has been possible to compile and ascertain the posterior distribution of relative risk for bladder cancer adjusted for lung cancer mortality, on the basis of a single Bayesian spatial model covering all of Spain's 8077 towns. Maps were plotted depicting smoothed relative risk (RR) estimates, and the distribution of the posterior probability of RR>1 by sex. Towns that registered the highest relative risks for both sexes were mostly located in the Provinces of Cadiz, Seville, Huelva, Barcelona and Almería. The highest-risk area in Barcelona Province corresponded to very specific municipal areas in the Bages district, e.g., Suría, Sallent, Balsareny, Manresa and Cardona. CONCLUSION Mining/industrial pollution and the risk entailed in certain occupational exposures could in part be dictating the pattern of municipal bladder cancer mortality in Spain. Population exposure to arsenic is a matter that calls for attention. It would be of great interest if the relationship between the chemical quality of drinking water and the frequency of bladder cancer could be studied.

Anàlisi i redisseny de la xarxa de distribució d’ aigua potable a alta pressió de Santa Cristina d’ Aro.

En el present treball es realitza un estudi hidràulic i de qualitat de les aigües de la xarxa municipal per tal d’analitzar en primer lloc el seu estat actual i proposar posteriorment una sèrie d’actuacions de millora. Això s’ha desenvolupat amb l’ajuda d’un programa de simulació de xarxes hidràuliques i de qualitat, en ser l’estudi d’una elevada envergadura, que feia inviable l’estudi empíric de la instal•lació. El simulador utilitzat ha estat l’EPANET, el qual va estar elaborat per la NATIONAL RISK MANAGEMENT RESEARCH LABORATORY de Cincinatty, als Estats Units i traduït a l’espanyol pel grup REDHISP Inst. Ingenieria del agua y M.A. de la Universitat Politècnica de València

Perspectivas de salud ambiental en la investigación de brotes epidémicos asociados con una zona de abastecimiento de aguas de consumo humano.

Introduction. The purpose of this work was studied the magnitude, possible causes and contributing environmental factors in the waterbourne outbreaks appearance, in the performance area of the locality of Benaoján (Town of Málaga. Spain). Material/Methods. Analysis of the potability of the water and disinfection controls. Evaluation of the fulfillment of the quality of the drinking water and sanitary technical requirements of water supplies, pursuant to the Spanish regulation on public consumption waters. Results. We have been accomplished 110 potability analysis, proving that 13,4% of the samples do not comply with the potability criteria of the water. It were practiced 647 controls of disinfection, of those which 53% resulted not accordant. The design of the supply net is of the branching type and at least presents 30 blind branches, points where the water remains stagnant. The municipal waters service doesn´t make analytics controls of the quality of the water neither has implanted Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) of the facilities of the supply. Discussion. Environmental research suggests that the public water supply net is a source of infection, problem related to the epidemic outbreaks appearance. Because of this the water consumption not treaty must be avoided.

Aprobado el nuevo decreto que regula la vigilancia y control sanitario de las aguas de consumo humano

Boletín semanal para profesionales sanitarios de la Secretaría General de Salud Pública y Participación Social de la Consejería de Salud

Instalaciones domiciliarias de agua de consumo. Recomendaciones para el mantenimiento de las condiciones higiénico sanitarias.

Publicado en la página web de la Consejería de Salud y Bienestar Social: www.juntadeandalucia.es/salud (Consejería de Salud y Bienestar Social / Ciudadanía / Nuestra Salud / Medio ambiente y Salud / Aguas de Consumo Público / Instalaciones domiciliarias de aguas de consumo)

Instalaciones domiciliarias de agua de consumo. Recomendaciones para el mantenimiento de las condiciones higiénico sanitarias.

Publicado en la página web de la Consejería de Salud y Bienestar Social: www.juntadeandalucia.es/salud (Consejería de Salud y Bienestar Social / Ciudadanía / Nuestra Salud / Medio ambiente y Salud / Aguas de Consumo Público / Instalaciones domiciliarias de aguas de consumo)

Antibiotic resistant bacteria/genes dissemination in lacustrine sediments highly increased following cultural eutrophication of Lake Geneva (Switzerland).

This study investigates faecal indicator bacteria (FIB), multiple antibiotic resistant (MAR), and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), of sediment profiles from different parts of Lake Geneva (Switzerland) over the last decades. MARs consist to expose culturable Escherichia coli (EC) and Enterococcus (ENT) to mixed five antibiotics including Ampicillin, Tetracycline, Amoxicillin, Chloramphenicol and Erythromycin. Culture-independent is performed to assess the distribution of ARGs responsible for, β-lactams (blaTEM; Amoxicillin/Ampicillin), Streptomycin/Spectinomycin (aadA), Tetracycline (tet) Chloramphenicol (cmlA) and Vancomycin (van). Bacterial cultures reveal that in the sediments deposited following eutrophication of Lake Geneva in the 1970s, the percentage of MARs to five antibiotics varied from 0.12% to 4.6% and 0.016% to 11.6% of total culturable EC and ENT, respectively. In these organic-rich bacteria-contaminated sediments, the blaTEM resistant of FIB varied from 22% to 48% and 16% to 37% for EC and ENT respectively, whereas the positive PCR assays responsible for tested ARGs were observed for EC, ENT, and total DNA from all samples. The aadA resistance gene was amplified for all the sediment samples, including those not influenced by WWTP effluent water. Our results demonstrate that bacteria MARs and ARGs highly increased in the sediments contaminated with WWTP effluent following the cultural eutrophication of Lake Geneva. Hence, the human-induced changing limnological conditions highly enhanced the sediment microbial activity, and therein the spreading of antibiotic resistant bacteria and genes in this aquatic environment used to supply drinking water in a highly populated area. Furthermore, the presence of the antibiotic resistance gene aadA in all the studied samples points out a regional dissemination of this emerging contaminant in freshwater sediments since at least the late nineteenth century.

Chronic nitric oxide synthase inhibition and carotid artery distensibility in renal hypertensive rats.

The goal of the present study was to examine the viscoelastic properties of the carotid artery in genetically identical rats exposed to similar levels of blood pressure sustained by different mechanisms. Eight-week old male Wistar rats were examined 2 weeks after renal artery clipping (two-kidney, one clip [2K1C] Goldblatt rats, n = 53) or sham operation (n = 49). One half of the 2K1C and sham rats received the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME, 1.48 mmol/L) in their drinking water for 2 weeks after the surgical procedure. Mean blood pressure increased significantly in the 2K1C-water (182 mm Hg), 2K1C-L-NAME (197 mm Hg), and sham-L-NAME (170 mm Hg) rats compared with the sham-water rats (127 mm Hg). Plasma renin activity was not altered by L-NAME but significantly enhanced after renal artery clipping. A significant and similar increase in the cross-sectional area of the carotid artery was observed in L-NAME and vehicle-treated 2K1C rats. L-NAME per se did not modify cross-sectional area in the sham rats. There was a significant upward shift of the distensibility-pressure curve in the L-NAME- and vehicle-treated 2K1C rats compared with the sham-L-NAME rats. L-NAME treatment did not alter the distensibility-pressure curve in the 2K1C rats. These results demonstrate that the mechanisms responsible for artery wall hypertrophy in renovascular hypertension are accompanied by an increase in arterial distensibility that is not dependent on the synthesis of nitric oxide.

Waterborne toxoplasmosis investigated and analysed under hydrogeological assessment: new data and perspectives for further research

We present a set of data on human and chicken Toxoplasma gondiiseroprevalence that was investigated and analysed in light of groundwater vulnerability information in an area endemic for waterborne toxoplasmosis in Brazil. Hydrogeological assessment was undertaken to select sites for water collection from wells for T. gondii oocyst testing and for collecting blood from free-range chickens and humans for anti-T. gondiiserologic testing. Serologic testing of human specimens was done using conventional commercial tests and a sporozoite-specific embryogenesis-related protein (TgERP), which is able to differentiate whether infection resulted from tissue cysts or oocysts. Water specimens were negative for the presence of viable T. gondii oocysts. However, seroprevalence in free-range chickens was significantly associated with vulnerability of groundwater to surface contamination (p < 0.0001; odds ratio: 4.73, 95% confidence interval: 2.18-10.2). Surprisingly, a high prevalence of antibodies against TgERP was detected in human specimens, suggesting the possibility of a continuous contamination of drinking water with T. gondiioocysts in this endemic setting. These findings and the new proposed approach to investigate and analyse endemic toxoplasmosis in light of groundwater vulnerability information associated with prevalence in humans estimated by oocyst antigens recognition have implications for the potential role of hydrogeological assessment in researching waterborne toxoplasmosis at a global scale.

Analyse comparée de régimes institutionnels de gestion des réseaux urbains de l'eau en station touristique de montagne : les cas de Crans-Montana (Suisse) et de Morzine-Avoriaz (France)

La station touristique représente un espace urbain consacré principalement au tourisme, tout en comprenant également une population résidente permanente. Du point de vue de la gestion des réseaux urbains de l'eau, cette caractéristique induit pour ce type de lieu des usages propres à tout espace urbain mais également des spécificités liées à la forte fluctuation saisonnière de la population résidente ou encore à la présence d'usages particuliers tels que l'irrigation des golfs, la production de neige artificielle ou le thermalisme. Dès lors, la planification de l'approvisionnement est délicate et peu prévisible. Ces difficultés sont renforcées par le fait que les concentrations temporelles de la demande coïncident généralement avec des périodes de stress hydrique notable. Dans le cas de stations balnéaires, les pics de fréquentation interviennent en général durant l'été lorsque la ressource en eau est peu disponible. Le problème est similaire dans les stations touristiques de montagne où l'eau est généralement indisponible car stockée sous forme de neige durant les mois de forte fréquentation. De plus, ces difficultés sont souvent renforcées par la localisation géographique des stations touristiques, fréquemment situées dans des espaces sensibles du point de vue de la ressource en eau, avec des situations de pénuries temporelles, voire structurelles. Ces problématiques propres à la plupart des stations touristiques mènent souvent à de fortes rivalités entre, d'une part, les différents usages touristiques de la ressource, et d'autre part, les usages autochtones et touristiques. Les particularités liées au tourisme tendent ainsi à renforcer les rivalités entre différents types de secteurs d'activité (approvisionnement en eau potable, tourisme, hydroélectricité, enneigement artificiel, irrigation, etc.). Ces différents usages de la ressource mis en concurrence nécessitent dès lors la mise en oeuvre de réglementations structurées à travers des politiques publiques ainsi que des droits de propriété et selon des composantes nationales, régionales et locales ; soit un cadre institutionnel que nous proposons d'appeler Régime Institutionnel de Ressource (RIR) (Knoepfel et al. 2001, 2007). A travers cette thèse de doctorat, nous répondons à différentes questions de recherche. Nous tentons d'abord de comprendre comment ces différents RIR sont-ils mis en oeuvre dans le cadre d'espaces touristiques ? Comment ceux-ci sont-ils concrétisés par les acteurs et quels sont leurs effets en termes de durabilité technique, environnementale, sociale et économique des réseaux urbains de l'eau ? Nous questionnons ensuite les effets du tourisme sur la gestion des infrastructures de réseau à l'échelle de la station touristique et de son bassin versant et nous interrogeons sur les effets du tourisme en termes de gestion des eaux urbaines. Nous portons notre attention sur deux stations touristiques situées dans deux contextes institutionnels différents (Crans-Montana en Suisse et Morzine-Avoriaz en France) et y étudions trois types de régimes institutionnels en particulier : la régie directe (gestion publique), l'affermage (gestion déléguée) et la gestion privée des infrastructures. Les résultats de cette thèse de doctorat indiquent tout d'abord dans quelle mesure le tourisme modifie de façon significative la perception et les modalités de gestion de la ressource en eau et des infrastructures. Ils montrent ensuite que l'espace fonctionnel de la gestion de ces infrastructures correspond rarement aux limites du réseau hydrographique naturel et quelles en sont les implications en termes de durabilité. Enfin, la comparaison de différents régimes institutionnels révèle les forces et les faiblesses de chaque modèle de gestion dans le cas spécifique des stations touristiques et également les différentes solutions adoptées localement pour la mise en oeuvre d'un arrangement institutionnel permettant un usage plus ou moins durable des infrastructures de réseau et du réseau hydrographique naturel. - Tourism resort represents an urban area mainly dedicated to tourism while including at the same time a permanent residential population. From the point of view of urban water networks, this characteristic induces a strong seasonal fluctuation of residential population and involves special water uses such as golf irrigation, production of artificial snow or functioning of thermal baths. Therefore, water supply planning can be tricky and difficult to predict. These difficulties are reinforced by the fact that temporary concentrations of water demand coïncidé generally with periods of water stress. In the case of seaside resorts, frequenting peaks arise in general during summer when water resource is less available. The problem is similar in mountainous tourist resorts where water is generally unavailable as it is stored as snow during months of highest frequenting. Furthermore, these difficulties are often reinforced by resorts' geographical localisations, which are often situated in sensitive areas in terms of temporary or structural water shortages. These problematic issues often lead to strong rivalries between tourists' water uses on the one hand, and between locals and tourists uses on the other hand. Thus, features of tourism tend to reinforce rivalries between different sectors of activity (supply of drinking water, tourism, hydroelectricity, artificial snow, irrigation, etc.). These different and competing water uses need the implementation of rules structured through public policies and property rights and through national, regional and local legal components; We propose to call this framework as an Institutional Resource Regime (IRR) (Knoepfel et al. 2001, 2007, 2009). Through this PhD thesis, we answer different research questions. We firstly aim to understand how those different IRR are implemented within tourism spaces? How do actors materialize them and what are their effects in term of technical, environmental, social and economical sustainability of urban water networks? We then, investigate effects of tourism on water networks infrastructures' management at the scale of the tourist resort and its river basin. We focus our attention on two tourist resorts situated within two different institutional contexts (Crans-Montana, Switzerland and Morzine-Avoriaz, France) and study three types of institutional regime in particular: public, delegated and private management of infrastructures. Results of this PhD thesis indicate firstly how tourism modifies in a significant way the perception and management modalities of water resource and infrastructures. Results also show that functional space of infrastructures management rarely matches with the limits of the natural river basin and indicates what it means in terms of sustainability. Finally, the comparison of different institutional regimes reveals the strengths and weakness of each management model in the specific case of tourist resorts and shows the different solutions in locally implementing an institutional arrangement for a more or less sustainable management of network infrastructures and natural water system.

Role of estrogen receptor signaling in mammary gland development

Abstract : Breast cancer incidence rates have increased over the past hundred years, in particular, in Western industrial countries and they continue to rise worldwide. Breast cancer risk has been linked to life exposure to endogenous and exogenous estrogens, and there is increasing concern that exposure to endocrine disruptors which are increasingly accumulating in our environment may also have a role. Using the mouse as model, I have analyzed the physiological role of estrogen signaling in mammary gland development. I have shown that estrogen signaling through the estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) in the mammary epithelium is required for ductal morphogenesis during puberty. Moreover, I have demonstrated that estrogens induce proliferation of mammary epithelial cells through a paracrine mechanism. The presence of estrogen signaling is essential cell intrinsically via ERα or ERβ for the terminal differentiation into milk secreting cells during pregnancy. Furthermore, I have examined how perinatal exposure to the estrogenic plasticizer bisphenol A (BPA) found ubiquitously in consumer goods such as baby bottles formula and beverage containers affects the normal mammary gland development and possibly predispose the mammary gland to tumorigenesis. I have found that C57b16 mice that were exposed, via their drinking water, to several BPA doses ranging from 0.025µg/kg/day to 250µg/kg/day exhibits delayed terminal end bud formation and consequently the ductal outgrowth. Later in life, the mice that were exposed in utero to BPA displayed an increased number of mammary epithelial cells. Acute exposure of 3-week-old mice to BPA can alter gene expression levels of an important estrogen target gene, amphiregulin. Taken together these data are compatible with a scenario in which perinatal BPA exposure may alter mammary gland development by affecting developmental signaling pathways. Résumé : Les taux d'incidence des cancers du sein ont augmenté au cours des cent dernières années en particulier dans les pays industriels occidentaux et ils continuent d'augmenter dans le monde entier. Le risque du cancer du sein a été corrélé à l'exposition au cours de la vie aux oestrogènes endogènes et exogènes. Il y a une préoccupation croissante concernant l'exposition aux perturbateurs endocriniens qui ne cessent de s'accumulent dans notre environnement et qui peuvent également avoir un rôle dans l'augmentation des cancers du sein. En utilisant le modèle de souris, j'ai analysé le rôle physiologique de la voie de signalisation à l'oestrogène dans le développement mammaire. J'ai prouvé que l'oestrogène par l'intermédiaire de son récepteur alpha (ERα) est indispensable dans l'épithélium pour la morphogénèse du système canalaire pendant la puberté. De plus, j'ai démontré que les oestrogènes induisent la prolifération des cellules épithéliales mammaires par un mécanisme paracrine. La présence de la voie de signalisation à l'oestrogène est essentielle de manière intrinsèque à la cellule par l'intermédiaire d'ERα ou ERβ pour la différentiation terminale des cellules épithéliales en cellules sécrétrices de lait pendant la grossesse. En outre, j'ai examiné comment l'exposition périnatale au bisphénol A (BPA), un plastifiant présentant des propriétés ostrogéniques et omniprésent dans divers produits d'usage courant tels que les biberons des bébés et les récipients en plastique, affecte le développement de la glande mammaire et prédispose probablement celle-ci à la tumorigénèse. J'ai constaté que l'exposition périnatale à BPA retarde la formation des bourgeons terminaux et par conséquent la croissance du système canalaire. Plus tard dans la vie, les souris qui ont été exposées dans l'utérus au BPA ont montré un plus grand nombre de cellules épithéliales mammaires. L'exposition aiguë de souris âgées de 3 semaines au BPA perturbe le niveau d'expression d'un gène cible important de l'oestrogène, l'amphiregulin. Ces données sont compatibles avec un scénario dans lequel l'exposition périnatale au BPA peut changer le développement de la glande mammaire en affectant des voies de signalisation développementales.

Development of bacteria-based bioassays for arsenic detection in natural waters.

Arsenic contamination of natural waters is a worldwide concern, as the drinking water supplies for large populations can have high concentrations of arsenic. Traditional techniques to detect arsenic in natural water samples can be costly and time-consuming; therefore, robust and inexpensive methods to detect arsenic in water are highly desirable. Additionally, methods for detecting arsenic in the field have been greatly sought after. This article focuses on the use of bacteria-based assays as an emerging method that is both robust and inexpensive for the detection of arsenic in groundwater both in the field and in the laboratory. The arsenic detection elements in bacteria-based bioassays are biosensor-reporter strains; genetically modified strains of, e.g., Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus, and Rhodopseudomonas palustris. In response to the presence of arsenic, such bacteria produce a reporter protein, the amount or activity of which is measured in the bioassay. Some of these bacterial biosensor-reporters have been successfully utilized for comparative in-field analyses through the use of simple solution-based assays, but future methods may concentrate on miniaturization using fiberoptics or microfluidics platforms. Additionally, there are other potential emerging bioassays for the detection of arsenic in natural waters including nematodes and clams.

Compact portable biosensor for arsenic detection in aqueous samples with Escherichia coli bioreporter cells.

We present a compact portable biosensor to measure arsenic As(III) concentrations in water using Escherichia coli bioreporter cells. Escherichia coli expresses green fluorescent protein in a linearly dependent manner as a function of the arsenic concentration (between 0 and 100 μg/L). The device accommodates a small polydimethylsiloxane microfluidic chip that holds the agarose-encapsulated bacteria, and a complete optical illumination/collection/detection system for automated quantitative fluorescence measurements. The device is capable of sampling water autonomously, controlling the whole measurement, storing and transmitting data over GSM networks. We demonstrate highly reproducible measurements of arsenic in drinking water at 10 and 50 μg/L within 100 and 80 min, respectively.

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Climate change data and predictions for the Himalayas are very sparse and uncertain, characterized by a ?Himalayan data gap? and difficulties in predicting changes due to topographic complexity. A few reliable studies and climate change models for Nepal predict considerable changes: shorter monsoon seasons, more intensive rainfall patterns, higher temperatures, and drought. These predictions are confirmed by farmers who claim that temperatures have been increasing for the past decade and wonder why the rains have ?gone mad.? The number of hazard events, notably droughts, floods, and landslides are increasing and now account for approximately 100 deaths in Nepal annually. Other effects are drinking water shortages and shifting agricultural patterns, with many communities struggling to meet basic food security before climatic conditions started changing. The aim of this paper is to examine existing gaps between current climate models and the realities of local development planning through a case study on flood risk and drinking water management for the Municipality of Dharan in Eastern Nepal. This example highlights current challenges facing local-level governments, namely, flood and landslide mitigation, providing basic amenities ? especially an urgent lack of drinking water during the dry season ? poor local planning capacities, and limited resources. In this context, the challenge for Nepal will be to simultaneously address increasing risks caused by hazard events alongside the omnipresent food security and drinking water issues in both urban and rural areas. Local planning is needed that integrates rural development and disaster risk reduction (DRR) with knowledge about climate change considerations. The paper concludes with a critical analysis of climate change modeling and the gap between scientific data and low-tech and low capacities of local planners to access or implement adequate adaptation measures. Recommendations include the need to bridge gaps between scientific models, the local political reality and local information needs.

Repairing the Impaired: Two Iowa Success Stories, 2005

More than 200 lakes, streams and rivers are on Iowa’s impaired waters list. Pollutants prevent these waters from supporting aquatic life, or from being used for drinking water or for full body recreational contact, like swimming. While improving Iowa’s water quality may seem a daunting task, two southern Iowa lakes show that it can be done.