Endocrine disrupting chemical Bisphenol A and its potential effects on female health

Background and aimA large number of chemical compounds with endocrine-disrupting activity have been documented. These chemicals are ubiquitous and widely used in many products of our daily lives. Bisphenol A (BPA) is among the most common Endocrine Disrupting Chemical (EDC) that has been used for many years in the manufacture of polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins. There is growing evidence that exposure to these EDCs poses a possible health risk. This review focuses on the effect of EDCs, in particular, BPA on female reproduction and Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), which is the most prevalent endocrine disorder of reproductively aged women.MethodsA relevant literature survey was conducted with Google scholar and Pubmed using several appropriate keywords to select the most relevant studies evaluating the role of endocrine disrupting-chemicals in female reproduction.ResultsThe female menstrual cycle and fertility are very sensitive to hormonal imbalance and alteration in endocrine function during critical times and different stages of lifecycle owing to EDC exposure results in many abnormalities like menstrual irregularities, impaired fertility, PCOS, and Endometriosis among others. BPA is the most extensively studied EDC worldwide and has been strongly associated with female reproductive health.ConclusionEDCs lead to deleterious effects on human health including reproductive health which are of global concern. Exposure to EDCs in early life can elicit disease in adult life and maybe even transgenerational. There is an immediate need to minimize the ill effect of EDCs which can be tackled through the collection of more data to clarify the clinical implications of EDCs.     

Forensic features and genetic legacy of the Baloch population of Pakistan and the Hazara population across Durand line revealed by Y-chromosomal STRs

International Journal of Legal Medicine - The Hazara population across Durand line has experienced extensive interaction with Central Asian and East Asian populations. Hazara individuals have...     

Road traffic injuries: a new agenda for child health

This paper reviews literature related to morbidity and mortality in South Asian children due to Road Traffic Injuries (RTIs), almost all of which are preventable. In South Asia after males 15-44 years, RTIs are most common in children 0-15 years old. Under-five fatality rates are about six times higher than in the developed world. Most injuries in low income countries occur in urban areas, where pedestrians, passengers, and cyclists account for around 90% of deaths due to RTIs. This higher fatality among pedestrians is probably due to wider traffic mix and lack of safe pedestrian walking areas. The WHO estimates that RTIs cost countries between 1 and 2% of their Gross Domestic Product. This has critical financial consequences. Vital statistics in South Asia are not reliable, and this leads to an underestimation of the magnitude of RTIs that hampers efforts for its acceptance as a preventable public health problem. Rapid urbanization, high motorization rates and failure to institute preventive measures predict a substantial increase in road traffic deaths in the coming years. Creating a safer environment is important. Use of child passenger restraints, bicycle helmets and targeted education campaigns are effective preventive measures. Legislation and implementation of traffic rules and regulations, road engineering and safe pedestrian areas would help reduce injuries. These measures are in accordance with the WHO's five-year strategy to address RTIs worldwide. This strategy includes national and local capacity building, inclusion of RTI in the public health agendas in the world for prevention and control of the health consequences. Child health in South Asia needs to integrate the new challenge of road traffic injuries for the region. It is critical that interventions for reducing this burden are developed, tested and implemented.     

Evaluation of antioxidant defense markers in relation to hormonal and insulin parameters in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS): A case-control study

AimPolycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a composite heterogeneous condition with multifactorial etiology like genetic, environmental factors and oxidative stress. The exact pro-oxidant and antioxidant status in PCOS patients has not yet been fully established. We designed prospective study aimed to explore the association of PCOS and oxidative stress and examine the relationship of oxidative stress biomarkers with insulin parameters.MethodsTwo groups were included: study group including 85 women with PCOS and control group of 85 healthy volunteers. Biochemical, Hormonal and insulin parameters were measured. Vitamin C, vitamin E, nitric oxide and activities of antioxidant enzymes were estimated using spectrophotometric methods.ResultsSubjects with PCOS had poor antioxidant status as reflected by significantly low levels of glutathione, vitamin C & E and considerably increased activities of antioxidant enzymes like glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase and glutathione transferase as compared to those without PCOS. At the same time insulin levels were found to be significantly high and a positive correlation between oxidative stress and insulin parameters was observed in PCOS.ConclusionLow levels of antioxidants and increased oxidative stress with insulin resistance along with the observed correlation between these parameters suggest that women with PCOS are under oxidative stress which supports the concept that oxidative stress is involved in PCOS pathophysiology. Thus oxidative stress could be a contributory factor to future cardiovascular disease risk in these women in addition to known features like dyslipidemia, central obesity, etc.     

Integrating Health Into Disaster Risk Reduction Strategies: Key Considerations for Success

The human and financial costs of disasters are vast. In 2011, disasters were estimated to have cost $378 billion worldwide; disasters have affected 64% of the world’s population since 1992. Consequently, disaster risk reduction strategies have become increasingly prominent on national and international policy agendas. However, the function of health in disaster risk reduction strategies often has been restricted to emergency response.To mitigate the effect of disasters on social and health development goals (such as risk reduction Millennium Development Goals) and increase resilience among at-risk populations, disaster strategies should assign the health sector a more all-encompassing, proactive role.We discuss proposed methods and concepts for mainstreaming health in disaster risk reduction and consider barriers faced by the health sector in this field.Recent decades have witnessed a growing scientific and evidence-based approach to the concept of disaster risk reduction. The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR) and the World Health Organization (WHO) define the term disaster as

a serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society causing widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses which exceed the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources.1

The term also describes an event that can be defined spatially and geographically that results from the interaction of an external stressor with a human community and that carries the implicit concept of nonmanageability in a local context.1Statistics on the effects of recent disasters and their increasing global frequency are startling.2 In the past 12 years, an estimated $1.3 trillion of damage has been sustained through disasters, and in 2012, an estimated 51 million people in 16 countries required some form of humanitarian assistance.3,4 Multibillion dollar natural hazard–related disasters are becoming more common, and five of the 10 costliest disasters have occurred between 2008 and 2012.5 In 2011, disasters were estimated to have cost $378 billion, breaking the previous record of $262 billion in 2005.5 More than 1.5 billion people currently live in countries affected by fragility, conflict, or large-scale violence,6 and overall, more than 4.4 billion people—64% of the world’s population—have been affected by disasters in some way since 1992.7 As the effects of climate change become more palpable, this may be associated with a rise in the frequency of natural hazard–related disasters.8Consequently, taking action to better mitigate hazards, prepare for disasters, and reduce their effect has assumed an increasingly prominent position on global and national agendas. Since the Buyin-Zara Earthquake in Iran in 1962, the United Nations (UN) and its member states have worked toward the development of a global disaster risk reduction strategy.9 Early milestones included the UN declaration of an International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction in the 1990s and the launch of the Yokohama Strategy in 1994, designed to “provide guidelines for natural disaster prevention, preparedness and mitigation.”10 The process gained added momentum following the 2003 Bam Earthquake and 2004 Asian Tsunami, with efforts culminating in 2005 with the adoption by 168 countries of a 10-year strategy, the Hyogo Framework for Action. The Hyogo Framework for Action was intended to build the resilience of nations and communities to disasters through cooperation and technical assistance (see the box on the next page). In addition, since 2007, the UNISDR Global Platform has been convened on a biennial basis to review progress on the framework by international agencies, countries, institutions, and civil society actors. The platform also provides a forum to discuss and exchange views on the latest scientific and evidence-based interventions and strategies currently available to achieve those aims.12

Health and the Hyogo Framework for Action (2005–2015): Five Priorities

Limitations of conventional anticoagulant therapy and the promises of non-heparin based conformational activators of antithrombin

An elevated prothrombotic state is a major risk factor for venous thromboembolism, atrial fibrillation and cardiac strokes. The regulation of various coagulation cascade proteases plays an important role in determining a prothrombotic state. Clinically used anticoagulants are inhibitor of enzymes that are involved in the coagulation pathway, primarily thrombin and factor Xa. The conformational activation of antithrombin by heparin is a critical step in the inhibition of factor Xa by antithrombin. Despite heparin being the most potent physiological activator which enhances the otherwise very lethargic antithrombin inhibition of factor Xa by approximately 1,000-fold, the conventional heparin therapy poses serious complications because of heparin's polyanionic nature and its cross-reactivity. A number of attempts have been carried out in designing alternative non-heparin based conformational activators of antithrombin for factor Xa inhibition. Studies have demonstrated appreciable activation of antithrombin by small organic molecules, but not much is known about the specificity and effects of these molecules on structure and stability. It is assumed that these activators of antithrombin perform their function by binding to heparin binding site. A recently identified cavity which links the heparin binding site to the strand 2A for antithrombin activation also seems to be an ideal target apart the heparin binding site of antithrombin. There are opportunities in discovering more activators from naturally available organic scaffolds and also for modifying such scaffolds for designing better conformational activators with minimum associated complications. This review summarizes the current literature on the mainstay anticoagulants and non-heparin based antithrombin conformation modulators.