ISDE Italia News

edited by ISDE Italy (International Society of Doctors for the Environment, Italy)

 

Number 400 (2nd July 2010)

 

In this issue………

-      9th International Conference on Urban Health - 27th-29th October, New York.

-      6th Conference Movement and Health and 2nd Conference of HEPA Europe - 24th-26th November, Olomouc (Czech Republic.

-      WONCA Europe Conference 2012 - Vienna (Austria), 4th-7th July.

-      "Managing financial conflict of interest in biomedical research" by Sally J. Rockey and Francis S. Collins.

-      FAO/WHO Expert Meeting on the application of nanotechnologies in the food and agriculture sectors: potential food safety implications.

-      "Cooperative biological effects between ionizing radiation and other physical and chemical agents" by Lorenzo Manti, Annalisa D’Arco.

-      63rd World Health Assembly.

-      Approaching complexities in environment and health.

-      Zero Mercury Working Group proposed partial conceptual text for a global mercury treaty.

-      Toward a science-based recognition of the environmental origin of cancer.

-      "Urban air pollution and climate change as environmental risk factors of respiratory allergy: an update" by G. D’Amato, L. Cecchi, M. D’Amato, G. Liccardi.

-      World Environment Day (WED) 2010.

-      The Resilient Cities Congress 2010.

-      "Environmental and occupational causes of cancer new evidence 2005–2007" by R.W. Clapp, M.M. Jacobs, E.L. Loechler.

 

9th INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON URBAN HEALTH

This event will take place in New York on 27th-29th October 2010. This year’s theme, Good Governance for Healthy Cities, was chosen to showcase the importance of governance in creating healthy cities and improving the health of urban populations, as well as the social and public health policies that are required to address these issues. The conference will consist of plenary sessions, concurrent sessions and poster presentations. Conference organizers are also arranging to hold several sessions in conjunction with community-based organizations and policymakers. The principal theme to be addressed at the Ninth International Conference on Urban Health will be good governance for healthy cities, with special interest in the positive consequences in urban health interventions, as well as the social and public health policies that are required to address these issues. This theme and others will be explored by international plenary speakers and attendees throughout the duration of the conference.

Info: www.nyam.org/icuh2010/index.html

 

6th CONFERENCE MOVEMENT AND HEALTH AND 2nd CONFERENCE OF HEPA EUROPE

The Faculty of Physical Culture at Palacky University in Olomouc (Czech Republic) and HEPA Europe – The European Network for the Promotion of Health-Enhancing Physical activity are organizing the 6th International Conference “Movement and Health 2010 and 2nd Conference and Annual Meeting of HEPA Europe” on 24th-26th November 2010. Co-sponsorship by WHO Regional Office for Europe is being sought for the conference. The main theme of the conference is Health-enhancing Physical Activity in the 21st century: Environmental and social influences and approaches.

Info: http://mandh2010.upol.cz/www/index.php; hepa@ecr.euro.who.int

 

WONCA EUROPE CONFERENCE 2012

The Austrian Society of General Practice & Family Medicine (OEGAM) is organising the WONCA Europe Conference 2012 in Vienna (Austria) on 4th-7th July 2012. The main theme of this conference, “The Art and Science of General Practice and Family Medicine”, has been carefully selected and means more to us than just a new conference title. They aim to provide a forum for all colleagues practicing in primary health care, using a broad spectrum of methods, skills and approaches, ranging from evidence-based medicine to complementary methods. To be efficient as a family doctor requires more than just scientific knowledge; this additional aspect may be considered to be the art of medicine. A special symposium is planned to address the fact that scientific evidence requires skilful implementation to become effective for their patients. Vienna, sometimes considered the cultural capital of the world, seems the ideal location to explore this theme. The city contains many historic places and world-renowned cultural highlights, offers state-of-the-art facilities, and continues to be a centre for research and development. The central image for their conference serves as a symbol for the theme. Skilfully created in the 18th century, the worldfamous wax anatomical models are situated in the Josephinum, the building where the first medical school in Vienna was founded in 1786. They document the combination of scientific knowledge about anatomy with the art of transforming that knowledge into beautiful and accurate models, which were used for teaching.

Info: www.woncaeurope2012.org/cms/index.php

 

MANAGING FINANCIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST IN BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH by Sally J. Rockey and Francis S. Collins.

As the Nation’s Biomedical Research Agency, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) must ensure that the research it funds on the behalf of US taxpayers is scientifically rigorous and free of bias. Over the course of more than 65 years and hundreds of thousands of awards, most researchers receiving funds from NIH have proved to be trustworthy stewards. Still, more must be done to retain, and in some instances regain, public trust in the biomedical and behavioural research enterprise. The public may not always understand the intricacies of rigorous science, but most individuals quickly grasp the concept of bias. Plain and simple, Americans do not want financial conflicts of interest (FCOI) to influence the federally funded research they hope will yield better ways to fight disease and improve health. Managing FCOI in biomedical and behavioural research, however, can prove to be a major challenge because of the complex relationships among government, academia, and industry. Partnerships between NIH-funded researchers and industry are often essential to the process of moving discoveries from the bench to the bedside. These relationships manifest as consultant agreements, in published works, and through a variety of other productive alliances. However, such relationships can sometimes lead to FCOI that may compromise — or appear to compromise — the integrity of research supported by NIH. The US Public Health Service, of which NIH is a part, is the only federal agency to have regulations regarding FCOI in research. In addition to the individual responsibilities ascribed to NIH-funded investigators, institutions that receive NIH funding have responsibilities to develop policies to implement the regulations and to adhere to such policies. In recent years, it has become increasingly apparent that the existing federal regulations, which were promulgated in 1995, need to be clarified and strengthened to ensure greater transparency and accountability. Without such changes, even more instances of real or perceived FCOI will likely be encountered in the future.

If you want this article you can ask it to our secretariat at isde@ats.it

 

FAO/WHO EXPERT MEETING ON THE APPLICATION OF NANOTECHNOLOGIES IN THE FOOD AND AGRICULTURE SECTORS: POTENTIAL FOOD SAFETY IMPLICATIONS

Given the increased global interest in the use of nanotechnology and concerns on the potential food safety implications, FAO and WHO convened a joint Expert Meeting which aimed to identify knowledge gaps including issues on food safety, review current risk assessment procedures, consequently support further food safety research and develop global guidance on adequate and accurate methodologies to assess potential food safety risks that may arise from nanoparticles.

Info: www.who.int/foodsafety/fs_management/meetings/nano_june09/en/; www.fao.org/ag/agn/agns/expert_consultations/Nanotech_EC_Scope_and_Objectives.pdf; www.fao.org/ag/agn/agns/files/FAO_WHO_Nano_Expert_Meeting_Report_Final.pdf;
proscad@fao.org ; foodsafety@who.int

 

COOPERATIVE BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS BETWEEN IONIZING RADIATION AND OTHER PHYSICAL AND CHEMICAL AGENTS by Lorenzo Manti, Annalisa D’Arco.

Exposure to ionizing radiation (IR), at environmentally and therapeutically relevant doses or as a result of diagnostics or accidents, causes cyto- and genotoxic damage. However, exposure to IR alone is a rare event as it occurs in spatial and temporal combination with several physico-chemical agents. Some of these are of known noxiousness, as is the case with chemical compounds at high dose, hence additive/

synergistic effects can be expected or have been demonstrated. Conversely, the cellular toxicity of other agents, such as non-ionizing electromagnetic fields (EMFs), is only presumed and their short- and longterm cooperation on IR-induced damage remains undetermined. In this review, we shall examine evidence in support of the interplay between spatially and/or temporally related environmentally relevant stressors. In vitro or animal-based studies as well as epidemiological surveys have generally examined the combined action of no more than a couple of known or potentially DNA-damaging agents. Moreover, most existing research mainly focused on short-term effects of combined exposures. Hence, it is important that quantitative research addresses the issue of the possible cooperation between chronic exposure to environmental trace contaminants and exposure to EMFs, examining not only the modulation of damage acutely induced by IR but also long-term genome stability.

If you want this article you can ask it to our secretariat at isde@ats.it

 

63rd WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY SIXTY-THIRD WORLD HEALTH ASSEMBLY

This is the WHA 63 Resolution on "Improvement of health through sound management of obsolete pesticides and other obsolete chemicals" adopted during the 63rd World Health Assembly, held in Geneva early May 2010.

If you want this resolution you can ask it to our secretariat at isde@ats.it

 

APPROACHING COMPLEXITIES IN ENVIRONMENT AND HEALTH

The Henvinet organized the final event of the project "Approaching complexities in Environment and Health" held on 14th-15th April 2010 in the Renaissance Brussels Hotel. The aim of the conference was to bring together the research community and other stakeholders in the area of environmental health, to address the complexities faced in the often multi-disciplinary research, and the issues encountered in communicating scientific results to the decision makers.

Info: www.henvinet.eu

 

ZERO MERCURY WORKING GROUP PROPOSED PARTIAL CONCEPTUAL TEXT FOR A GLOBAL MERCURY TREATY

The Zero Mercury Working Group (ZMWG) presented the partial conceptual text for consideration of governments and others as part of their preparations and participation for the first Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC1) on Mercury, 7th-11th June 2010, Sweden. This conceptual text is a working draft, reflecting the potential for modifications as INC deliberations unfold and new information is presented. It is a “partial” draft insofar as it primarily addresses mercury supply and demand; financial/technical assistance; and associated issues related to trade, monitoring and reporting. Proposals in other areas such as waste, and BAT/BEP for industrial processes (including air emission controls), will be forthcoming.

If you want this document you can ask it to our secretariat at isde@ats.it

 

TOWARD A SCIENCE-BASED RECOGNITION OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL ORIGIN OF CANCER

Source: Association for Research and Treatments Against Cancer (ARTAC).

The hypothesis that two thirds to three quarters of cancers have an environmental origin implies that cancers are caused by carcinogenic agents outside the body, i.e. by some micro-organisms such as virus & bacteria, radiation, and exogenous chemicals. This environmental carcinogenisis hypothesis, put forward by Pr. D. Belpomme as early as 2004, was the object of a Communication from the European Commission one year ago. In addition, being widely investigated by many scientists around the world, this new theory was accepted by the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) Committee of the European Parliament. We must realize that there cannot be a cancer without mutations. Mutagenic agents are tumour initiators, therefore important to consider in theory of carcinogenesis. According to still-current theory, lifestyle-related risk factors, such as diet, alcoholism, sedentary, obesity and tobacco smoking would be responsible for the occurrence of many cancers. However, except for tobacco smoking, which is associated with carcinogenic chemical substances in smoke and tar, it has never been proved that these factors can cause mutations and therefore initiate cancer. In many countries, tobacco smoking is responsible for 20-25% of cancer cases. Hence a pending question is what is the cause of the 75% of cancer cases not related to tobacco smoking. It was thought for a long time that hyper-caloric diets rich in animal fat and poor in fruit and vegetables could cause cancers; and that, following WHO’s assertion, eating five fruits or vegetables portions per day could protect the organism from cancer. Unfortunately this has never been proven. Moreover, confirming the hypothesis of ARTAC, based on a careful analysis of the scientific literature, this WHO claim is now disproved by the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC), since it has clearly established that a diet rich in fruits and vegetables does not protect from cancer, or at least they protect from cancer in a very limited number of cases. The state of science therefore reinforces the ARTAC scientific research work that questions the classical carcinogenesis thesis according to which changes in lifestyle-related factors might be responsible for the present worldwide growing incidence of cancer. Rather, the state of science today strengthens its hypothesis that mutagenic agents present in the environment are a major contributor to cancer.

If you want other information you can ask this document to our secretariat at isde@ats.it

 

URBAN AIR POLLUTION AND CLIMATE CHANGE AS ENVIRONMENTAL RISK FACTORS OF RESPIRATORY ALLERGY: AN UPDATE by G. D’Amato, L. Cecchi, M. D’Amato, G. Liccardi.

The incidence of allergic respiratory diseases and bronchial asthma appears to be increasing worldwide, and people living in urban areas more frequently experience these conditions than those living in rural areas. One of the several causes of the rise in morbidity associated with allergic respiratory diseases is the increased presence of outdoor air pollutants resulting from more intense energy consumption and exhaust emissions from cars and other vehicles. Urban air pollution is now a serious public health hazard. Laboratory studies confirm epidemiologic evidence that air pollution adversely affects lung function in asthmatics. Damage to airway mucous membranes and impaired mucociliary clearance caused by air pollution may facilitate access of inhaled allergens to the cells of the immune system, thus promoting sensitization of the airway. Consequently, a more severe immunoglobulin (Ig) E–mediated response to aeroallergens and airway inflammation could account for increasing prevalence of allergic respiratory diseases in polluted urban areas. The most abundant components of urban air pollution in urban areas with high levels of vehicle traffic are airborne particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone. In addition, the earth’s temperature is increasing, mainly as a result of anthropogenic factors (eg, fossil fuel combustion and greenhouse gas emissions from energy supply, transport, industry, and agriculture), and climate change alters the concentration and distribution of air pollutants and interferes with the seasonal presence of allergenic pollens in the atmosphere by prolonging these periods.

If you want these articles you can them to our secretariat at isde@ats.it

Info: gdamato@qubisoft.it

 

WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY (WED) 2010

It's the biggest celebration of positive action for the environment! Commemorated on 5 June since 1972, WED is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and encourages broad-based action. It is aimed to be the people’s day for environmental action and we count on you to make this happen! Every activity matters - organize a neighborhood clean-up; announce an environmental initiative for your city, state or country; adopt targets for environmental improvements in your company; use cloth bags and motivate your school mates and teachers to do the same; plant a tree or better yet organize a collective tree-planting effort for your family; walk to work, start a recycling drive among your friends... the possibilities are endless.

Info: www.unep.org/wed/2010/english

 

THE RESILIENT CITIES CONGRESS 2010

The Resilient Cities Congress 2010 held from 28th to 30th May 2010 in Bonn (Germany) is the first annual global forum on urban resilience and adaptation to climate change.  The congress, supported by a unique partnership between ICLEI and leading organizations in adaptation, contributed to the UNFCCC Nairobi Work Program on adaptation and acknowledges that climate change impacts are an ever-growing issue in urban areas. The event enhanced exchange, learning, networking, debate and policy development on approaches and solutions to climate change adaptation for cities and local governments. It also set the direction for future planning of and investment in urban infrastructure.

Info: www.iclei.org/bonn2010; bonn2010@iclei.org

 

ENVIRONMENTAL AND OCCUPATIONAL CAUSES OF CANCER NEW EVIDENCE 2005–2007 by R.W. Clapp, M.M. Jacobs, E.L. Loechler.

Source: National Institutes of Health.

What do we currently know about the occupational and environmental causes of cancer? As of 2007, the International Agency for Research on Cancer has identified 415 known or suspected carcinogens. Cancer arises through an extremely complicated web of multiple causes. We will likely never know the full range of agents or combinations of agents that cause cancer. However, we do know that preventing exposure to individual carcinogens prevents the disease. Declines in cancer rates – such as the drop in male lung cancer cases from the reduction in tobacco smoking or the drop in bladder cancer among cohorts of dye workers from the elimination of exposure to specific aromatic amines – provides evidence that preventing cancer is possible when we act on what we know. Although the overall age-adjusted cancer incidence rates in the U.S. among both men and women have declined in the last decade, rates of several types of cancers are on the rise; some of these cancers are linked to environmental and occupational exposures. This report chronicles the most recent epidemiological evidence linking occupational and environmental exposures with cancer. Peer-reviewed scientific studies published from January 2005-June 2007 were reviewed, supplementing our state-of-the-evidence report published in September 2005.

If you want this report you can ask it to our secretariat at isde@ats.it

 

This newsletter is ISDE Italy's Official Press Organ edited by Roberto Romizi e Silvia Caruso.

It is published with support of Banca Etruria www.bancaetruria.it

If you want to receive this newsletter or unsubscribe or send any suggestion, please contact: isde@ats.it

Past numbers are available in the ISDE Italy website www.isde.it

International Society of Doctors for the Environment - ISDE Italy

International Society of Doctors for the Environment www.isde.org

Via della Fioraia, 17/19 - 52100 Arezzo (Italy)

Tel. +39 0575 22256, Fax +39 057528676, E-mail: isde@ats.it