Nanotechnology applications are fast-growing in many industrial fields. Consequently, health effects of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) should be investigated. Within the EU-Life project NanoExplore, we developed a harmonized protocol of an international multicenter prospective cohort study of workers in ENM-producing companies. This article describes the development of the protocol, sample size calculation, data collection and management procedures and discusses its relevance with respect to research needs. Within this protocol, workers’ ENM exposure will be assessed over four consecutive working days during the initial recruitment campaign and the subsequent follow-up campaigns. Biomonitoring using noninvasive sampling of exhaled breath condensate (EBC), exhaled air, and urine will be collected before and after 4-day exposure monitoring. Both exposure and effect biomarkers, will be quantified along with pulmonary function tests and diagnosed diseases reported using a standardized epidemiological questionnaire available in four languages. Until now, this protocol was implemented at seven companies in Switzerland, Spain and Italy. The protocol is well standardized, though sufficiently flexible to include company-specific conditions and occupational hygiene measures. The recruitment, to date, of 140 participants and collection of all data and samples, enabled us launching the first international cohort of nanotechnology workers. All companies dealing with ENMs could join the NanoExplore Consortium, apply this harmonized protocol and enter in the cohort, concieved as an open cohort. Its protocol meets all requirements of a hypotheses-driven prospective study, which will assess and reassess effects of ENM exposure on workers’ health by updating the follow-up of the cohort. New hypothesis could be also considered.

Nanotechnology applications are fast-growing in many industrial fields. Consequently, health effects of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) should be investigated. Within the EU-Life project NanoExplore, we developed a harmonized protocol of an international multicenter prospective cohort study of workers in ENM-producing companies. This article describes the development of the protocol, sample size calculation, data collection and management procedures and discusses its relevance with respect to research needs. Within this protocol, workers’ ENM exposure will be assessed over four consecutive working days during the initial recruitment campaign and the subsequent follow-up campaigns. Biomonitoring using noninvasive sampling of exhaled breath condensate (EBC), exhaled air, and urine will be collected before and after 4-day exposure monitoring. Both exposure and effect biomarkers, will be quantified along with pulmonary function tests and diagnosed diseases reported using a standardized epidemiological questionnaire available in four languages. Until now, this protocol was implemented at seven companies in Switzerland, Spain and Italy. The protocol is well standardized, though sufficiently flexible to include company-specific conditions and occupational hygiene measures. The recruitment, to date, of 140 participants and collection of all data and samples, enabled us launching the first international cohort of nanotechnology workers. All companies dealing with ENMs could join the NanoExplore Consortium, apply this harmonized protocol and enter in the cohort, concieved as an open cohort. Its protocol meets all requirements of a hypotheses-driven prospective study, which will assess and reassess effects of ENM exposure on workers’ health by updating the follow-up of the cohort. New hypothesis could be also considered.

Nanotechnologies is a fast-growing field that employs thousands of workers. However, effects of nanoparticles on human health in occupational setting are not completely understood. The aim of this longitudinal multicenter prospective cohort study is to develop an integrated approach for investigation of human health outcomes related to exposure to nanoparticles. Three groups of nanotechnology workers will be recruited in Switzerland, Spain and Italy. “Exposed” (n=80) and “Internal control” (n=40) groups will be recruited from companies manufacturing nanomaterials. “Exposed” group will include individuals who produce or handle nanomaterials, whereas “Internal control” group will include non-exposed individuals from the same companies, e.g., administrative employees. “Universal control” (n=40) group will include individuals from companies with confirmed absence of exposure to nanomaterials. Biomarkers of exposure and effect will be measured in the participants before and after a 4-day monitoring of external exposure (on Monday morning and on Thursday evening) at recruitment and at the 6/9 months follow-up (four times in total). The biomarkers will be analyzed from exhaled breath condensate, expired air and urine samples. Implementation of an integrated and harmonized biomonitoring protocol in occupational settings should demonstrate the feasibility of similar research project in the future, facilitate further epidemiological studies and health surveillance programs, and inform stakeholders of regulatory aspects targeting occupational exposure to engineered and incidental nanoparticles.

BackgroundAir pollution in subway environment is a growing concern as it often exceeds WHO recommendations for indoor air quality. Ultrafine particles (UFP), for which there is still no regulation, neither standardized exposure monitoring method, are the strongest contributor to this pollution when the number concentration is used as exposure metric.ObjectivesWe aimed to assess the real-time UFP number concentration in the personal breath zone (PBZ) of three types of underground Parisian subway professionals and analyze it using a novel Bayesian spline approach. Consecutively, we investigate the effect of jobs, week days, subway stations, worker location and some events on UFP number concentration.MethodsThe data collection procedure, originating from a longitudinal study, lasted for a total duration of 6 weeks from 7 October 2019 to 15 November 2019, two weeks per type of subway professionals. Time-series were built from the real-time particle number concentration (PNC) measured in the PBZ of professionals during their work-shifts. Complementarily, contextual information expressed as Station, Environment and Event variables were extracted from activity logbooks completed for every work-shift by study technicians. Subsequently, the Bayesian spline approach was applied to model PNC within a Bayesian framework as a function of the latter contextual information.ResultsOverall, the Bayesian spline approach seams well suited to model real-time personal PNC data. The model enabled estimating the differences in UFP exposure between subway professionals, between stations, and different locations. Our results suggest that the PNC is higher the closer to the subway tracks with the highest PNC at the subway station platforms. Studied events had a lesser influence, as well as the day of the weekConclusionThe application of the Bayesian spline method to investigate the individual exposure to UFP in the underground subway setting was shown feasible. This method is informative for better documenting the magnitude and variability of UFP exposure and for understanding its determinants in view of its further regulation and control.

The database contains data on the employment status of transplanted patients pre- and posttransplant as well as various bio-psycho-social variables related to the employment status.

The database contains data on the employment status of transplanted patients pre- and posttransplant as well as various bio-psycho-social variables related to the employment status.