@article{BeckerCaminitiFiorellaetal.2013,
  author    = {Becker, Martin and Caminiti, Saverio and Fiorella, Donato and Francis, Louise and Gravino, Pietro and Haklay, Mordechai (Muki) and Hotho, Andreas and Loreto, Virrorio and Mueller, Juergen and Ricchiuti, Ferdinando and Servedio, Vito D. P. and Sirbu, Alina and Tria, Franesca},
  title     = {Awareness and Learning in Participatory Noise Sensing},
  series = {PLOS ONE},
  volume    = {8},
  journal   = {PLOS ONE},
  number    = {12},
  issn      = {1932-6203},
  doi       = {10.1371/journal.pone.0081638},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-127675},
  pages     = {e81638},
  year      = {2013},
  abstract  = {The development of ICT infrastructures has facilitated the emergence of new paradigms for looking at society and the environment over the last few years. Participatory environmental sensing, i.e. directly involving citizens in environmental monitoring, is one example, which is hoped to encourage learning and enhance awareness of environmental issues. In this paper, an analysis of the behaviour of individuals involved in noise sensing is presented. Citizens have been involved in noise measuring activities through the WideNoise smartphone application. This application has been designed to record both objective (noise samples) and subjective (opinions, feelings) data. The application has been open to be used freely by anyone and has been widely employed worldwide. In addition, several test cases have been organised in European countries. Based on the information submitted by users, an analysis of emerging awareness and learning is performed. The data show that changes in the way the environment is perceived after repeated usage of the application do appear. Specifically, users learn how to recognise different noise levels they are exposed to. Additionally, the subjective data collected indicate an increased user involvement in time and a categorisation effect between pleasant and less pleasant environments.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{DrozdSaenkoBrenneretal.2015,
  author    = {Drozd, Valentina M. and Saenko, Vladimir A. and Brenner, Alina V. and Drozdovitch, Vladimir and Pashkevich, Vasilii I. and Kudelsky, Anatoliy V. and Demidchik, Yuri E. and Branovan, Igor and Shiglik, Nikolay},
  title     = {Major Factors Affecting Incidence of Childhood Thyroid Cancer in Belarus after the Chernobyl Accident: Do Nitrates in Drinking Water Play a Role?},
  series = {PLoS One},
  volume    = {10},
  journal   = {PLoS One},
  number    = {9},
  doi       = {10.1371/journal.pone.0137226},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-141863},
  pages     = {e0137226},
  year      = {2015},
  abstract  = {One of the major health consequences of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant accident in 1986 was a dramatic increase in incidence of thyroid cancer among those who were aged less than 18 years at the time of the accident. This increase has been directly linked in several analytic epidemiological studies to iodine-131 (I-131) thyroid doses received from the accident. However, there remains limited understanding of factors that modify the I-131-related risk. Focusing on post-Chernobyl pediatric thyroid cancer in Belarus, we reviewed evidence of the effects of radiation, thyroid screening, and iodine deficiency on regional differences in incidence rates of thyroid cancer. We also reviewed current evidence on content of nitrate in groundwater and thyroid cancer risk drawing attention to high levels of nitrates in open well water in several contaminated regions of Belarus, i.e. Gomel and Brest, related to the usage of nitrogen fertilizers. In this hypothesis generating study, based on ecological data and biological plausibility, we suggest that nitrate pollution may modify the radiation-related risk of thyroid cancer contributing to regional differences in rates of pediatric thyroid cancer in Belarus. Analytic epidemiological studies designed to evaluate joint effect of nitrate content in groundwater and radiation present a promising avenue of research and may provide useful insights into etiology of thyroid cancer.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{NeuhausSchlundtFehrholzetal.2015,
  author    = {Neuhaus, Winfried and Schlundt, Marian and Fehrholz, Markus and Ehrke, Alexander and Kunzmann, Steffen and Liebner, Stefan and Speer, Christian P. and F{\"o}rster, Carola Y.},
  title     = {Multiple antenatal dexamethasone treatment alters brain vessel differentiation in newborn mouse pups},
  series = {PLoS ONE},
  volume    = {10},
  journal   = {PLoS ONE},
  number    = {8},
  doi       = {10.1371/journal.pone.0136221},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-148268},
  pages     = {e0136221},
  year      = {2015},
  abstract  = {Antenatal steroid treatment decreases morbidity and mortality in premature infants through the maturation of lung tissue, which enables sufficient breathing performance. However, clinical and animal studies have shown that repeated doses of glucocorticoids such as dexamethasone and betamethasone lead to long-term adverse effects on brain development. Therefore, we established a mouse model for antenatal dexamethasone treatment to investigate the effects of dexamethasone on brain vessel differentiation towards the blood-brain barrier (BBB) phenotype, focusing on molecular marker analysis. The major findings were that in total brains on postnatal day (PN) 4 triple antenatal dexamethasone treatment significantly downregulated the tight junction protein claudin-5, the endothelial marker Pecam-1/CD31, the glucocorticoid receptor, the NR1 subunit of the N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor, and Abc transporters (Abcb1a, Abcg2 Abcc4). Less pronounced effects were found after single antenatal dexamethasone treatment and in PN10 samples. Comparisons of total brain samples with isolated brain endothelial cells together with the stainings for Pecam-1/CD31 and claudin-5 led to the assumption that the morphology of brain vessels is affected by antenatal dexamethasone treatment at PN4. On the mRNA level markers for angiogenesis, the sonic hedgehog and the Wnt pathway were downregulated in PN4 samples, suggesting fundamental changes in brain vascularization and/or differentiation. In conclusion, we provided a first comprehensive molecular basis for the adverse effects of multiple antenatal dexamethasone treatment on brain vessel differentiation.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{SirbuBeckerCaminitietal.2015,
  author    = {S{\^i}rbu, Alina and Becker, Martin and Caminiti, Saverio and De Baets, Bernard and Elen, Bart and Francis, Louise and Gravino, Pietro and Hotho, Andreas and Ingarra, Stefano and Loreto, Vittorio and Molino, Andrea and Mueller, Juergen and Peters, Jan and Ricchiuti, Ferdinando and Saracino, Fabio and Servedio, Vito D.P. and Stumme, Gerd and Theunis, Jan and Tria, Francesca and Van den Bossche, Joris},
  title     = {Participatory Patterns in an International Air Quality Monitoring Initiative},
  series = {PLoS ONE},
  volume    = {10},
  journal   = {PLoS ONE},
  number    = {8},
  doi       = {10.1371/journal. pone.0136763},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-151379},
  pages     = {e0136763},
  year      = {2015},
  abstract  = {The issue of sustainability is at the top of the political and societal agenda, being considered of extreme importance and urgency. Human individual action impacts the environment both locally (e.g., local air/water quality, noise disturbance) and globally (e.g., climate change, resource use). Urban environments represent a crucial example, with an increasing realization that the most effective way of producing a change is involving the citizens themselves in monitoring campaigns (a citizen science bottom-up approach). This is possible by developing novel technologies and IT infrastructures enabling large citizen participation. Here, in the wider framework of one of the first such projects, we show results from an international competition where citizens were involved in mobile air pollution monitoring using low cost sensing devices, combined with a web-based game to monitor perceived levels of pollution. Measures of shift in perceptions over the course of the campaign are provided, together with insights into participatory patterns emerging from this study. Interesting effects related to inertia and to direct involvement in measurement activities rather than indirect information exposure are also highlighted, indicating that direct involvement can enhance learning and environmental awareness. In the future, this could result in better adoption of policies towards decreasing pollution.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{SognoTraidlHoffmannKuenzer2020,
  author    = {Sogno, Patrick and Traidl-Hoffmann, Claudia and Kuenzer, Claudia},
  title     = {Earth Observation data supporting non-communicable disease research: a review},
  series = {Remote Sensing},
  volume    = {12},
  journal   = {Remote Sensing},
  number    = {16},
  issn      = {2072-4292},
  doi       = {10.3390/rs12162541},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-211113},
  year      = {2020},
  abstract  = {A disease is non-communicable when it is not transferred from one person to another. Typical examples include all types of cancer, diabetes, stroke, or allergies, as well as mental diseases. Non-communicable diseases have at least two things in common — environmental impact and chronicity. These diseases are often associated with reduced quality of life, a higher rate of premature deaths, and negative impacts on a countries' economy due to healthcare costs and missing work force. Additionally, they affect the individual's immune system, which increases susceptibility toward communicable diseases, such as the flu or other viral and bacterial infections. Thus, mitigating the effects of non-communicable diseases is one of the most pressing issues of modern medicine, healthcare, and governments in general. Apart from the predisposition toward such diseases (the genome), their occurrence is associated with environmental parameters that people are exposed to (the exposome). Exposure to stressors such as bad air or water quality, noise, extreme heat, or an overall unnatural surrounding all impact the susceptibility to non-communicable diseases. In the identification of such environmental parameters, geoinformation products derived from Earth Observation data acquired by satellites play an increasingly important role. In this paper, we present a review on the joint use of Earth Observation data and public health data for research on non-communicable diseases. We analyzed 146 articles from peer-reviewed journals (Impact Factor ≥ 2) from all over the world that included Earth Observation data and public health data for their assessments. Our results show that this field of synergistic geohealth analyses is still relatively young, with most studies published within the last five years and within national boundaries. While the contribution of Earth Observation, and especially remote sensing-derived geoinformation products on land surface dynamics is on the rise, there is still a huge potential for transdisciplinary integration into studies. We see the necessity for future research and advocate for the increased incorporation of thematically profound remote sensing products with high spatial and temporal resolution into the mapping of exposomes and thus the vulnerability and resilience assessment of a population regarding non-communicable diseases.},
  language  = {en}
}
@article{AdakuChilakaMally2020,
  author    = {Adaku Chilaka, Cynthia and Mally, Angela},
  title     = {Mycotoxin Occurrence, Exposure and Health Implications in Infants and Young Children in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Review},
  series = {Foods},
  volume    = {9},
  journal   = {Foods},
  number    = {11},
  issn      = {2304-8158},
  doi       = {10.3390/foods9111585},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-219250},
  year      = {2020},
  abstract  = {Infants and young children (IYC) remain the most vulnerable population group to environmental hazards worldwide, especially in economically developing regions such as sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). As a result, several governmental and non-governmental institutions including health, environmental and food safety networks and researchers have been proactive toward protecting this group. Mycotoxins, toxic secondary fungal metabolites, contribute largely to the health risks of this young population. In SSA, the scenario is worsened by socioeconomic status, poor agricultural and storage practices, and low level of awareness, as well as the non-establishment and lack of enforcement of regulatory limits in the region. Studies have revealed mycotoxin occurrence in breast milk and other weaning foods. Of concern is the early exposure of infants to mycotoxins through transplacental transfer and breast milk as a consequence of maternal exposure, which may result in adverse health effects. The current paper presents an overview of mycotoxin occurrence in foods intended for IYC in SSA. It discusses the imperative evidence of mycotoxin exposure of this population group in SSA, taking into account consumption data and the occurrence of mycotoxins in food, as well as biomonitoring approaches. Additionally, it discusses the health implications associated with IYC exposure to mycotoxins in SSA.},
  language  = {en}
}