Exposures to bioaerosols in the occupational environment are associated with a wide range of health effects with major public health impact, including infectious diseases, acute toxic effects, allergies and cancer. Respiratory symptoms and lung function impairment are the most widely studied and probably among the most important bioaerosol-associated health effects. In addition to these adverse health effects some protective effects of microbial exposure on atopy and atopic conditions has also been suggested. New industrial activities have emerged in recent years in which exposures to bioaerosols can be abundant, e.g. the waste recycling and composting industry, biotechnology industries producing highly purified enzymes and the detergent and food industries that make use of these enzymes. Dose-response relationships have not been established for most biological agents and knowledge about threshold values is sparse. Exposure limits are available for some contaminants, e.g. wood dust, subtilisins (bacterial enzymes) and flour dust. Exposure limits for bacterial endotoxin have been proposed. Risk assessment is seriously hampered by the lack of valid quantitative exposure assessment methods. Traditional culture methods to quantify microbial exposures have proven to be of limited use. Non-culture methods and assessment methods for microbial constituents [e.g. allergens, endotoxin, beta(1-->3)-glucans, fungal extracellular polysaccharides] appear more successful; however, experience with these methods is generally limited. Therefore, more research is needed to establish better exposure assessment tools and validate newly developed methods. Other important areas that require further research include: potential protective effects of microbial exposures on atopy and atopic diseases, inter-individual susceptibility for biological exposures, interactions of bioaerosols with non-biological agents and other potential health effects such as skin and neurological conditions and birth effects.

/pdf/bioaerosol-health-effects-and-exposure-assessment-progress-31appz2yq3.pdf

Bioaerosol Health Effects and Exposure Assessment: Progress and Prospects

This Conference Report was prepared by a multidisciplinary ad hoc committee of the Assembly on Environmental and Occupational Health.

Respiratory Health Hazards in Agriculture

Approximately one third of laboratory animal workers have occupational allergy to animal danders, and a third of these have symptomatic asthma. Sensitization generally occurs with the first 3 years of employment, and risk factors include atopic background, as well as job description as it relates to the intensity of exposure. A symptomatic worker can reduce allergen exposure with personal protective devices. A laboratory can further reduce exposure with generally available equipment, such as laminar flow caging, and procedures, such as frequent wet washing of vivaria and careful maintenance of ventilation systems. It is advisable to institute periodic medical screening of all laboratory animal workers with questionnaires and allergy skin testing in addition to providing them with training programs to reduce personal exposure.

Laboratory animal allergy

The present document is the result of a consensus reached by a panel of experts from European and non-European countries on Occupational Rhinitis (OR), a disease of emerging relevance which has received little attention in comparison to occupational asthma. The document covers the main items of OR including epidemiology, diagnosis, management, socio-economic impact, preventive strategies and medicolegal issues. An operational definition and classification of OR tailored on that of occupational asthma, as well as a diagnostic algorithm based on steps allowing for different levels of diagnostic evidence are proposed. The needs for future research are pointed out. Key messages are issued for each item.

/pdf/eaaci-position-paper-on-occupational-rhinitis-453uaodep3.pdf

EAACI position paper on occupational rhinitis.

Occupational rhinitis

Laboratory animal workers are at high risk of developing occupational allergy. Little is known about the relationship between levels of exposure and the risk of developing laboratory animal allergy. A cross-sectional study was performed in 540 workers at eight facilities to quantify the exposure-response relationship for allergy to rats, while controlling for determinants like atopy, gender, and smoking. All participants completed a questionnaire, underwent skin prick testing with common and occupational allergens, and total IgE as well as occupational allergen-specific IgE antibodies were serologically measured. Personal air dust samples were taken during full-shift periods to estimate the rat urinary aeroallergen exposure levels. In the whole study population no clear exposure-response relationship was observed. However, in the group of workers with less than 4 yr of working experience with laboratory animals the prevalence rate of sensitization to rat allergens was clearly associated with exposure levels. The exposure-response relationship was steepest for workers with atopy-associated risk factors, i.e., self-reported allergy or sensitization to cats or dogs, or elevated total serum IgE. The prevalence rates of sensitization to rat allergens for these workers were about 15, 9.5, and 7.3 times higher in the high, medium, and low exposure group, respectively, compared with internal reference group.

Respiratory allergy to rats: exposure-response relationships in laboratory animal workers.

Summary
Background Laboratory animal workers are at high risk of developing occupational allergy. Little is known about the relationship between levels of exposure and the risk of developing laboratory animal allergy. Since laboratory animal work comprises a large number of different — often short lasting — tasks, it is of interest to assess which activities are associated with high. low or intermediate levels of allergen exposure. Objective To develop and evaluate highly sensitive immunoassays in order to quantify rat and mouse urinary allergens in airborne dust sampled during short-lasting tasks.

Objective Personal air dust samples were taken during full-shift periods as well as during specific tasks in seven laboratory animal facilities. Two sandwich enzyme immunoassays were developed, using rabbit antisera against rat and mouse urinary proteins. The rabbit antibodies were analysed by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and immunoblotting and compared with IgE antibodies from sensitized laboratory animal workers.

Results The rabbit antibodies were highly specific for rat and mouse urinary proteins and reacted with all IgE-binding allergens in either urinary protein preparation. The assays for rat and mouse urine were very sensitive, with detection limits of 0.075 ng/mL. The coefficient of variation of the analysis was 12.9% for both assays. Animal caretakers appeared to experience the highest exposure to aeroallergens. A large variation in exposure within jobs was found, due to differences between tasks performed during the sampling day and the facility worked at. The highest exposure levels were found during removal of contaminated bedding from the cages. However, rat and mouse allergen exposure levels during this task varied enormously between facilities, 1.1–158ngeq/m and 0.63– 2000ngeq/m3. respectively.

Conclusion Both sandwich immunoassays are highly specific and sensitive and are able to identify tasks of relatively short duration with high, medium and low exposure to airborne rat and mouse urinary allergens.

Exposure of laboratory animal workers to airborne rat and mouse urinary allergens.

Laboratory animal allergy: cross-sectinal results from a three yaer follow-up study.

Exposure-response relationships for occupational respiratory sensitizers: results from a large scale EU pooled study in laboratory animal workers

Results from a prospective study of laboratory animal allergy.

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