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Animal Allergens, Endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-Glucan in Small Animal Practices: Exposure Levels at Work and in Homes of Veterinary Staff

OBJECTIVES: In veterinary settings, high exposures to animal allergens and microbial agents can be expected. However, occupational exposure levels are largely unknown. The objective of this study was to estimate the allergen, endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-glucan concentrations in small animal practices and...

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Autores principales: Zahradnik, Eva, Sander, Ingrid, Kleinmüller, Olaf, Lotz, Anne, Liebers, Verena, Janssen-Weets, Bente, Kler, Stéphanie, Hilger, Christiane, Beine, Alexandra, Hoffmeyer, Frank, Nienhaus, Albert, Raulf, Monika
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Oxford University Press 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8751790/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34363388
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/annweh/wxab053
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author Zahradnik, Eva
Sander, Ingrid
Kleinmüller, Olaf
Lotz, Anne
Liebers, Verena
Janssen-Weets, Bente
Kler, Stéphanie
Hilger, Christiane
Beine, Alexandra
Hoffmeyer, Frank
Nienhaus, Albert
Raulf, Monika
author_facet Zahradnik, Eva
Sander, Ingrid
Kleinmüller, Olaf
Lotz, Anne
Liebers, Verena
Janssen-Weets, Bente
Kler, Stéphanie
Hilger, Christiane
Beine, Alexandra
Hoffmeyer, Frank
Nienhaus, Albert
Raulf, Monika
author_sort Zahradnik, Eva
collection PubMed
description OBJECTIVES: In veterinary settings, high exposures to animal allergens and microbial agents can be expected. However, occupational exposure levels are largely unknown. The objective of this study was to estimate the allergen, endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-glucan concentrations in small animal practices and in the homes of practice employees. METHODS: Dust samples were collected using electrostatic dust fall collectors in diverse rooms of 36 small animal practices, as well as in employees’ homes. Major animal allergens (Fel d 1, Can f 1, Ory c 3, Cav p 1, Equ c 1, Bos d 2), domestic mite (DM) allergens, and β-(1,3)-glucan levels were measured using enzyme immunoassays. Endotoxin was determined using the Limulus amoebocyte lysate assay. Influences on exposure levels were analyzed using multilevel models. RESULTS: The levels of Can f 1, Fel d 1, Ory c 3, and Cav p 1 were up to 30 times higher in practices compared with homes without animals, but significantly lower compared with the homes with the respective pet. Although horses were not treated in the practices, Equ c 1 was found in 87.5% of samples, with the highest concentrations measured in changing rooms. DM levels were significantly lower in practices than in all private homes, and endotoxin levels were similar to those in homes with pets. In the practice itself, exposure levels were significantly influenced by animal presence, type of the room, and area per employee; whereas, room volume and diverse cleaning measures had mostly no effect. CONCLUSIONS: Exposure to animal allergens is high in veterinary practices, but it does not reach levels of households with pets. Domestic mite allergen and endotoxin exposure seem to be low for workers in veterinary practices. The high Equ c 1 detection rate strongly indicates dispersal of allergens, most likely through clothing and hair.
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spelling pubmed-87517902022-01-12 Animal Allergens, Endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-Glucan in Small Animal Practices: Exposure Levels at Work and in Homes of Veterinary Staff Zahradnik, Eva Sander, Ingrid Kleinmüller, Olaf Lotz, Anne Liebers, Verena Janssen-Weets, Bente Kler, Stéphanie Hilger, Christiane Beine, Alexandra Hoffmeyer, Frank Nienhaus, Albert Raulf, Monika Ann Work Expo Health Original Articles OBJECTIVES: In veterinary settings, high exposures to animal allergens and microbial agents can be expected. However, occupational exposure levels are largely unknown. The objective of this study was to estimate the allergen, endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-glucan concentrations in small animal practices and in the homes of practice employees. METHODS: Dust samples were collected using electrostatic dust fall collectors in diverse rooms of 36 small animal practices, as well as in employees’ homes. Major animal allergens (Fel d 1, Can f 1, Ory c 3, Cav p 1, Equ c 1, Bos d 2), domestic mite (DM) allergens, and β-(1,3)-glucan levels were measured using enzyme immunoassays. Endotoxin was determined using the Limulus amoebocyte lysate assay. Influences on exposure levels were analyzed using multilevel models. RESULTS: The levels of Can f 1, Fel d 1, Ory c 3, and Cav p 1 were up to 30 times higher in practices compared with homes without animals, but significantly lower compared with the homes with the respective pet. Although horses were not treated in the practices, Equ c 1 was found in 87.5% of samples, with the highest concentrations measured in changing rooms. DM levels were significantly lower in practices than in all private homes, and endotoxin levels were similar to those in homes with pets. In the practice itself, exposure levels were significantly influenced by animal presence, type of the room, and area per employee; whereas, room volume and diverse cleaning measures had mostly no effect. CONCLUSIONS: Exposure to animal allergens is high in veterinary practices, but it does not reach levels of households with pets. Domestic mite allergen and endotoxin exposure seem to be low for workers in veterinary practices. The high Equ c 1 detection rate strongly indicates dispersal of allergens, most likely through clothing and hair. Oxford University Press 2021-08-07 /pmc/articles/PMC8751790/ /pubmed/34363388 http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/annweh/wxab053 Text en © The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Occupational Hygiene Society. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted reuse, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
spellingShingle Original Articles
Zahradnik, Eva
Sander, Ingrid
Kleinmüller, Olaf
Lotz, Anne
Liebers, Verena
Janssen-Weets, Bente
Kler, Stéphanie
Hilger, Christiane
Beine, Alexandra
Hoffmeyer, Frank
Nienhaus, Albert
Raulf, Monika
Animal Allergens, Endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-Glucan in Small Animal Practices: Exposure Levels at Work and in Homes of Veterinary Staff
title Animal Allergens, Endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-Glucan in Small Animal Practices: Exposure Levels at Work and in Homes of Veterinary Staff
title_full Animal Allergens, Endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-Glucan in Small Animal Practices: Exposure Levels at Work and in Homes of Veterinary Staff
title_fullStr Animal Allergens, Endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-Glucan in Small Animal Practices: Exposure Levels at Work and in Homes of Veterinary Staff
title_full_unstemmed Animal Allergens, Endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-Glucan in Small Animal Practices: Exposure Levels at Work and in Homes of Veterinary Staff
title_short Animal Allergens, Endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-Glucan in Small Animal Practices: Exposure Levels at Work and in Homes of Veterinary Staff
title_sort animal allergens, endotoxin, and β-(1,3)-glucan in small animal practices: exposure levels at work and in homes of veterinary staff
topic Original Articles
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8751790/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34363388
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/annweh/wxab053
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