It has been previously shown that inhaled zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) can modulate inflammation. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) enclosed in exosomes have been identified as an important signature for inflammatory responses. However, the role of exosomal miRNAs during pathogenic inflammation has not been investigated. Healthy rats were exposed to ZnO-NPs (41.7 nm; 2, 4, and 8 mg/kg) or saline (control) via oropharyngeal aspiration. ZnO-NPs induced significant increases in the serum levels of interleukin 8 (IL-8), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), and tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), and elevated the number of cells and the percentage of neutrophils in the blood. Moreover, exposure to ZnO-NPs increased the levels of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity and total protein in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF). Differential profiling of miRNAs in isolated serum exosomes revealed that 16 miRNAs were up-regulated and 7 down-regulated in ZnO-NP-treated rats compared with the controls. Functional and pathway analysis indicated that miRNAs may participate in inflammation directly and indirectly through protein and vesicle-mediated transport or regulation of IL-1, oxidative stress, apoptosis, and autophagy. These results suggest that miRNAs in serum exosomes are involved in pulmonary neutrophilic inflammation induced by ZnO-NPs.

ObjectiveTo investigate the reciprocal relationship between psychosocial work stress and quality of life (QoL) and to examine whether the relationship can be moderated by gender or education.DesignLongitudinal, population-based study.SettingThe Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE).ParticipantsThe study population was derived from the SHARE, and there were 2006 participants with good QoL at baseline, 1109 with high job control and 1072 with high job reward, respectively, who were followed up for 2 years to detect incidence of poor QoL, low job control and low job reward.Main outcome measuresLogistic regression models were employed to explore the reciprocal relationship between psychological work stress and QoL. Stratification analyses by gender and education were performed.ResultsParticipants with low reward (OR=1.53, 95% CI 1.26 to 1.88) and low control (OR=1.40, 95% CI 1.14 to 1.71) at baseline were at higher risk of poor QoL over the 2-year follow-up. The combination of low reward and low control further increased the risk (OR=1.90, 95% CI 1.46 to 2.48). Stratified analyses revealed that these associations were more pronounced among those who had high levels of education. Further, individuals with poor QoL were at significantly higher risk of having low reward (OR=2.14, 95% CI 1.55 to 2.96) but not low control (OR=1.33, 95% CI0.98 to 1.79) at the 2-year follow-up, especially among those who had medium levels of education. No gender differences were found.ConclusionsThere is a reciprocal relationship between psychological work stress and poor QoL. Education may play an important role in the relationship.

Background A growing number of people suffered from depression. This study examined the depression prevalence in workers across 10 European countries plus Israel and the reciprocal associations between job strain and depression. Methods The study population consisted of 7,879 workers aged 50–63 years at baseline (2004) from the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). Job demands (physical or psychosocial) and job control variables were derived from the Job Content Questionnaire (JCQ). Two 4‐category job strains (physical and psychosocial) were obtained based on the cross‐tabulation of these dichotomized demands and control variables. There were 4,284 depression‐free, 3,259 high physical strain‐free and 3,195 high psychosocial strain‐free participants at baseline who were followed up for 2 years to detect incident depression, high physical job strain, or high psychosocial strain, respectively. The reciprocal associations between job strain and depression were analyzed by multivariate logistic regression and multivariate multilevel logistic regression adjusting for potential confounders. Results The prevalence of depression varied from the lowest 12.5% in Germany to the highest 27.2% in France. Compared to individuals with low strain, a significantly higher risk of depression were found in individuals with high physical strain (OR = 1.39) and high psychosocial strain (OR = 1.55), after adjusting for potential confounders. Depression at baseline was not significantly associated with subsequent high job strain. Similar results were observed from multilevel models that took into consideration of the potential country‐level influences. Conclusions The prevalence of depression varies across countries in Europe. Avoiding high job strain may be an effective preventive strategy to prevent depression epidemic.

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