Persistent Organic Pollutants In Humans Research Articles

Total estrogenic activity of adipose tissue as biomarker of exposure to persistent organic pollutants in humans

Total estrogenic activity of adipose tissue as biomarker of exposure to persistent organic pollutants in humans

Persistent Organic Pollutants in Humans and Wildlife: Emerging Issues for Environmental and Public Health

Persistent organic pollutants persevere in the environment for a long time, are toxic to humans and/or wildlife, and have a resilient propensity to bioaccumulate in the food chain. Due to its chemical stability, their lipid solubility, and its ubiquitous prevalence in environmental, these pollutants are disposed to long-range transport.

Background levels of Persistent Organic Pollutants in humans from Taiwan: Perfluorooctane sulfonate and perfluorooctanoic acid

Perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) have recently received attention due to their widespread contamination of the environment. PFOS and PFOA are stable in the environment and resistant to metabolism, hydrolysis, photolysis and biodegradation. PFOS and PFOA have been found in human blood and tissue samples from both occupationally exposed workers and the general worldwide population. This study aimed to determine the background levels of PFOS and PFOA in the Taiwanese population, investigate related factors, and compare exposure in Taiwan to that in other countries. The concentration of PFOS in the 59 serum samples collected from the general population in Taiwan ranged from 3.45 to 25.65ngmL−1 (median: 8.52), and the concentration of PFOA ranged from 1.55 to 7.69ngmL−1 (median: 3.22). There was a significant positive correlation (r=0.51; p<0.0001) between PFOS and PFOA concentrations. Males had higher concentrations of PFOA and PFOS than females. PFOS levels in serum increased with age. This study is the first investigation to reveal the PFOS and PFOA levels of serum samples in the general population of Taiwan. The levels of PFOS and PFOA in Taiwanese serum samples were comparable with those from other countries (PFOS: 5.0–35ngmL−1, PFOA: 1.5–10ngmL−1).