Biological monitoring of urinary 1-hydroxypyrene by PAHs exposure among primary school students in Shiraz, Iran

This research aimed to estimate PAHs exposure in primary school students and determine its association with other PAHs-related factors. In total, 120 male primary school students (9-12 years old) were randomly selected from urban and suburban areas in Shiraz. The parents were required to complete a questionnaire including information about second-hand smoke exposure, residential traffic density, daily diet, and walking or being driven to school. High-performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detector was also used to analyze urinary 1-OHP. t test, ANOVA (with Ducan's post hoc test), and multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the relationship between quantitative and qualitative variables and urinary 1-OHP concentration. The range and geometric mean of the creatinine-corrected 1-OHP levels were 120-6950 and 1460 ng/g creatinine, respectively. Besides, 1-OHP levels were higher among the children with smoker parents compared to those having non-smoker parents. The results also revealed a correlation between the duration of exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke and 1-OHP concentration. This correlation was also observed for daily uptake of smoked or grilled foods. However, traffic congestion did not have any significant effects on 1-OHP levels. PAHs are commonly present in Iranian diet. As a result, the weekly intake of dietary PAHs was the most effective predictor of PAHs exposure in the study population. Due to adverse health effects of PAHs on humans, especially children, more extensive studies are required to identify the sources that contribute to environmental PAHs exposure.