Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF HYGIENE AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH
Volume 248, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
ELSEVIER GMBH
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijheh.2023.114115
Keywords
Arsenic; HBM4EU; DMA; TRA; Exposure; HBM; EU
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The European Joint Programme HBM4EU aims to provide scientific evidence for chemical policy development and improve chemical management by coordinating and advancing human biomonitoring (HBM) in Europe. Arsenic (As) was prioritized under the HBM4EU initiative, which required addressing policy-relevant questions regarding exposure status. Internal exposure to inorganic arsenic (iAs), measured as Toxic Relevant Arsenic (TRA), varied among different sampling sites, with the main exposure determinants being the consumption of rice and seafood. The high concentration of DMA, a major constituent of TRA, in urine samples indicates potential health concerns for the general population of Europe.
The European Joint Programme HBM4EU coordinated and advanced human biomonitoring (HBM) in Europe in order to provide science-based evidence for chemical policy development and improve chemical management. Arsenic (As) was selected as a priority substance under the HBM4EU initiative for which open, policy relevant questions like the status of exposure had to be answered. Internal exposure to inorganic arsenic (iAs), measured as Toxic Relevant Arsenic (TRA) (the sum of As(III), As(V), MMA, DMA) in urine samples of teenagers differed among the sampling sites (BEA (Spain) > Riksmaten adolescents (Sweden), ESTEBAN (France) > FLEHS IV (Belgium), SLO CRP (Slovenia)) with geometric means between 3.84 and 8.47 mu g/L. The ratio TRA to TRA + arsenobetaine or the ratio TRA to total arsenic varied between 0.22 and 0.49. Main exposure determinants for TRA were the consumption of rice and seafood. When all studies were combined, Pearson correlation analysis showed significant associations between all considered As species. Higher concentrations of DMA, quantitatively a major constituent of TRA, were found with increasing arsenobetaine concentrations, a marker for organic As intake, e.g. through seafood, indicating that other sources of DMA than metabolism of inorganic As exist, e.g. direct intake of DMA or via the intake of arsenosugars or -lipids. Given the lower toxicity of DMA(V) versus iAs, estimating the amount of DMA not originating from iAs, or normalizing TRA for arsenobetaine intake could be useful for estimating iAs exposure and risk. Comparing urinary TRA concentrations with formerly derived biomonitoring equivalent (BE) for non-carcinogenic effects (6.4 mu g/L) clearly shows that all 95th percentile exposure values in the different studies exceeded this BE. This together with the fact that cancer risk may not be excluded even at lower iAs levels, suggests a possible health concern for the general population of Europe.
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