Distribution characteristics of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in human urines of acrylic fiber plant and chemical plant

Abstract

Per-and poly uoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are persistent and bio-accumulative substances that have many adverse effects on human bodies. This study investigated the PFASs distribution characteristics in urine samples of workers from an acrylic ber plant and a chemical plant. It was found that per uorobutanoic acid (PFBA) was the predominant PFASs both in urine samples from the chemical plant (detection frequency: 86.52%; median value: 39.01 ng/mL) and the acrylic ber plant (detection frequency: 88.16%; median value: 44.36 ng/mL). Meanwhile, per uorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and per uorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) were detected with very low frequencies and low concentrations. Furthermore, the results showed that PFASs levels in urine samples of workers from different units of the plants were quite different. PFASs concentrations of urine samples in males were higher than those in females, especially for PFBA, PFHxA, and PFDoA. The age had limited effects on the PFASs distribution in urine samples in this study, as short-chain PFASs were the dominant compounds. The correlations between PFASs concentrations in urine and gender/ages of workers were nally analyzed by Person correlation. The overall results may indicate that short-chain PFASs (such as: PFBA and PFBS) were becoming dominant for human exposure, especially occupational workers.

Identification of an Analytical Method Interference for Perfluorobutanoic Acid in Biological Samples

“…On the basis of the current literature, we hypothesize that the suspected interfering SOFA is likely only to be an interferent in biological matrices and not present in high enough quantities in environmental samples such as tap water and/or groundwater, although this cannot be ruled out. In addition, as a short chained PFAS, PFBA is rapidly eliminated from the body via urine in humans and animals , and therefore is unlikely to be observed at a high frequency in biological samples unless there is a chronic point source exposure to the humans or wildlife in question. In fact, a recent study from Germany has questioned previous reports of PFBA in human tissues after finding little to no PFBA in human lung and kidney biopsies from a separate cohort study that employed HRMS instrumentation.…”