Nitrogen species in drinking water indicate potential exposure pathway for Balkan Endemic Nephropathy

Niagolova, N.; McElmurry, Shawn P.; Voice, Thomas C.; Long, David T.; Petropoulos, Evangelos; Havezov, I.; Chou, Karen C.; Ganev, Varban

doi:10.1016/j.envpol.2004.08.003

Cited by 17 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Drinking water in endemic areas is largely influenced by rain, as average depth-to-water of open shallow wells and springs is 0-10 m in Romania 33 and ,15 m in Bulgaria. 88 Therefore, increased rainfall would be expected to increase the leaching of the organic compounds from the source rocks and sediment, and indeed, greater numbers and higher concentrations of organic compounds were present in water samples collected during the wet rainy (spring) season compared to the dry (summer) season. 31 In addition, greater numbers and higher concentrations of organic compounds were leached in experiments that best modeled rainfall fluxes and groundwater movement using endemic area Pliocene lignites compared to all other experimental conditions and coals examined.…”

Section: Why Is Ben Not Found In Towns and Cities?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…39 Geologic structure differs from one village to another, 10,16 and the underground water transport pathway may be highly variable, even within the same endemic area, e.g., in Bulgaria, where there is karst terrain, which is often highly fractured. 88 In addition, the shallow wells and springs in endemic regions are largely supplied by aquifers with a relatively fast flow rate, e.g., from rain. Therefore, the location of endemic and nonendemic villages only a few km apart may be due to, for instance, the proximity to deposits containing the organic compounds, differences in number and/or concentration of the organic compounds in the rocks and sediment, differences in flux of groundwater through the rocks and sediments, and/or differences in dilution of the compounds due to rainfall and permeability.…”

Section: 33mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Limitations and plausibility of the Pliocene lignite hypothesis in explaining the etiology of Balkan endemic nephropathy

Maharaj¹

2013

International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health

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Background: Balkan endemic nephropathy (BEN) is a chronic, tubulointerstitial renal disease often accompanied by urothelial cancer that has a lethality of nearly 100%. Introduction: One of the many factors that have been proposed to play an etiological role in BEN is exposure to organic compounds from Pliocene lignite coal deposits via the drinking water in endemic areas. Objectives: The objective of this study was to systematically evaluate the role of the tenets of the Pliocene lignite hypothesis in the etiology of BEN in order to provide an improved understanding of the hypothesis for colleagues and patients alike. Methods: A comprehensive compilation of the possible limitations of the hypothesis, with each limitation addressed in turn is presented. Results: The Pliocene lignite hypothesis can best account for, is consistent with, or has the potential to explain the evidence associated with the myriad of factors related to BEN. Conclusions: Residents of endemic areas are exposed to complex mixtures containing hundreds of organic compounds at varying doses and their potentially more toxic (including nephrotoxic) and/or carcinogenic metabolites; however, a multifactorial etiology of BEN appears most likely.

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Section: Why Is Ben Not Found In Towns and Cities?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: 33mentioning

confidence: 99%

Limitations and plausibility of the Pliocene lignite hypothesis in explaining the etiology of Balkan endemic nephropathy

Maharaj¹

2013

International Journal of Occupational and Environmental Health

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“…Nitrate levels, in particular, must be strictly regulated. Several epidemiological studies have shown a significant risk probability between elevated nitrate concentrations in drinking water and a battery of pathological states ranging from reproductive anomalies and human cancer, to endemic nephropathy and methemoglobinaemia (De Roos et al 2003;Fewtrell 2004;Manassaram et al 2006;Niagolova et al 2005). These findings, thus, highlight the need for more sustainable methods of production.…”

Section: Water Pollution Index (Wpi)mentioning

confidence: 89%

Impact of intensive agricultural practices on drinking water quality in the EVROS Region (NE GREECE) by GIS analysis

Nikolaidis

Mandalos

Vantarakis

2007

Environ Monit Assess

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Chemical fertilizers are used extensively in modern agriculture, in order to improve yield and productivity of agricultural products. However, nutrient leaching from agricultural soil into groundwater resources poses a major environmental and public health concern. The Evros region is one of the largest agricultural areas in Northern Greece, extending over 1.5 million acres of cultivated land. Many of its drinking water resources are of groundwater origin and lie within agricultural areas. In order to assess the impact of agricultural fertilizers on drinking water quality in this region, tap-water samples from 64 different locations were collected and analyzed for the presence of nitrates (NO(3)(-)), nitrites (NO(2)(-)), ammonium (NH(4)(+)), sulfate (SO(4)(-2)) and phosphate (PO(4)(-3)). These chemicals were selected based on the information that ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulfate and inorganic phosphate were the primary fertilizers used in local crop production. NO(3)(-), SO(4)(-2) and PO(4)(-3) levels exceeding accepted values were recorded in 6.25, 4.70 and 9.38% of all sampling points, respectively. NO(2)(-) and NH(4)(+) concentrations, on the other hand, were inside the permitted range. The data generated were introduced into a geographic information system (GIS) program for computer analysis and projection maps representing afflicted areas were created. Our results indicate a profound geographic correlation in the surface distribution of primary contaminants in areas of intensified agricultural production. Thus, drinking water pollution in these areas can be attributed to excessive fertilizer use from agricultural sources.

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“…Organic nitrogen compounds originate primarily from human sewage and livestock manure. Nitrate can be produced via natural processes, but common results from the use of fertilizers such as potassium or ammonium nitrate, or from ammonia following nitrification (Niagolova et al 2005). Due to the economic benefits of inorganic nitrogen fertilizers over the last 50 years, there has been a dramatic increase in the amount of nitrate found in groundwater around the world.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of nitrogen contamination of groundwater in paddy and upland fields

Kao

Liu

Jang

et al. 2010

Paddy Water Environ

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This study aims to assess the nitrogen contamination of groundwater in paddy and upland fields. A reactive chemical transport model PHREEQC and a variable saturated groundwater flow and transport model FEMWATER were used to evaluate the vertical transport of nitrogen compound in various soil types of paddy and upland. The shallow groundwater quality monitoring data of 2003, 2006, 2009 in the Choushui river alluvial fan, the major agriculture production area in Taiwan, were applied to support the validity of the numerical simulation findings. Results from PHREEQC and FEMWATER simulations showed that the organic-rich impermeable plow sole layer underneath the muddy layer of rice paddy can effectively reduce NO 3 -and N 2 to NH 4 ? and retard the movement of NH 4? . However, in the upland field which has no plow sole layer, the NH 4 ? can move easily to the shallow aquifer and contaminate the groundwater. The spatiotemporal distribution of NO 3 --N and NH 4 ? -N in the Choushui river alluvial fan revealed that high nitrate-N contamination areas were located mainly in the upland field of the proximal fan, where the granular unconfined aquifer was vulnerable to surface contaminants. Moreover, the unconfined nature of the aquifer allows the oxidization of NH 4 ? to NO 3 -and accelerates the plume movement. High ammonium-N concentration areas were mostly dispersed in the distal-fan area where upland planting and aquacultural farming were prevailed. The high NH 4 ? -N found in the northern Choushui river alluvial fan was attributed to the alternative planting of rice and upland crops, and the plow sole layer was broken to maintain the quick drainage upland crop needs.

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Nitrogen species in drinking water indicate potential exposure pathway for Balkan Endemic Nephropathy

Cited by 17 publications

References 14 publications

Limitations and plausibility of the Pliocene lignite hypothesis in explaining the etiology of Balkan endemic nephropathy

Limitations and plausibility of the Pliocene lignite hypothesis in explaining the etiology of Balkan endemic nephropathy

Impact of intensive agricultural practices on drinking water quality in the EVROS Region (NE GREECE) by GIS analysis

Assessment of nitrogen contamination of groundwater in paddy and upland fields

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