Urinary nickel: measurement of exposure by inductively coupled plasma argon emission spectrometry

Abstract

Nickel is a rare earth metal and is widely used in modern industry. Its overexposure in human beings can provoke significant effects including lung, cardiovascular and kidney diseases. As an index of occupational exposure, urine is widely used for the monitoring of nickel concentration because it is a minimally invasive method. Recent studies have used atomic absorption spectrometry to measure nickel concentration. In this study, we introduced novel inductively coupled plasma argon emission spectrometry (ICPAES) which enables us to measure multiple elements simultaneously with smaller volume and with lower detection limits compared to conventional atomic absorption emission spectrometry, and we established the new measuring method by determining the appropriate wavelengths for nickel concentration. Furthermore, using the established new measuring method, we investigated the correlation between a single oral administration of nickel and urine elimination in rats. As a result, different concentrations of nickel standard solutions were measured by ICPAES, and among five specific wavelengths of nickel, 221.647 and 231.604 nm were chosen because they had the highest inclines of both signal to background ratio and emission intensity in simple linear regression analysis. Next, by using healthy human urine samples that had not been exposed to nickel, 231.604 nm was determined to be the most appropriate wavelength because it did not present abnormal intensity due to obstacle wavelength. Male Wistar rats received an oral administration of nickel ranging from 0.025 to 250 mg/kg, which is equivalent to 0.0015 - 15% of LD50, and during the following 24 h, urine samples were collected and the nickel concentration was measured by ICPAES. With a single oral administration of nickel, there was an increase in urine nickel concentration in a dose-dependent manner and the appropriate equation was developed. Acute renal failure was not observed in this dosage of oral nickel administration by analysing NAG, beta2-microglobulin, urine albumin and urine protein. It was concluded that the obtained nickel reference values using ICPAES would be useful for the early diagnosis of nickel intoxication and in the assessment of the exposure to nickel.

Collate literature data on toxicity of Chromium (Cr) and Nickel (Ni) in experimental animals and humans

“…After oral administration of Nickel, no renal failure was detected (Koizumi et al 2005), the increase in urinary Nickel concentration occurred in a dose dependent manner, and soluble Ni compounds were excreted with urine within 72 hours after a single oral administration (Ishimatsu et al, 1995;Koizumi et al 2005;Janicka and Cempel, 2003). This is confirmed by Nielsen et al, (1993) who reported that up to 20 h after single oral administration of doses comparable to the human dietary intake, Nickel retention was highest in the kidneys.…”

Analytical method for total chromium and nickel in urine using an inductively coupled plasma-universal cell technology-mass spectrometer (ICP-UCT-MS) in kinetic energy discrimination (KED) mode

“…[3-5] Nickel is typically absorbed in the lungs or gastrointestinal tract, with the main excretion occurring in urine. [9, 10]…”

“…7,8 People are principally exposed to nickel through skin contact with nickel containing jewelry, consumption of foods (e.g., chocolate, nuts, and oatmeal), and industrial exposures such as battery production, alloy production, or stainless steel welding. 9,10 As one of the main components in metal-onmetal hip and knee implants, nickel from erosion of implant materials can be a source of exposure in people with these implants. [3][4][5] Nickel is typically absorbed in the lungs or gastrointestinal tract, with the main excretion occurring in urine.…”

“…[3][4][5] Nickel is typically absorbed in the lungs or gastrointestinal tract, with the main excretion occurring in urine. 9,10 Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) is a very sensitive, multi-element, laboratory technique that allows for an efficient approach to measuring multiple elements per sample at low concentrations. 11 As a result, ICP-MS has found increasing application in biomonitoring, measuring chemicals in biological samples for assessing people's exposure to environmental chemicals.…”

An Optical Chemical Sensor For Monitoring Of Nickel In Waters And Hydrogen Peroxide Samples

“…Determination of nickel is performed by several techniques such as x-ray absorption spectroscopy [15], flame and electro thermal atomic absorption spectrometry [16][17][18][19][20], atomic emission spectrometry [21], spectrophotometry [22,23] and fluorescence spectroscopy [24]. Among the methods, spectrophotometric methods offer many appealing characteristics including: simple instrumentation, rapid response times and easy operation.…”