Springer Science and Business Media LLC

The present study was conducted to characterize and assess the magnitude and severity of particulate matter bound B[a]P in outdoor air of Delhi and its potential risks on humans health. For this purpose, the sampling of B[a]P was carried out at six different locations in Delhi for summer and winter seasons. The ambient air samples were collected on Whatman glass fibre filter. The characterization and quantification of PM10 bound B[a]P was carried out in the laboratory through Gas Chromatography. It was found that the levels of B[a]P were much higher in winter (0.54–13.42 ng/m3) as compared to summer (0.08–2.21 ng/m3). Average B[a]P level was found higher than the permissible limit of 1 ng/m3. Statistical analysis suggests that meteorological parameters plays a significant role in B[a]P accumulation in ambient air. The size of particulate matter also affects the B[a]P bounding affinity. The finer particles have shown greater tendency to accumulate organic pollutants on their surface. The Incremental Lifetime Cancer Risk (ILTCR) was estimated by adopting USEPA methodology. It was found that during winter the estimated ILTCR were higher than permissible limit of 1.0E-06 at all locations except an institutional area. The risk vulnerability of different populations groups indicated significant difference in the potential risks. Roadside vendors/workers are more prone to B[a]P associated health risks in comparison of daily commuters mainly due to more exposure time in unfavorable and toxic environmental condition. The ILTCR was found to be almost two times higher for children (1.24E-07–2.07E-05) than for adults (6.42E-08–1.08E-05).

Cholinesterase inhibitor pesticides, especially organophosphates, are endocrine disruptors and a few existing studies have linked self-reports of exposure with increased depression and anxiety. Some evidence suggests that associations may be stronger in women, but the mechanism of this gender difference is unclear. We assessed whether acetylcholinesterase (AChE) inhibition between 2 time points (reflecting greater cholinesterase inhibitor exposure) during different agricultural seasons in the year was associated with anxiety/depression symptoms. We examined 300 adolescents (ages 11–17 years, 51% female) living near agricultural settings in Ecuador (ESPINA study) twice in 2016: April and July–October. We assessed AChE activity (finger stick), estradiol, testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone, cortisol (saliva) and anxiety and depression scales (CDI-2 and MASC-2). The mean (SD) depression and anxiety scores were 52.8 (9.3) and 58.1 (9.6), respectively. The median (25th, 75th percentile) AChE change (July–October vs April) was − 3.94% (− 10.45%, 5.13%). For every 10% decrease in AChE activity, there was a 0.96 unit (95% CI 0.01, 1.90) increase in depression symptoms and an OR of elevated depression score of 1.67 (1.04, 2.66). These associations were stronger in girls (OR = 2.72 [1.23, 6.00]) than boys (1.18 [0.59, 2.37]). Adjustment for cortisol, testosterone and dehydroepiandrosterone reduced gender differences by 18–62%. No associations were observed with anxiety. Inhibition of AChE activity at 2 points in time during different pesticide spray periods was associated with greater depression symptoms, affecting girls more than boys. Gender differences may be partly explained by endocrine disruption. These findings suggest that AChE inhibition may transiently affect the mood of adolescents.

Metallic elements are widely dispersed in the environment, especially in the soil. Although, several studies are available to human health risk assessment (HHRA) of metal in the soil, there is no uniformity in parameters used among authors. However, reliability and replicability are based on clearly emphasizing the information necessary for the application of HHRA. Thus, this study aimed to develop a checklist with the essential parameters for conducting HHRA of metallic elements in the soil and apply this tool in articles selected through a systematic review, in order to reveal whether these articles clearly bring the information necessary to conduct HHRA. The checklist was based on planning section and the four basic steps on HHRA (including hazard identification, exposure assessment, toxicity assessment and risk characterization). This review was carried out in electronic databases, including original survey reporting HHRA of metallic elements in soil according to the USEPA or similar method (based on the risk/hazard ratio between the dose of exposure and the reference dose). Two hundred ninety-four studies were included. After applying the checklist, it was found that there is a lack of information on values and parameters in the HHRA studies, mainly in planning (information about collection and soil parameters), exposure assessment (concentration of substance used in risk assessment) and hazard identification (information on carcinogenicity or not the substances) sections. The checklist proposed by this study can be fundamental to standardize and improve the quality of HHRA data, highlighting the importance of transparent and reproducible results for the management of areas contaminated by trace elements.

Accelerating evidence confirms the contribution of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to disease burden and disability across the lifespan. Given that policy makers raise the high cost of remediation and of substituting PFAS with safer alternatives in consumer products as barriers to confronting adverse health outcomes associated with PFAS exposure, it is important to document the costs of inaction even in the presence of uncertainty. We therefore quantified disease burdens and related economic costs due to legacy PFAS exposures in the US in 2018. We leveraged systematic reviews and used meta-analytic inputs whenever possible, identified previously published exposure–response relationships, and calculated PFOA- and PFOS-attributable increases in 13 conditions. These increments were then applied to census data to determine total annual PFOA- and PFOS-attributable cases of disease, from which we calculated economic costs due to medical care and lost productivity using previously published cost-of-illness data. We identified PFAS-attributable disease costs in the US of $5.52 billion across five primary disease endpoints shown to be associated with PFAS exposure in meta-analyses. This estimate represented the lower bound, with sensitivity analyses revealing as much as $62.6 billion in overall costs. While further work is needed to assess probability of causation and establish with greater certainty effects of the broader category of PFAS, the results confirm further that public health and policy interventions are still necessary to reduce exposure to PFOA and PFOS and their endocrine-disrupting effects. This study demonstrates the large potential economic implications of regulatory inaction.