Environmental Health Perspectives最新文献

Background: Short-chain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) that are less bioaccumulative have been introduced as replacements for long-chain perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) with the intent of reducing health risks. In contrast, alternative PFAS with longer chain lengths may be at least as bioaccumulative and toxic as phased-out long-chain PFAAs. Such alternative PFAS were used and released unbeknownst to regulatory authorities or the public, causing environmental contamination of public health concern.

Objective: The objective was to examine issues encountered in learning about use, release, and toxicity of alternative PFAS and to demonstrate development of human health benchmarks for alternative PFAS from previously unavailable health effects information.

Discussion: Environmental contamination with chloroperfluoropolyether carboxylates (ClPFPECAs) near a New Jersey fluoropolymer manufacturing facility was revealed through a joint New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP)-United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Office of Research and Development study. Previously unavailable information on use, release, and toxicity of ClPFPECAs and another alternative PFAS, perfluoropolyether dicarboxylates, was obtained through an NJDEP legal directive requiring submission of information on such PFAS used in the state. It was learned that the facility discharged large amounts of these alternative PFAS to air and water for many years, both before and after use of long-chain PFAAs ended, and that they are at least as bioaccumulative and toxic in rats as long-chain PFAAs. Additionally, information from exposed workers shows that ClPFPECAs have a human half-life of several years and are associated with numerous health end points. Reference doses and water concentrations protective of chronic drinking water exposure for these alternative PFAS are below those developed by NJDEP for long-chain PFAAs. The use and release of alternative PFAS described herein created concerning human health risks, unknown to regulatory authorities and the public. Such situations in other locations must be identified to allow for regulatory intervention and prevented in the future. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP15995.

Background: Climate change is one of the greatest health threats facing humanity. Multiple studies have documented the impact of short-term temperature exposure on human health. However, long-term temperature exposures are far less studied.

Objectives: We examined whether exposures to higher or lower summer and winter average temperatures compared to long-term average temperatures were associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) incidence in three US-based cohorts.

Methods: We followed 276,618 participants from the Nurses' Health Study (NHS) (1991-2018), the Nurses' Health Study II (NHSII) (1994-2017), and the Health Professionals' Follow-Up Study (1991-2015). We used data (1986-2018) from PRISM Spatial Climate Datasets ($800\text{-}\times 800\text{-m}$ spatial resolution) to calculate differences between the summer (June-August) and winter (December-February) average temperatures and the previous 5-year summer and winter average temperatures at residential addresses of each participant. CVD incidence was defined as first nonfatal or fatal myocardial infarction (MI) or nonfatal or fatal stroke. Cox proportional hazard models were used to examine associations with between average temperatures and CVD incidence. Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were pooled using random effect meta-analysis. We also examined associations in the populations $<65$ and $65+$ years of age.

Results: After pooling HRs, we found no association of summer average temperatures higher than the previous 5-year average temperature, with CVD incidence. A winter average temperature lower than the previous 5-year average was associated with CVD incidence ($\text{HR}=0.95$ per 2.7°C increase; 95% CI: 0.89, 1.01). Among persons $<65$ years of age, we observed increased CVD risks with higher summer average temperatures (pooled $\text{HR}=1.03$ per 1.3°C increase; 95% CI: 1.00, 1.07) and lower winter average temperatures (pooled $\text{HR}=0.91$ per 2.7°C increase; 95% CI: 0.87, 0.95) compared to the previous 5-year average temperature.

Discussion: Exposure to a winter average temperature lower than the previous 5-year average was suggestively associated with an increased CVD risk. Exposure to a summer average temperature higher than the previous 5-year average was associated with CVD incidence in the population $<65$ years of age but not in the full population. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP14677.

Background: Innovation in mass spectrometry-based methods to both quantify and perform discovery has blurred the lines between targeted and untargeted assays of biospecimens. Continuous data-concentrations or intensity values generated from both methods-can be used in statistical analysis to determine associations with health outcomes, but concentration values are needed to compare measurements from one study to another to inform policy making decisions and to develop clinically relevant thresholds. As a single solution for discovery and quantitation, new hybrid-type assays derive concentration values for chemicals or metabolites but with varying degrees of uncertainty that may be greater than traditional quantitative assays. There is no current single standard to guide reporting bioassay concentrations or their uncertainty in concentration values from hybrid assays. Even when measures are robust, obtained with high scientific rigor, and provide valuable data toward risk assessment, unknown uncertainty can lead to bias in interpretation of reported data or omission of reported data that does not meet the strict criteria for absolute quantitation.

Objective: The objective of this commentary is to articulate a scheme that enables investigators across bioanalytical fields to easily report analyte measurement assurance on the same scale from quantitative, untargeted, or hybrid assays that include a range of concentration confidences.

Discussion: We propose a simple scheme to report concentrations for targeted and untargeted analytes. Level 1 is a confirmed concentration following established tolerances in a fully quantitative assay while level 5 is a tentative intensity from a typical untargeted assay. This framework enables easy communication of uncertainty in concentration measurements to aid cross-validation, meta-analysis, and extrapolation across studies. It will facilitate interpretation while supporting analytical advancement and allow clear and concise measurement reporting across a broad range of confidences. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP15465.

Background: Zearalenone (ZEN) is an estrogenic mycotoxin ("mycoestrogen") that contaminates global grain crops leading to detectable concentrations of ZEN and its metabolites, including the synthetic version $\alpha$-zearalanol (also called zeranol; ZER), in human populations. Despite in vitro and in vivo animal evidence of endocrine disruption by ZEN, there has been limited investigation in humans.

Objectives: To examine markers of fetal growth following prenatal exposure to ZEN and evaluate the role of the placental efflux transporter BCRP/ABCG2 in protecting against ZEN's potential fetoplacental toxicity.

Methods: Placentas were collected from participants ($n=271$) in the Understanding Pregnancy Signals and Development cohort (Rochester, New York, USA). Placental ZEN and its metabolites were analyzed from tissue samples using HPLC-MS. Birth weights and placental weights were obtained from medical records and direct measurement, respectively; fetoplacental weight ratio (FPR) was calculated by dividing birth weight by placental weight. Covariate-adjusted generalized linear regression models were used to examine ZEN, ZER, and total mycoestrogens (sum of ZEN, ZER, and their metabolites) in relation to birth length, birth weight, placental weight and FPR. We additionally stratified models by infant sex and ABCG2 C421A (Q141K) genotype.

Results: Mycoestrogens were detected in 84% of placentas (median ZEN: $0.010\text{\hspace{0.17em}ng}/g$) and total mycoestrogens were associated with lower FPR [$-0.20$; 95% confidence interval (CI): $-0.32$, $-0.08$], particularly in female infants ($-0.31$; 95% CI: $-0.52$, $-0.09$). Associations with birth weight were inverse and overall nonsignificant. Among the 17% of participants with the reduced function 421A ABCG2 variant (AA or AC), total mycoestrogens were associated with lower birth weight ($-113.5g$; 95% CI: $-226.5$, $-0.50$), whereas in wild-type individuals, total mycoestrogens were associated with higher placental weight (9.9; 95% CI: 0.57, 19.2) and reduced FPR ($-0.19$; 95% CI: $-0.33$, $-0.05$).

Discussion: Results from this epidemiological study of prenatal mycoestrogen exposure and perinatal health suggest that mycoestrogens may

Background: Green and blue spaces (GBS) are assumed to mitigate heat-induced health risks. However, few studies have explored the impact of type-specific GBS changes on heat-related mortality burden.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the effect modifications of different GBS types on heat-related mortality risks, and to estimate the changes in mortality burden in multiple GBS scenarios.

Methods: A case time-series study design was utilized based on the daily data on all-cause mortality and temperatures from 2009 to 2020 in 1,085 subdistricts in China. Mortality count data were obtained from the Zhejiang Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Meteorological data on temperature and relative humidity were acquired from the Zhejiang Meteorological Bureau. GBS exposure was assessed by integrating fine-scale population density, GBS boundary from Baidu and OpenStreetMap, and street-view image data from Baidu. Conditional Poisson regression analyses were conducted with the distributed lag nonlinear model, incorporating modifiers of type-specific GBS exposure. Changes in heat-attributable mortality under different GBS scenarios were also assessed.

Results: Heat-related mortality risks were lower for populations with high exposure (95%) than for those with low exposure (5%) a) to overall green spaces, forests, parks, nature reserves, and street greenery, rather than to grasses, farms, and scrubs; and b) to overall blue spaces, lakes, and rivers, rather than reservoirs, wetlands, or coasts. Increases of 10%, 20%, and 30% exposure to overall green spaces are expected to avoid heat-related mortality burden by 1.6% [95% empirical confidence interval (eCI): 1.4, 1.9, 3.2% (95% eCI: 2.5, 3.9), and 4.8% (95% eCI: 3.5, 6.2)], respectively, whereas corresponding estimates for overall blue spaces are 5.4% (95% eCI: 4.4, 6.4), 10.8% (95% eCI: 8.5, 13.3), and 16.2% (95% eCI: 12.3, 20.5), respectively. Conversely, a 30% decrease in overall green space exposure and overall blue space exposure will increase the heat-related mortality burden by 4.8% (95% eCI: 4.3, 5.2) and 15.9% (95% eCI: 15.2, 16.7), respectively.

Discussion: Our study revealed differences in the capacity of various GBS types to mitigate heat-related mortality risks. While the protective effects of GBS may be moderate, targeted planning strategies should prioritize their implementation for maximum benefits in mitigating heat-related health risks. The continuous shrinkage of the GBS would render other efforts futile, such as heat-health action plans. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP14014.

Background: Traffic-related exposures, such as air pollution and noise, show long-term associations with brain alterations in children and adolescents. The associations with functional connectivity have been studied using static approaches of resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rs-fMRI) (i.e., average connectivity between regions across the scanning session).

Objectives: Our aim was to investigate the long-term association of traffic air pollution and noise during pregnancy and childhood with functional connectivity across adolescence using a dynamic approach, which captures different connectivity patterns across the scanning session.

Methods: We used data from the Generation R population-based birth cohort. We estimated levels of 14 air pollutants and traffic noise at home addresses during pregnancy and childhood. We acquired rs-fMRI data at the age-10 y and age-14 y visits. We included participants with rs-fMRI data in at least one visit and either air pollution data ($n=\mathrm{3,588}$) or noise data ($n=\mathrm{2,642}$). We used k-means clustering to identify five connectivity patterns, called "states," that reoccur over time and across subjects and visits. We calculated the mean time spent in each state for each participant and visit. We performed multi- and single-pollutant mixed effects models adjusted for socioeconomic and lifestyle variables, including the individual as random effect to test the associations between the exposures and the mean time spent in each state.

Results: Exposure to nitrogen oxides, particulate matter (PM), and road-traffic noise was related to differences in the time spent in the connectivity states, both in the multi- and single-pollutant models. For instance, higher levels of exposure to PM with aerodynamic diameter between $2.5\mu m$ and $10\mu m$ (${\mathrm{PM}}_{\text{COARSE}}$) during pregnancy and higher noise exposure during childhood were associated with more time spent in a state in which the default-mode network, related to self-referential processes and mind-wandering, shows high connectivity.

Discussion: Traffic-related exposures might be related to long-term alterations in brain functional network organization in adolescents. Further research should explore the potential impact of these differences on cognition and psychopathology. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP14525.