Toxics最新文献

Due to their wide application, there is a large amount of residual antibiotics in our environment and food, raising concerns about health risks to children. In this study, 302 primary-school students in Hainan Province, China, were recruited to collect urine samples and questionnaires. The internal exposure levels of sixteen antibiotics and three metabolites in urine were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS), and the contents of DNA oxidative damage markers, 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) and lipid peroxidation marker malondialdehyde (MDA), were also measured. Antibiotics and their metabolites were frequently detected, with a total concentration of < LOD-4.58 × 10³ ng/mL. Binary logistic regression analysis revealed that the detection frequency of DFs of antibiotics was associated with animal-derived foods, such as red meat with fluoroquinolones (FQs) (OR = 76.4, 95% CI 1.68-3479), poultry with norfloxacin (NFX) (OR = 6.56, 95% CI 1.08-39.9), and aquatic products with ciprofloxacin (CIP) (OR = 3.96, 95% CI 1.32-11.9). Cumulative risk assessment based on microbial effects showed a hazard index of 3.5 for children, mainly driven by azithromycin (45.6%), oxytetracycline (18.1%), and CIP (33.9%). Multiple linear regression indicated that lipid peroxidation was significantly associated with high quantiles of three antibiotic classes, while DNA oxidation was positively correlated with all antibiotic classes except FQs. These findings indicate that children in Hainan are widely exposed to antibiotics. Although the exposure levels are generally low, chronic low-dose antibiotic exposure may contribute to disease development and oxidative stress damage.

(1) Background: Tobacco use constitutes a significant preventable cause of morbidity and mortality on a global scale. It contributes to cumulative exposure to carcinogenic and toxic heavy metals, including cadmium, lead, nickel, and copper. Collectively, these metals promote oxidative stress, multi-organ damage, and an increased risk of cancer, cardiovascular, respiratory, and renal diseases; (2) Methods: The research material comprised 119 tobacco samples. The concentrations of cadmium, lead, copper, and nickel in the samples were subsequently determined. A series of calculations were conducted in order to estimate the non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic health risks associated with the consumption of tobacco products under a variety of exposure scenarios; (3) Results: The concentrations of heavy metals in the tobacco samples ranged as follows, with mean values: Cd: 0.3-8.6 mg/kg (mean 1.0), Cu: 3.4-92.6 mg/kg (mean 12.3), Ni: 1.1-15.4 mg/kg (mean 3.4), and Pb: 0.2-1633.3 mg/kg (mean 46.5). A health risk assessment indicated that exposure through inhalation to cadmium Cd, Ni, and Pb, even in the minimal smoking scenario of one cigarette per day, consistently exceeded internationally established thresholds for carcinogenic risk; (4) Conclusions: The presence of high inter-brand variability and high-risk outliers underscores the necessity for enhanced regulation and monitoring of toxic metals in tobacco products.

This study evaluated the accumulation of heavy metals (As, Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb, and Zn) in Mediterranean mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) collected from five coastal stations (Küçükkumla, Kurşunlu, Güzelyalı, Mudanya, and Zeytinbağı; n = 20 mussels per station; composited into one sample per site) along the southern coast of the Marmara Sea (Bursa, Türkiye), and assessed the associated potential health risks. Analyses using ICP-OES revealed spatial variations in metal concentrations among stations. Statistical analyses (p < 0.05) showed no significant differences in As levels, whereas Cd, Cu, Hg, Pb, and Zn concentrations differed significantly. Mudanya exhibited the highest levels of Zn and Hg, while Cd was particularly elevated in Mudanya and Güzelyalı. Kurşunlu showed the highest Cu concentrations, and Küçükkumla had the highest Pb levels. Human health risk assessments for the adult population (EDI, EWI, THQ, HI) were all below 1.0, indicating no appreciable non-carcinogenic risk under the assumed adult dietary exposure scenario, based on internationally recognized toxicological reference values (FAO/WHO, JECFA, and EC Regulation 1881/2006). However, relatively higher HI values in Mudanya (0.695) and Küçükkumla (0.646) suggest the need for closer monitoring. Overall, the findings demonstrate that mussels serve as effective bioindicators of coastal metal contamination in the southern Marmara Sea and underscore the importance of continuous biomonitoring to safeguard both ecosystem and public health.

This study investigated the occurrence, sources, and health risks of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in commonly consumed fish and crayfish from the Caohai Lake, a typical plateau lake in southwest China. Four dominant species (crucian carp, common carp, yellow catfish, and crayfish) were collected and analyzed. The results showed a generally low level of PAH contamination (mean: 26.7 μg/kg wet weight), with bioaccumulation tendency decreasing as the number of PAH rings increased. Crayfish exhibited the highest total concentration of PAHs, whereas yellow catfish accumulated the most carcinogenic PAHs. Positive matrix factorization (PMF) model identified four primary sources-petroleum leakage, coal combustion, traffic emissions, and biomass burning-with petroleum-derived PAHs being the most significant contributor. The assessment of health risk indicated that while the average hazard index (HI) was below 1, approximately 10% of the samples posed a potential non-carcinogenic risk, particularly from crayfish and yellow catfish. The incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) for DahA, BaP, BaA, and BbF all exceeded the negligible risk level of 10^-6 but remained below 10^-4. Notably, the mean total ILCR (TILCR) approached 10^-4, with yellow catfish presenting the highest carcinogenic risk, highlighting concerns of the carcinogenic risk of PAHs. Source-oriented risk assessment revealed that petroleum leakage was the dominant contributor to non-carcinogenic risk (>55%), while traffic emissions contributed most to carcinogenic risk (>57%). To mitigate carcinogenic risk, implementing stormwater diversion systems along the circular lakeside roads is recommended to reduce the input of traffic-derived PAHs.

Recently, the environmental impact of halocarbons has become increasingly concerning, particularly due to the growing influence of non-regulated halocarbons on stratospheric ozone depletion and their adverse health effects in the troposphere. Previous model studies have highlighted the importance of halocarbon emissions from the YRD. However, only several reports have discussed the long-term pollution characteristics and health risks of halocarbons in the YRD based on observational data. The continuous observation of halocarbons was conducted in the central part of the YRD (Shanxi site) from 2018 to 2023. The result showed that rise in halocarbon levels was primarily driven by alkyl halides, including dichloromethane (1.194 ppb to 1.831 ppb), chloromethane (0.205 ppb to 1.121 ppb), 1,2-dichloroethane (0.399 ppb to 0.772 ppb), and chloroform (0.082 ppb to 0.300 ppb). The PMF and CBPF analysis revealed that pharmaceutical manufacturing (37.0% to 60.2%), chemical raw material manufacturing (8.0% to 19.9%), solvent use in machinery manufacturing (12.4% to 24.7%), solvent use in electronic industry, and background sources were the main sources of halocarbons at the Shanxi site. Among them, the contributions of chemical raw material manufacturing, as well as of solvent use in machinery manufacturing and electronic industry, are increasing. These aspects are all dominated by local emissions. Furthermore, the carcinogenic risks of chloroform and 1,2-dichloroethane, which rank first in this regard, are increasing. Also, attention should be paid to solvent use in the electronic industry and the background. The probabilities of these activities coming with health risks that exceed the acceptable levels are 94.8% and 94.9%. This study enriches the regional observation data in the YRD region, offering valuable insights into halocarbon pollution control measures for policy development.

Background: Drug-induced cardiotoxicity poses a major challenge in drug development and clinical safety. Although machine learning (ML) methods have shown potential in predicting cardiotoxic risks, prior research has largely focused on specific mechanisms such as human Ether-à-go-go-Related Gene (hERG) inhibition. This scoping review systematically examined studies applying ML models to predict a broad range of drug-induced cardiotoxicity outcomes.

Methods: A systematic search of PubMed, EMBASE, SCOPUS, and Web of Science identified studies developing ML models for cardiotoxicity prediction. Extracted data included sources, feature types, algorithms, and performance metrics, categorized by evaluation method (training, testing, cross-validation, or external validation).

Results: Twenty-five studies met inclusion criteria, addressing outcomes such as arrhythmia, cardiac failure, heart block, hypertension, and myocardial infarction. Structured resources such as SIDER (Side Effect Resource) were the most common data sources, with features including molecular descriptors, fingerprints, and occasionally, target-based or transcriptomic data. Support vector machines (SVM) and random forest (RF) were the most common algorithms, showing robust predictive performance, with externally validated area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC-ROC) values above 0.70 and accuracy exceeding 0.75 in several studies. Despite variability and limited external validation, ML approaches demonstrate substantial promise for predicting diverse cardiotoxic outcomes.

Conclusions: This review underscores the importance of integrating heterogeneous data and rigorous validation for improving cardiotoxicity prediction.

Although the health risks associated with exposure to potentially harmful elements (PHEs) are well documented, there is still limited research on their accumulation at trace concentrations in small mammals inhabiting agricultural ecosystems. This study provides the first comprehensive assessment of PHE accumulation in fossorial water voles (Arvicola scherman) from two low-input apple orchards (Nava and Oles) located in Asturias, northwestern Spain, demonstrating its value as a potential bioindicator of trace element inputs. We quantified the concentrations of three toxic metals (Pb, Cd, and Hg) and selenium (Se), an element with concentration-dependent toxicity, in kidney, liver, and muscle tissues. We also determined inter-population differences and associations with body condition. Overall, element concentrations generally reflected the natural content of the local soils, except for Cd in the kidney, which exceeded soil levels, highlighting its strong affinity for this organ. Significant differences in Pb, Cd, and Se accumulation were found among tissues, with the kidney showing the highest levels, underscoring the importance of organ-specific monitoring. The observed positive correlations between body condition and Se and Cd in kidney tissue, and Cd in liver tissue, particularly in the Nava population, suggest that individual health status modulates exposure and accumulation dynamics. Higher PHE burdens were found in Oles specimens, pointing to a potential threshold effect where higher contamination may begin to impair physiological condition. In contrast, Hg showed a negative relationship with body condition, suggesting possible adverse effects even in these low-input systems. These findings highlight the importance of carefully interpreting physiological biomarkers within an ecological context and demonstrate the potential for trace elements to propagate through the food web, with possible cascading effects on predator health and key ecosystem services, such as natural pest control. Future research should extend to more contaminated sites and adopt an integrative framework combining biomonitoring, dietary ecology, and stress physiology to better assess the ecological risks posed by trace elements in agroecosystems.

Atmospheric fine particles (PM_2.5, aerodynamic diameter ≤ 2.5 µm) have a serious effect on human health. This study combined concentration weighted trajectory (CWT) analysis with the HYSPLIT trajectory ensemble (Ens-HYSPLIT-CWT), to separate the sources of PM_2.5 transported to Beijing, and further investigate the effect of PM_2.5 originated from different sources on human health. We found that north region air masses usually come with clean events under the blessing of meteorological conditions, combined with the clean air mass transported from the north, as high wind speed near the surface promotes the horizontal diffusion of pollutants. Additionally, north region air masses contribute to the decrease in aerosol optical depth (AOD) at Beijing and surrounding areas, with AF (daily attributable fraction associated with short-term PM_2.5 exposure) values of Beijing only at 0.14. During the study period (from January to March 2024), south region air masses usually come with high PM_2.5 values, which is correlated to the meteorological conditions and pollutant spatial distribution. The air masses coming from the south region contain high temperature and relative humidity (RH), promoting the occurrence of high pollution events. AOD spatial distribution observed from satellites showed that except for the dominance of north region air mass sources, the south region presents high AOD values, further resulting in the highest AF value of 0.75 obtained at Beijing, which is 5 times higher than the north region's dominant AF mean value. It is worth noting that the air mass originated from the east region, which originally contributed relatively clean air masses before emission reduction, increased its contribution to air mass pollution after emission reduction due to the decrease in pollution concentration in other regions. As a result, the mean PM_2.5 in this source area was second only to south region air masses and local emission sources, and the AF value even exceeded local emissions, second only to south region air mass sources, reaching 0.5. This result emphasizes that in future pollution control policy adjustments and research on human health, attention needs to be paid to the contribution of eastward air masses.

Lead (Pb) pollution in wastewater is an immense problem for public health and the environment because it persists in the water bodies for a long period of time. Over the past years, many different techniques of Pb remediation have been discovered to eliminate Pb pollution. This systematic review analyzed the major findings of Pb removal from wastewater using microbial biosorption, agro-waste- and fruit peel-based adsorbents, plant-assisted phytoremediation, engineered biochars, clay and natural minerals, and nanomaterials. Each of these methods is critically reviewed in terms of removal efficiency, limitations, cost-effectiveness, how it works, how well it eliminates the problem, environmental compatibility, regeneration potential, and scalability, as supported by recent experimental and case studies. This review provides a comprehensive comparison of all the remediation methods in one framework. It also shows the potential of the integrated and hybrid systems, a combination of biological and high-technology material-based strategies, to reach high-performance Pb remediation in the long run. Therefore, the study aims to assist policymakers, environmental engineers, and researchers who are interested in finding a sustainable solution to Pb contamination by providing a comparative overview of the existing and recently developed remediation methods.

Mt. Etna is the highest and most active stratovolcano in Europe, located in Catania (Sicily, Italy). Its persistent degassing, frequent explosions, and lava flows release large amounts of ash and gases into the atmosphere. This study aimed to assess whether chronic exposure to local volcanic emissions leads to an increased internal dose of trace elements (As, Ba, Be, Bi, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Li, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Se, Sn, Sr, Tl, U, V, W, Zn) in Catania adult residents. To this end, urine samples were collected from 167 individuals residing in Catania and compared with 193 residents of other Sicilian areas located farther from the volcano. Results revealed significantly higher urinary concentrations of As, Hg, Mn, Pb, and Tl in the exposed group, suggesting volcanic activity as a relevant source of exposure. The levels of the other elements were instead affected by other factors such as lifestyle habits and the consumption of specific foods and beverages. The urinary concentrations of trace elements were consistent with reference values reported in other European studies, and the levels remained well within the health-based guidance values. There is evidence of an increased internal dose of a few elements in the Sicilian population exposed to volcano activity, but the observed increases are unlikely to pose a significant health risk.