Maternal and Fetal Exposure to Four Carcinogenic Environmental Metals

Objective To examine maternal and fetal exposure levels to four carcinogenic metals, arsenic （As）, cadmium （Cd）, nickel （Ni）, and beryllium （Be）, and to investigate their environmental influences. Methods Metal concentrations in maternal and umbilical cord blood were measured by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry （ICP-MS）. Environmental factors that might play a role in exposure were analyzed using Mann Whitney nonparametric U-tests and multiple linear regression. Results The concentrations of As, Cd, and Ni in umbilical cord blood （5.41, 0.87, and 139.54 gg/L） were significantly lower than those in maternal blood （6.91, 1.93, and 165.93 p.g/L）. There were significant positive correlations between the maternal and cord concentrations of each carcinogen. Our results showed that： （i） exposures to potentially harmful occupational factors during pregnancy were associated with high levels of maternal As, Cd, and Ni; （ii） living close to major transportation routes （〈500 m） or exposure to second-hand smoke during pregnancy increased the maternal Cd levels and （iii） living close to industrial chimneys induced high maternal Ni levels. Multiple linear regression analysis showed that these environmental factors remained significant in models of the influences of these four carcinogens. Conclusion Both mothers and fetuses had been exposed to As, Cd, Ni, and Be. The increased levels of these carcinogens in pregnant women were associated with some detrimental environmental factors, such as occupational exposure, contact with second-hand smoke and living close to major transportation routes or industrial chimneys.

Survival Analysis of Victims of Sulfur Oxide Air Pollution Suffering from COPD or Asthma in Yokkaichi, Japan, in Relation to Predisposing Exposure

To investigate the relationships between clinical findings and symptoms and the survival of patients with Yokkaichi Asthma, in relation to predisposing sulfur dioxide (SO2) exposure, we examined records of 1836 patients registered in the city of Yokkaichi during 1973-1988 by “Pollution-Related Health Damage Compensation Law.” Complete records were obtained from 735 patients (352 males and 383 females) until December 31, 2007, and were used for the analysis. Ambient SO2 concentrations in the Yokkaichi area were obtained from the Environmental Numeric Database of the National Institute for Environmental Science, Japan. It was found that severity of clinical symptoms and decreased pulmonary function were significantly correlated with predisposing SO2 exposure. A Cox proportional hazards analysis revealed that among all patients (COPD and asthma), age, forced expiratory volume 1.0 (sec) % and smoking affected mortality for both males and females. Significant associations between mortality, vital capacity (percent predicted) and cough and sputum were observed in males. Thus, the survival of patients with Yokkaichi Asthma was affected by severity of clinical symptoms and decreased pulmonary function, which were related to predisposing SO2 exposure. It appeared that the effects of clinical changes were greater in males than in females.

Comparative study of behavior of inhaled samarium and cerium in mice

Distribution of Sm and Ce in mice was investigated after inhalation exposure to their oxide particles of 5 μm diameter and 15 mg/m3.Sm and Ce were mainly distributed in lung,their concentrations decreased with passing time,and their concentrations in lung were correlated with exposure periods.Concentrations of Ce were lower than that of Sm in each point.Sm was also distributed in the other organs and bone but Ce was scarcely detected.These results suggest that the behaviors of Sm and Ce inhaled were different,although their chemical properties are similar.