BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: It has long been known that airborne polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) can negatively affect pregnancy and birth outcomes, such as birth weight, fetal development, and placental growth factors. However, similar studies yield divergent results. Our goal was to estimate the amount of monohydroxylated PAH (OH-PAH) metabolites in the urine of pregnant women/mothers and their newborns in relation to birth outcomes, such as placenta weight, Apgar 5', and the growth parameters of children up to the age of two. METHODS: Two cohorts of children born in 2013 and 2014 during the summer and winter seasons in the Czech Republic in the cities Karviná (N = 144) and České Budějovice (N = 198), which differ significantly in the level of air pollution, were studied. PAH exposure was assessed by the concentration of benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) in the air and the concentration of 11 OH-PAH metabolites in the urine of newborns and mothers. Growth parameters and birth outcomes were obtained from medical questionnaires after birth and from pediatric questionnaires during the following 24 months of the child's life. RESULTS: Concentrations of B[a]P were significantly higher in Karviná (p < 0.001). OH-PAH metabolites were significantly higher in the mothers' as well as in the newborns' urine in Karviná and during the winter season. Neonatal length was shorter in newborns in Karviná (p < 0.001), but this difference evened out during the next 3 to 24 months. Compared to České Budějovice, newborns in Karviná showed significantly lower weight gain between birth and three months after delivery. The OH-PAH metabolites in mothers' or newborns' urine did not affect birth weight. The presence of seven OH-PAH (top 25% of values of concentrations higher than the median) metabolites in the newborns' urine is associated with decreased length of newborn. Nine OH-PAH metabolites decreased placenta weight, which was the most significant, while seven OH-PAH metabolites decreased Apgar 5'. CONCLUSION: We have shown a possible connection between higher concentration of OH-PAH metabolites in newborns' urine and decreased length, head circumference, placenta weight, and Apgar 5', but not birth weight.

• MeSH
• dítě MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• matky MeSH
• novorozenec MeSH
• placenta MeSH
• polycyklické aromatické uhlovodíky * MeSH
• porodní hmotnost MeSH
• těhotenství MeSH
• zpožděný efekt prenatální expozice * epidemiologie   MeSH
• Check Tag
• dítě MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• novorozenec MeSH
• těhotenství MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were included as priority substances for human biomonitoring (HBM) in the European Human Biomonitoring Initiative (HBM4EU), which intended to harmonise and advance HBM across Europe. For this project, a specific Quality Assurance and Quality Control (QA/QC) programme applying Inter-laboratory Comparison Investigations (ICIs) and External Quality Assurance Schemes (EQUASs) was developed to ensure the comparability and accuracy of participating analytical laboratories. This paper presents the results of four ICI/EQUAS rounds for the determination of 13 PAH metabolites in urine, i.e. 1-naphthol, 2-naphthol, 1,2-dihydroxynaphthalene, 2-, 3- and 9-hydroxyfluorene, 1-, 2-, 3-, 4- and 9-hydroxyphenanthrene, 1-hydroxypyrene and 3-hydroxybenzo(a)pyrene. However, 4 PAH metabolites could not be evaluated as the analytical capacity of participating laboratories was too low. Across all rounds and biomarkers, 86% of the participants achieved satisfactory results, although low limits of quantification were required to quantify the urinary metabolites at exposure levels of the general population. Using high-performance liquid or gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS; GC-MS) and isotope dilution for calibration as well as performing an enzymatic deconjugation step proved to be favourable for the accurate determination of PAHs in urine. Finally, the HBM4EU QA/QC programme identified an international network of laboratories providing comparable results in the analysis of urinary PAH biomarkers, although covering all parameters initially selected was still too challenging.

• MeSH
• biologické markery moč   MeSH
• biologický monitoring MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• monitorování životního prostředí metody   MeSH
• polycyklické aromatické uhlovodíky * moč   MeSH
• vysokoúčinná kapalinová chromatografie metody   MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• Geografické názvy
• Evropa MeSH

As one of the core elements of the European Human Biomonitoring Initiative (HBM4EU) a human biomonitoring (HBM) survey was conducted in 23 countries to generate EU-wide comparable HBM data. This survey has built on existing HBM capacity in Europe by aligning national or regional HBM studies, referred to as the HBM4EU Aligned Studies. The HBM4EU Aligned Studies included a total of 10,795 participants of three age groups: (i) 3,576 children aged 6-12 years, (ii) 3,117 teenagers aged 12-18 years and (iii) 4,102 young adults aged 20-39 years. The participants were recruited between 2014 and 2021 in 11-12 countries per age group, geographically distributed across Europe. Depending on the age group, internal exposure to phthalates and the substitute DINCH, halogenated and organophosphorus flame retardants, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), cadmium, bisphenols, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), arsenic species, acrylamide, mycotoxins (deoxynivalenol (total DON)), benzophenones and selected pesticides was assessed by measuring substance specific biomarkers subjected to stringent quality control programs for chemical analysis. For substance groups analyzed in different age groups higher average exposure levels were observed in the youngest age group, i.e., phthalates/DINCH in children versus teenagers, acrylamide and pesticides in children versus adults, benzophenones in teenagers versus adults. Many biomarkers in teenagers and adults varied significantly according to educational attainment, with higher exposure levels of bisphenols, phthalates, benzophenones, PAHs and acrylamide in participants (from households) with lower educational attainment, while teenagers from households with higher educational attainment have higher exposure levels for PFASs and arsenic. In children, a social gradient was only observed for the non-specific pyrethroid metabolite 3-PBA and di-isodecyl phthalate (DiDP), with higher levels in children from households with higher educational attainment. Geographical variations were seen for all exposure biomarkers. For 15 biomarkers, the available health-based HBM guidance values were exceeded with highest exceedance rates for toxicologically relevant arsenic in teenagers (40%), 3-PBA in children (36%), and between 11 and 14% for total DON, Σ (PFOA + PFNA + PFHxS + PFOS), bisphenol S and cadmium. The infrastructure and harmonized approach succeeded in obtaining comparable European wide internal exposure data for a prioritized set of 11 chemical groups. These data serve as a reference for comparison at the global level, provide a baseline to compare the efficacy of the European Commission's chemical strategy for sustainability and will give leverage to national policy makers for the implementation of targeted measures.

• MeSH
• akrylamidy MeSH
• arsen * analýza   MeSH
• biologické markery MeSH
• biologický monitoring MeSH
• dítě MeSH
• fluorokarbony * analýza   MeSH
• kadmium analýza   MeSH
• látky znečišťující životní prostředí * analýza   MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladiství MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• pesticidy * analýza   MeSH
• Check Tag
• dítě MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mladiství MeSH
• mladý dospělý MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• přehledy MeSH

Drinking water is one of the main contributors to overall human exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), a broad group of environmental contaminants with arising concerns on the impact on human health; therefore, it is necessary to monitor its quality. Here, we present a solid-phase extraction-based method to determine 22 PFAS in water, using 100 mL of the sample. The instrumental analysis employing an ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry achieved low limits of quantification (0.025-0.25 ng/L). The validated method (recoveries 70-120% and repeatabilities ≤ 20% at tested concentrations (0.05, 0.1 and 0.5 ng/L)) was applied to 67 tap water and 31 bottled water samples collected in the Czech Republic. The most abundant compounds were perfluorononanoic acid (88% positives; 0.034-13.3 ng/L) and perfluoroheptanoic acid (23% positives; 0.035-0.106 ng/L), respectively. ∑PFAS in positive samples ranged from 0.029 to 300 ng/L (99% positives, median 2.34 ng/L) in tap water data and 0.033 to 4.48 ng/L (32% positives, median 0.097 ng/L) in bottled water samples. Current-use fluoroalkyl ethers, dodecafluoro-3H-4,8-dioxanonanoate and 11-chloroeicosafluoro-3-oxaundecane-1-sulfonate, were occasionally detected in tap. Based on the median data, PFAS intake by an adult from a tap or bottled water represented units of % of the tolerable weekly intake set by the European Food Safety Authority and therefore did not represent a severe risk. The described method and obtained first data on PFAS in the Czech drinking water provided a solid basis for an ongoing national study on the presence of PFAS in tap water.

• MeSH
• chemické látky znečišťující vodu * analýza   MeSH
• dospělí MeSH
• fluorokarbony * analýza   MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• pilotní projekty MeSH
• pitná voda * chemie   MeSH
• Check Tag
• dospělí MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• Geografické názvy
• Česká republika MeSH

The Human Biomonitoring for Europe initiative (HBM4EU) aims to study the exposure of citizens to chemicals and potentially associated health effects. One objective of this project has been to build a network of laboratories able to answer to the requirements of European human biomonitoring studies. Within the HBM4EU quality assurance and quality control scheme (QA/QC), a number of interlaboratory comparison investigations (ICIs) and external quality assurance schemes (EQUASs) were organized to ensure data consistency, comparability and reliability. Bisphenols are among the prioritized substance groups in HBM4EU, including bisphenol A (BPA), bisphenol S (BPS) and bisphenol F (BPF) in human urine. In four rounds of ICI/EQUAS, two target concentration levels were considered, related to around P25 and P95 of the typical exposure distribution observed in the European general population. Special attention was paid to the conjugated phase II metabolites known to be most dominant in samples of environmentally exposed individuals, through the analysis of both native samples and samples fortified with glucuronide forms. For the low level, the average percentage of satisfactory results across the four rounds was 83% for BPA, 71% for BPS and 62% for BPF. For the high level, the percentages of satisfactory results increased to 93% for BPA, 89% for BPS and 86% for BPF. 24 out of 32 participating laboratories (75%) were approved for the analyses of BPA in the HBM4EU project according to the defined criterion of Z-scores for both low and high concentration levels in at least two ICI/EQUAS rounds. For BPS and BPF, the number of qualified laboratories was 18 out of 27 (67%) and 13 out of 28 (46%), respectively. These results demonstrate a strong analytical capability for BPA and BPS in Europe, while improvements may be needed for BPF.

• MeSH
• benzhydrylové sloučeniny * moč   MeSH
• biologický monitoring * MeSH
• fenoly MeSH
• laboratoře MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• reprodukovatelnost výsledků MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• Geografické názvy
• Evropa MeSH

A fundamental objective of the human biomonitoring for Europe initiative (HBM4EU) is to progress toward comparable and robust exposure data for a wide variety of prioritized chemicals in human samples. A programme for Quality Assurance/Quality Control (QA/QC) was designed in HBM4EU with the purpose of creating a network of European laboratories providing comparable analytical data of high quality. Two approaches were chosen for two sets of prioritized chemicals with different timelines: (i) Scheme 1, where interested candidate laboratories participated in multiple rounds of proficiency tests (ii) Scheme 2, where selected expert laboratories participated in three rounds of interlaboratory comparison investigations. In both cases, the results were used to identify laboratories capable of generating consistent and comparable results for sample analysis in the frame of HBM4EU. In total, 84 laboratories from 26 countries were invited to participate in Scheme 1 that covered up to 73 biomarkers from Hexamoll® DINCH, phthalates, bisphenols, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, halogenated flame retardants (HFRs), organophosporous flame retardants (OPFRs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), cadmium, chromium and aromatic amines. 74 of the participants were successful for at least one biomarker in Scheme 1. Scheme 2 involved 22 biomarkers and successful results were obtained by 2 expert laboratories for arsenic, 5 for acrylamide, 4 for mycotoxins, 2 for pesticides and 2 for UV-filters in skin care products. The QA/QC programme allowed the identification of major difficulties and needs in HBM analysis as well of gaining insight in the analytical capacities of European laboratories. Furthermore, it is the first step towards the establishment of a sustainable European network of HBM laboratories.

• MeSH
• biologický monitoring MeSH
• laboratoře * MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• monitorování životního prostředí MeSH
• pesticidy * MeSH
• řízení kvality MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH

Human biomonitoring (HBM) of cadmium is essential to assess and prevent toxic exposure. Generally, low cadmium levels in urine and blood of the general population place particularly high demands on quality assurance and control measures (QA/QC) for cadmium determination. One of the aims of the HBM4EU project is to harmonize and advance HBM in Europe. Cadmium is one of the chemicals selected as a priority substance for HBM implementation in the 30 European countries under HBM4EU. For this purpose, analytical comparability and accuracy of the analytical laboratories of participating countries was investigated in a QA/QC programme comprising interlaboratory comparison investigations (ICI) and external quality assurance schemes (EQUAS). This paper presents the evaluation process and discusses the results of four ICI/EQUAS rounds for the determination of cadmium in urine and blood. The majority of the 43 participating laboratories achieved satisfactory results, although low limits of quantification were required to quantify Cd concentrations at general population exposure levels. The relative standard deviation of the participants' results obtained from all ICI and EQUAS runs ranged from 8 to 36% for cadmium in urine and 8-28% for cadmium in blood. Applying inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), using an internal standard, and eliminating molybdenum oxide interferences was favourable for the accurate determination of cadmium in urine and blood. Furthermore, the analysis of cadmium in urine was found to have a critical point at approximately 0.05 μg/l, below which variability increased and laboratory proficiency decreased. This QA/QC programme succeeded in establishing a network of laboratories with high analytical comparability and accuracy for the analysis of cadmium across 20 European countries.

• MeSH
• biologický monitoring MeSH
• kadmium * MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• monitorování životního prostředí MeSH
• vystavení vlivu životního prostředí * analýza   MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• Geografické názvy
• Evropa MeSH

BACKGROUND: Perfluoralkylated substances (PFASs) are persistent and bioaccumulative environmental contaminants. They are included on the list of emergent compounds monitored in the frame of HBM4EU project. OBJECTIVES: To analyze PFASs levels in human milk samples collected in the period 2006 through 2017, to follow their time trends, to assess the PFASs exposure in breastfed infants, to calculate the daily intake of PFASs and to compare it with the tolerable daily/weekly) intakes and to quantify risk from exposure using the hazard quotient and hazard index approach. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A broad spectrum of PFASs were analyzed by means of UHPLC-MS/MS in primipara human milk samples collected in four consecutive time periods 2006, 2010/11, 2014, and 2017; N = 46, 183, 164 and 232, respectively. Mothers living in urban and suburban residences were recruited after their delivery at maternity hospitals, and milk samples were taken within 2 and 8 weeks after delivery. The questionnaire was focused on possible sources of exposure, dietary habits and lifestyle. RESULTS: Only perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoid acid PFOA (in 2017, also perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA)) were quantified in more than 90% of analyzed human milk samples. In all sampling periods, the levels of PFOA were higher than those of PFOS (p < 0.05). A significant downward temporal trend (p < 0.001) was observed for both PFOA and PFOS levels. The median concentrations in sampling years 2006, 2010/11, 2014, and 2017 were 0.075, 0.059, 0.035, and 0.023 ng/mL for PFOA and 0.045, 0.031, 0.029, and 0.020 ng/mL for PFOS, respectively. In 2017, PFNA was also quantified in 99% of samples with the median concentration of 0.007 ng/mL. The levels of PFASs correlated with maternal sea fish consumption. No maternal age-related relationship was observed. Using the tolerably daily intake (TDI) values for PFOS and PFOA set by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in 2008, the calculated daily intakes from breastfeeding were clearly below these limits. Using the new, more conservative EFSA Provisional Tolerably Weekly Intake (PTWI) values set in 2018, we demonstrated a considerable exceedance of PTWI, with a hazard index above 1. CONCLUSION: Significant time-related decreasing trends in the PFOS and PFOA levels in human milk were observed. Nevertheless, the body burden of infants from breastfeeding might pose an enhanced health risk to infants when the current PTWI values are applied. These findings strongly support the present EU efforts to phase out PFOA, its salts and PFOA related compounds. Since PFOS exposure there has still been widely detected despite PFOS usage reduction measures, the major exposure routes should be further monitored and, if possible, eliminated.

• MeSH
• biologický monitoring MeSH
• fluorokarbony * analýza   MeSH
• kapryláty analýza   MeSH
• kojenec MeSH
• kyseliny alkansulfonové * analýza   MeSH
• látky znečišťující životní prostředí * analýza   MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• mateřské mléko chemie   MeSH
• tandemová hmotnostní spektrometrie MeSH
• těhotenství MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• kojenec MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• těhotenství MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• práce podpořená grantem MeSH
• Geografické názvy
• Česká republika MeSH