Risk assessment supporting the establishment of a maximum residue limit for ractopamine in beef liver, applicable in the Arab Republic of Egypt.

In 2012, the Codex Alimentarius Commission adopted maximum residue limits (MRLs) for ractopamine in pig and cattle tissues. Egypt, a country that records a high consumption of beef liver, conducted a health risk assessment to estimate the risks associated with the adoption of Codex MRLs and the possible adoption of alternative values that may offer higher protection. Ractopamine was characterized based on previous assessments performed by international regulatory agencies, and an acceptable daily intake was set at 1 µg/kg bw for both chronic and acute ractopamine exposure.

Phthalate and BPA Exposure in Women and Newborns through Personal Care Product Use and Food Packaging.

Phthalates and bisphenol A (BPA) are used in some personal care products (PCPs) and containers for food processing and packaging. The Plastics and Personal-Care Product use in Pregnancy (P4) Study (2009-10) explored the association between PCP use during pregnancy and the postpartum period among 80 pregnant women and 55 infants and BPA and phthalate concentrations in multiple maternal and infant urine specimens collected throughout the study ( = 1260 samples). The type, frequency, and timing of PCP and food packaging use 24 h before and during the urine collection period was collected at 5 time points for the mother using prospective diaries.

Polychlorinated Biphenyls and Polychlorinated Dioxins-Furans in Lake Trout and Whitefish Composite Samples from Commercial Fisheries in Lakes Erie, Huron, and Superior.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs; sum of 36 congeners) and polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs; sum of 17 2,3,7,8-substituted congeners) were measured in 93 composite samples prepared from individual lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) and whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) samples collected from Lake Erie, Lake Huron, and Lake Superior. All samples had detectable concentrations of PCBs and PCDD/Fs; maximum PCB concentrations in both trout (750 ng g whole weight [ww]) and whitefish (210 ng g ww) were found in composites from fish collected from Lake Huron. The maximum toxic equivalent concentration was found in a lake trout composite sample from Lake Huron (53 pg g ww).

Paraben Concentrations in Maternal Urine and Breast Milk and Its Association with Personal Care Product Use.

Parabens are broad-spectrum antimicrobial preservatives and fragrances used in a wide range of personal care products, pharmaceuticals, and food providing the opportunity for people to be exposed on a daily basis. In 2009-2010, 80 pregnant women from Ottawa Canada participated in the Plastics and Personal-Care Product Use in Pregnancy (P4) Study. A subset of women (n = 31) who provided multiple spot urine samples (n = 542) collected over two 24-h periods had their samples analyzed for methylparaben (MP), n-propylparaben (PP), ethylparaben (EP), butylparaben (BP), isobutylparaben (IBP), and benzylparaben (BzP).

Maternal and early life exposure to phthalates: The Plastics and Personal-care Products use in Pregnancy (P4) study.

Phthalates are a group of chemicals found in a number of consumer products; some of these phthalates have been shown to possess estrogenic activity and display anti-androgenic effects. While a number of biomonitoring studies of phthalates in pregnant women and infants have been published, there is a paucity of data based on both multiple sampling periods and in different matrices. Phthalate metabolites were measured in 80 pregnant women and their infants in Ottawa Canada (2009-2010) in urine, meconium and breast milk collected at various time periods pre- and post-parturition.

Maternal and infant exposure to environmental phenols as measured in multiple biological matrices.

Background: Results of recent national surveys have shown the high prevalence of exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) and triclosan (TCS) among the general population; however biomonitoring data for pregnant women and infants are limited.

Methods: Women (n=80) were recruited from early prenatal clinics and asked to collect urine samples multiple times during pregnancy and once 2-3 months post-partum. Samples of infant urine and meconium as well as breast milk and infant formula were also collected.

Bisphenol A and phthalate metabolite urinary concentrations: Daily and across pregnancy variability.

Phthalates and bisphenol A (BPA) are high production volume and ubiquitous chemicals that are quickly metabolized in the body. Traditionally, studies have relied on single spot urine analyses to assess exposure; ignoring variability in concentrations throughout a day or over a longer period of time. We compared BPA and phthalate metabolite results from urine samples collected at five different time points.

Urinary and breast milk biomarkers to assess exposure to naphthalene in pregnant women: an investigation of personal and indoor air sources.

Background: Naphthalene exposures for most non-occupationally exposed individuals occur primarily indoors at home. Residential indoor sources include pest control products (specifically moth balls), incomplete combustion such as cigarette smoke, woodstoves and cooking, some consumer and building products, and emissions from gasoline sources found in attached garages. The study aim was to assess naphthalene exposure in pregnant women from Canada, using air measurements and biomarkers of exposure.

Future human health research directions for the Canadian Northern Contaminants Program.

Studies conducted in the mid-1980s and early 1990s demonstrated that persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and metals were reaching the Arctic ecosystem at unexpectedly high levels, many of which had no Arctic or Canadian sources. Epidemiological and toxicological studies in Canada and in other countries have found that these contaminants may pose a risk to human health. The objective of this paper is to provide the foundation for the discussion on future northern human health research under the Northern Contaminants Program (NCP) in Canada.

Methylmercury blood guidance values for Canada.

Exposure to methylmercury (MeHg) from fish and marine mammal consumption continues to present a public health concern. To date, developmental neurotoxicity is the most sensitive health outcome, forming the basis for health-risk assessments and the derivation of biomonitoring guidance values. This article summarizes existing Health Canada MeHg blood guidance values for general population and expands them to include a harmonized provisional interim blood guidance value of 8 microg/L based on the existing provisional Tolerable Daily Intake for children, pregnant women and women of childbearing age.

The 2005 World Health Organization reevaluation of human and Mammalian toxic equivalency factors for dioxins and dioxin-like compounds.

In June 2005, a World Health Organization (WHO)-International Programme on Chemical Safety expert meeting was held in Geneva during which the toxic equivalency factors (TEFs) for dioxin-like compounds, including some polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), were reevaluated. For this reevaluation process, the refined TEF database recently published by Haws et al. (2006, Toxicol.

Biomarker measurements in a coastal fish-eating population environmentally exposed to organochlorines.

The Lower North Shore region of the St. Lawrence River is home to a fish-eating population that displays an unusually high body burden of several organochlorines, including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dioxin-like compounds (DLCs). We measured biomarkers indicative of liver enzyme induction and investigated the relationship with organochlorine body burden in adult volunteers from this population.

Reconstruction of methylmercury intakes in indigenous populations from biomarker data.

Significant amounts of methylmercury (MeHg) can bioaccumulate in fish and sea mammals. To monitor MeHg exposure in individuals, organic and inorganic mercury are often measured in blood samples or in hair strands, the latter being by far the best integrator of past exposure. With knowledge of the MeHg kinetics in humans, the levels of both biomarkers can be related to MeHg body burden and intakes.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers: human tissue levels and toxicology.

PBDEs are being released to the environment in wastes from their production facilities, degradation, or leaching and volatilization from products that contain PBDEs during the product's useful life. Brominated diphenyl ether congeners BDE-47, -99, and -153 are ubiquitous in the environment and are regarded as the most dominant congeners present in wildlife and humans. The tetra- to hexa-BDE are most likely the congeners to which humans are exposed through food consumption.

Toxicity of the chlordane metabolite oxychlordane in female rats: clinical and histopathological changes.

Due to widespread usage of the pesticide chlordane until the 1980's, this toxic and persistent mixture has accumulated in the food chain. The Arctic acts as a global sink for these and other persistent organic pollutants, which bioaccumulate in the marine and freshwater food chains. As a result, humans consuming diets high in Arctic fish and marine mammal fat can ingest higher levels of chlordane contaminants than humans consuming "southern" diets.