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Agreement of pesticide biomarkers between morning void and 24-h urine samples from farmers and their children

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 17, pages 350–357 (2007)Cite this article

Abstract

In pesticide biomonitoring studies, researchers typically collect either single voids or daily (24-h) urine samples. Collection of 24-h urine samples is considered the “gold-standard”, but this method places a high burden on study volunteers, requires greater resources, and may result in misclassification of exposure or underestimation of dose due to noncompliance with urine collection protocols. To evaluate the potential measurement error introduced by single void samples, we present an analysis of exposure and dose for two commonly used pesticides based on single morning void (MV) and 24-h urine collections in farmers and farm children. The agreement between the MV concentration and its corresponding 24-h concentration was analyzed using simple graphical and statistical techniques and risk assessment methodology. A consistent bias towards overprediction of pesticide concentration was found among the MVs, likely in large part due to the pharmacokinetic time course of the analytes in urine. These results suggest that the use of single voids can either over- or under-estimate daily exposure if recent pesticide applications have occurred. This held true for both farmers as well as farm children, who were not directly exposed to the applications. As a result, single void samples influenced the number of children exposed to chlorpyrifos whose daily dose estimates were above levels of toxicologic significance. In populations where fluctuations in pesticide exposure are expected (e.g., farm families), the pharmacokinetics of the pesticide and the timing of exposure events and urine collection must be understood when relying on single voids as a surrogate for longer time-frames of exposure.

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Notes

  1. Adult reference values were based on adult Caucasian men age 25–44 on self-selected diets. Reference values for children (also Caucasian, on self-selected diets) were age-, sex- and body weight-specific.

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Acknowledgements

This publication was made possible by Grant number 5 T32 ES01095 from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), NIH. The contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the NIEHS, NIH. Data for this study was from the Farm Family Exposure Study which was funded through a grant to the University of Minnesota by Bayer, Dow, Dupont, FMC, Monsanto, Syngenta, and the American Chemistry Council.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Environmental Health Sciences Division, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Deanna P Scher, Bruce H Alexander & John L Adgate

  2. Biostatistics Division, School of Public Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Lynn E Eberly

  3. Department of Epidemiology, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, USA

    Jack S Mandel

  4. Monsanto Company (Retired), St Louis, MO, USA

    John F Acquavella

  5. Dow Chemical Company, Midland, MI, USA

    Michael J Bartels & Kathy A Brzak

Authors
  1. Deanna P Scher
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  2. Bruce H Alexander
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  4. Lynn E Eberly
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  5. Jack S Mandel
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Correspondence to Deanna P Scher.

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Disclaimer

Michael J. Bartels and Kathy A Bzak are employees of The Dow Chemical Company, manufacturer of the two chemicals analyzed in this study, 2,4-D and chlorpyrifos, and contributor to the funding of the Farm Family Exposure Study, which was the basis for this research.

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Scher, D., Alexander, B., Adgate, J. et al. Agreement of pesticide biomarkers between morning void and 24-h urine samples from farmers and their children. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 17, 350–357 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.jes.7500505

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