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The reliability of using urinary biomarkers to estimate children's exposures to chlorpyrifos and diazinon

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 21, pages 280–290 (2011)Cite this article

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Abstract

A few studies have reported concurrent levels of chlorpyrifos (CPF) and diazinon (DZN) and their environmentally occurring metabolites, 3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinol (TCP) and 2-isopropyl-6-methyl-4-pyrimidinol (IMP), in food and in environmental media. This information raises questions regarding the reliability of using these same metabolites, TCP and IMP, as urinary biomarkers to quantitatively assess the everyday exposures of children to CPF and DZN, respectively. In this study, we quantified the distributions of CPF, DZN, TCP, and IMP in several environmental and personal media at the homes and day-care centers of 127 Ohio preschool children and identified the important sources and routes of their exposures. The children were exposed to concurrent levels of these four chemicals from several sources and routes at these locations. DZN and IMP were both detected above 50% in the air and dust samples. CPF and TCP were both detected in greater than 50% of the air, dust (solid), food, and hand wipe samples. TCP was detected in 100% of the urine samples. Results from our regression models showed that creatinine levels (<0.001), and dietary (P<0.001) and inhalation (P<0.10) doses of TCP were each significant predictors of urinary TCP, collectively explaining 27% of the urinary TCP variability. This information suggests that measurement of urinary TCP did not reliably allow quantitative estimation of the children's everyday environmental exposures to CPF.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the participants for participating in this important observational human exposure measurements study. We also thank J. Sobus from the USEPA for his technical guidance in the advanced statistical analyses of these data. In addition, we would also like to thank Battelle staff members, particularly C. Lyu, J. Satola, R. Lordo, and Y. Chou, for their valuable contributions to the success of this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Exposure Research Laboratory, USEPA, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA

    Marsha K Morgan, Linda S Sheldon, Paul A Jones & Carry W Croghan

  2. Battelle, Columbus, Ohio, USA

    Jane C Chuang

  3. Battelle, Durham, North Carolina, USA

    Nancy K Wilson

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  1. Marsha K Morgan
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  2. Linda S Sheldon
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  3. Paul A Jones
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  4. Carry W Croghan
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  5. Jane C Chuang
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Correspondence to Marsha K Morgan.

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The United States Environmental Protection Agency, through its Office of Research and Development, funded and managed the research described here under Contract #68-D-99-011 to Battelle. It has been subjected to Agency review and approved for publication.

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Morgan, M., Sheldon, L., Jones, P. et al. The reliability of using urinary biomarkers to estimate children's exposures to chlorpyrifos and diazinon. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 21, 280–290 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/jes.2010.11

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