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Distribution of perfluoroalkyl compounds in rats: Indication for using hair as bioindicator of exposure

Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology volume 25, pages 632–638 (2015)Cite this article

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Abstract

Hair analysis is potentially advantageous in exposure assessment of perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) as a non-invasive method, combined with the ability to reflect long-term exposure. The present study aims to assess the feasibility of using hair as an indicator of PFAA exposure. Adult male and female rats were subchronically exposed to selected PFAAs, including perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorononanoic acid (PFNA), and perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS), for 90 days. Hair, serum, and other tissues, including liver, kidney, spleen, lung, brain and heart, as well as the urine and feces excretions, were analyzed for PFAA levels. PFOA/PFNA/PFOS were detected in rat hair in a dose-dependent manner, in the order of PFOS>PFNA>PFOA. Hair PFAA concentrations were higher in male rats than the female rats, except for PFOS at low dose. Moreover, significant positive correlations as well as similar PFAA profiles were observed between hair, serum, and other tissues. Besides, hair PFAAs were negatively correlated with the urinary excretion rate. Although the influencing factors in humans still need further investigation, the results suggested that hair is capable of reflecting PFAA exposure, and could be employed as an alternative exposure bioindicator of PFAAs.

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Acknowledgements

The paper is to commemorate late Professor Dr Yihe Jin (1959–2013) who devoted his whole life to the scientific research and who contributed greatly to the present research. This study is financially supported by National Nature Science Foundation of China (81102096, 21177020) and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (DUT12LK13). We also appreciate the 123 Project of Liaoning environment education research supported by Geping Green Finance (CEPF2011-123-2-14).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Industrial Ecology and Environmental Engineering, MOE, School of Environmental Science and Technology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, China

    Bei Gao, Xin He, Wei Liu & Huanhuan Zhang

  2. Research Institute for Environmental Sciences and Public Health of Iwate Prefecture, Morioka, Iwate, Japan

    Norimitsu Saito & Shuji Tsuda

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  1. Bei Gao
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  2. Xin He
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  3. Wei Liu
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Correspondence to Wei Liu.

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Gao, B., He, X., Liu, W. et al. Distribution of perfluoroalkyl compounds in rats: Indication for using hair as bioindicator of exposure. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol 25, 632–638 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/jes.2014.54

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