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Environment International Jun 2020Electrical and electronic waste (e-waste) burning and recycling activities have become one of the main emission sources of dioxin-like compounds (DLCs). Workers involved... (Review)
Review
Electrical and electronic waste (e-waste) burning and recycling activities have become one of the main emission sources of dioxin-like compounds (DLCs). Workers involved in e-waste recycling operations and residents living near e-waste recycling sites (EWRS) are exposed to high levels of DLCs. Epidemiological and experimental in vivo studies have reported a range of interconnected responses in multiple systems with DLC exposure. However, due to the compositional complexity of DLCs and difficulties in assessing mixture effects of the complex mixture of e-waste-related contaminants, there are few studies concerning human health outcomes related to DLC exposure at informal EWRS. In this paper, we have reviewed the environmental levels and body burdens of DLCs at EWRS and compared them with the levels reported to be associated with observable adverse effects to assess the health risks of DLC exposure at EWRS. In general, DLC concentrations at EWRS of many countries have been decreasing in recent years due to stricter regulations on e-waste recycling activities, but the contamination status is still severe. Comparison with available data from industrial sites and well-known highly DLC contaminated areas shows that high levels of DLCs derived from crude e-waste recycling processes lead to elevated body burdens. The DLC levels in human blood and breast milk at EWRS are higher than those reported in some epidemiological studies that are related to various health impacts. The estimated total daily intakes of DLCs for people in EWRS far exceed the WHO recommended total daily intake limit. It can be inferred that people living in EWRS with high DLC contamination have higher health risks. Therefore, more well-designed epidemiological studies are urgently needed to focus on the health effects of DLC pollution in EWRS. Continuous monitoring of the temporal trends of DLC levels in EWRS after actions is of highest importance.
Topics: Body Burden; Dioxins; Electronic Waste; Female; Humans; Milk, Human; Recycling
PubMed: 32315892
DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2020.105731 -
Environmental Science and Pollution... Dec 2015Dioxin-like compounds (DLCs) have been classified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of the most persistent toxic chemical substances in the environment, and... (Review)
Review
Dioxin-like compounds (DLCs) have been classified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of the most persistent toxic chemical substances in the environment, and they are associated with several occupational activities and industrial accidents around the world. Since the end of the 1970s, these toxic chemicals have been banned because of their human toxicity potential, long half-life, wide dispersion, and they bioaccumulate in the food web. This review serves as a primer for environmental health professionals to provide guidance on short-term risk assessment of dioxin and to identify key findings for health and exposure assessment based on policies of different agencies. It also presents possible health effects of dioxins, mechanisms of action, toxic equivalency factors (TEFs), and dose-response characterization. Key studies related to toxicity values of dioxin-like compounds and their possible human health risk were identified through PubMed and supplemented with relevant studies characterized by reviewing the reference lists in the review articles and primary literature. Existing data decreases the scope of analyses and models in relevant studies to a manageable size by focusing on the set of important studies related to the perspective of developing toxicity values of DLCs.
Topics: Animals; Dioxins; Environmental Exposure; Humans; Models, Animal; Rats; Risk Assessment
PubMed: 26514567
DOI: 10.1007/s11356-015-5597-x -
Journal of the National Cancer Institute May 1999
Topics: Animals; Carcinogens; Dioxins; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Humans; Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins
PubMed: 10328098
DOI: 10.1093/jnci/91.9.745 -
Reviews of Environmental Contamination... 2007There has been great concern about dioxins-polychlorinated dibenzo dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzo furans (PCDFs), and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)-causing... (Review)
Review
There has been great concern about dioxins-polychlorinated dibenzo dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzo furans (PCDFs), and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)-causing contamination in the environment because the adverse effects of these chemicals on human health have been known for many years. Possible dioxin-contamination has received much attention recently not only by environmental scientists but also by the public, because dioxins are known to be formed during the combustion of industrial and domestic wastes and to escape into the environment via exhaust gases from incinerators. Consequently, there is a pressing need to investigate the formation mechanisms or reaction pathways of these chlorinated chemicals to be able to devise ways to reduce their environmental contamination. A well-controlled small-scale incinerator was used for the experiments in the core references of this review. These articles report the investigation of dioxin formation from the combustion of various waste-simulated samples, including different kinds of paper, various kinds of wood, fallen leaves, food samples, polyethylene (PE), polystyrene (PS), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyvinylidene chloride, polyethylene tetraphthalate (PET), and various kinds of plastic products. These samples were also incinerated with inorganic chlorides (NaCl, KCl, CuCI2, MgCl2, MnCl2, FeCl2, CoCl2, fly ash, and seawater) or organic chlorides (PVC, chlordane, and pentachlorophenol) to investigate the role of chlorine content and/or the presence of different metals in dioxin formation. Some samples, such as newspapers, were burned after they were impregnated with NaCl or PVC, as well as being cocombusted with chlorides. The roles of incineration conditions, including chamber temperatures, O2 concentrations, and CO concentrations, in dioxin formation were also investigated. Dioxins (PCDDs, PCDFs, and coplanar-PCBs) formed in the exhaust gases from a controlled small-scale incinerator, where experimental waste samples were burned, were analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Formation of total PCDFs was much higher than that of PCDDs in all samples. The total PCDFs comprised 70%-90% of the total dioxin formed. The amount of total PCDFs formed ranged from 0.78 ng/g (newspaper) to 8,490ng/g (PVC burned in high CO concentration). The amount of total PCDDs formed ranged from 0.02ng/g (newspaper) to 430ng/g (PVC). Coplanar PCBs were found at the lowest level of the dioxins formed. Their formation levels ranged from 0ng/g (newspaper) to 77.6ng/g (PVC). It is obvious that the samples with either inorganic or organic chlorides produced much more dioxins than the sample without chlorides when incinerated under similar conditions. It is not clear how inorganic and organic chloride contribute differently to dioxin formation. Among the metals examined, copper seems to have higher activity toward dioxin formation than other metals. It acted not only as a catalyst but also as a transmitter of heterogeneous chlorine. The toxicity equivalence quantity (TEQ) values generally correlated with the amount of chlorine content in the samples and the amount of dioxin formed in exhaust gases from an incinerator. When the same sample was incinerated at different temperatures, however, the sample burned at low temperature yielded a higher TEQ value than did the sample burned at high temperature. The samples that did not contain chlorine or were not combusted with chlorides exhibited low TEQ values. In contrast, samples with high chlorine content, such as PVC (51.3%), gave high TEQ values. Combustion temperatures may play an important role in dioxin formation in exhaust gases from the incineration of waste materials. However, no significant relationship between dioxin formation and chamber temperatures was reported in the core articles. However, It is obvious that dioxin formation occurred at temperatures above 450'C and was reduced significantly at temperatures above 850 degrees C. The reaction occurring in an incinerator is extremely complex, and there are many factors in addition to combustion temperature influencing dioxin formation. Even though it is possible to hypothesize reasonable formation mechanisms of dioxins produced in exhaust gases according to the results obtained from experiments in classical chemistry, the reactions involved in an incinerator are extremely complex and heterogeneous. More detailed investigation of the many individual factors influencing dioxin formation is needed to find ways to reduce their formation in individual and municipal incinerators.
Topics: Air Pollutants; Animals; Benzofurans; Dibenzofurans, Polychlorinated; Dioxins; Environmental Monitoring; Humans; Incineration; Polychlorinated Biphenyls
PubMed: 17432330
DOI: 10.1007/978-0-387-36903-7_1 -
Lancet (London, England) Jun 1999
Topics: Dioxins; Environmental Monitoring; Humans; Japan
PubMed: 10382733
DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(05)75608-7 -
Scientific American Feb 1986
Topics: Acne Vulgaris; Animals; Carcinogens; Dioxins; Environmental Pollutants; Humans; Lethal Dose 50; Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins; Sarcoma; Soft Tissue Neoplasms
PubMed: 2935932
DOI: 10.1038/scientificamerican0286-29 -
Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology May 1998Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF; PCDD/F, dioxins) have not been commercially produced in bulk amounts, as were... (Review)
Review
Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF; PCDD/F, dioxins) have not been commercially produced in bulk amounts, as were polychlorinated biphenyls and other haloaromatic organics. Within the past two decades a lot of information has accumulated on the biodegradation of PCDD/F and other dioxin-like compounds because of their toxicity and because of significant environmental concern about many congeners of this class of chemicals. PCDD/F are subjected to reductive dehalogenations leading to less halogenated congeners, which can be attacked efficiently by fungal and bacterial oxidases and dioxygenases. In several cases these compounds can be utilized as carbon and energy sources. Pathways for their enzymatic degradation and the organisation of the corresponding degradative genes have been elucidated. Consequently, biotechnological applications will exploit the degradative potential of such microorganisms for bioremediation of contaminated sites.
Topics: Bacteria; Benzofurans; Biodegradation, Environmental; Dibenzofurans, Polychlorinated; Dioxins; Fungi; Geologic Sediments; Oxidation-Reduction; Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins; Soil Microbiology
PubMed: 9650248
DOI: 10.1007/s002530051203 -
Nihon Rinsho. Japanese Journal of... Sep 1999
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Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology... Aug 1997An ad hoc panel of dioxin experts convened by EPA's Science Advisory Board found the Agency's claim of cancer causation by dioxin unacceptable. This paper uses the very... (Review)
Review
An ad hoc panel of dioxin experts convened by EPA's Science Advisory Board found the Agency's claim of cancer causation by dioxin unacceptable. This paper uses the very same two studies [Fingerhut (NIOSH) and Kociba] EPA relied upon to test the observations made in an unused third study [Bertazzi] to conclude that dioxin is (1) a promoter blocker of certain cancers, including all the cancers Agency scientists claimed dioxin promoted; (2) a promoter of some other cancers that EPA scientists failed to identify; and (3) a net anticarcinogen. Three independent total tumor reductions provide evidence of both cancer prevention and quantifiable risk reductions tied to specific dioxin levels. The author indirectly suggests a general cancer prevention treatment, even for cancers already initiated.
Topics: Anticarcinogenic Agents; Carcinogens; Dioxins; Humans; Italy; Neoplasms; United States; United States Environmental Protection Agency
PubMed: 9339490
DOI: 10.1006/rtph.1997.1129 -
Chemosphere Mar 2004Negative effects of perinatal exposure to background levels of dioxins and PCBs in Europe and the USA have been documented. Four facets of development are reviewed in... (Review)
Review
Negative effects of perinatal exposure to background levels of dioxins and PCBs in Europe and the USA have been documented. Four facets of development are reviewed in this paper: 1. Brain development and thyroid hormone metabolism. 2. Hepatic effects. 3. Hematopoietic system effects. 4. Lung function. Effects on IQ and behaviour have been documented in children on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Non-dioxin-like PCBs, measured in maternal and cord blood and current plasma samples have been implicated. Interference with thyroid hormone metabolism in the mother, in the foetus and in the newborn baby could be responsible for these effects on brain development. During early gestation the foetus is completely dependent on maternal thyroxine (T4). Lower T4 levels in the mother, caused by dioxins and PCBs, might negatively influence (early) brain development. It is plausible that the intrauterine dependency on maternal T4 and the high T4 need shortly after birth makes both these periods vulnerable for environmental influences. Effects of dioxin exposure on thyroid hormone metabolism have been described in the period shortly after birth. These effects are no longer found after two years of age indicating a transient effect. In animal studies, in utero exposure has led to effects on brain development due to abnormal induction of liver enzymes. This induction resulted in lower testosterone and estrogen levels, interfering with brain development in the vulnerable period of language development and the development of visuo-spatial abilities. In humans this developmental period occurs around the thirtieth week of pregnancy. Follow-up studies in puberty and adolescence of the different cohorts studied is necessary to evaluate these negative influences. Damaging effects on the liver found shortly after birth have proven to be transient. Effects on the haematopoietic system are clear immediately after birth, for instance on white blood cells and thrombocytes. An increase in middle ear infections (otitis media) in relation to current levels of PCBs at the age of 4 years was described in the Rotterdam study. Negative effects on lung function in the sense of increased obstruction was found after 8 years in relation to perinatal exposure to dioxins in the Zaandam study. This rather new finding might explain the sharp increase in lung problems in children in the Western world.
Topics: Brain Chemistry; Dioxins; Environmental Exposure; Europe; Hematopoietic System; Humans; Liver; Lung; United States
PubMed: 14659426
DOI: 10.1016/S0045-6535(03)00254-6