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Biological monitoring of exposure and effects in workers employed in a selenium-processing plant

International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health volume 88, pages 623–630 (2015)Cite this article

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of the study was to assess external and internal selenium exposure and potential biological effects in employees working in a selenium-processing plant.

Methods

Twenty male employees of a selenium-processing plant (exposed) and 20 age-matched male individuals without occupational selenium exposure (controls) participated in the study. Exposure to selenium at the workplace was determined by personal air sampling. Internal exposure was assessed by measuring total selenium concentration in plasma after a workshift and after holidays as well as by measuring the selenium concentration in urine before and after shift and after holidays. The activity of glutathione peroxidase (GPx) in blood and the prothrombin time were determined as biological effect parameters.

Results

The exposure to selenium in the workplace air ranged from 8 to 950 µg/m3 and exceeded in a large part current occupational exposure limits. The selenium levels in plasma samples of the exposed ranged from 49 to 182 µg/L during exposure and were significantly higher than the plasma levels observed after holidays as well as in the control group. The selenium concentration in pre- and post-shift urine samples did not differ significantly, and the average urinary selenium levels of the employees (18–1,104 µg/g creatinine) were significantly higher than those measured after holidays or determined in controls. Both the concentration of selenium in plasma and in urine did not correlate with the current external exposure of the employees at the workplace. However, we found a strong and significant association between the two biomonitoring parameters. In spite of the considerable high external exposure to elemental selenium, we did not find any effect on the GPx activity in blood as well as on the prothrombin time.

Conclusions

Both the selenium levels in plasma and urine may be used as biological monitoring parameters for the assessment of chronic occupational exposure to selenium. Nevertheless, the toxicokinetics of the urinary excretion of selenium remain still unclear and require further investigations. Moreover, our findings emphasise the necessity of a re-evaluation of occupational exposure limits for elemental selenium and inorganic selenium compounds.

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Acknowledgments

The study was supported by the Franz-Koelsch Foundation for the Promotion of Occupational Medicine (Erlangen) and by the Federation of Supporters of the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (Unibund). The authors are grateful to all employees who participated in the study and the management of the plant. The authors are indebted to Johannes Müller who performed the air sampling, Barbara Verhoeven for her technical assistance and Michaela Förster for proofreading.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Author information

Affiliations

  1. Institute and Outpatient Clinic of Occupational-, Social- and Environmental Medicine, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany

    Th. Göen, B. Schaller, Th. Jäger, K. H. Schaller & H. Drexler

  2. AMZ Arbeitsmedizinisches Zentrum, Röthenbach, Germany

    Ch. Bräu-Dümler

Authors
  1. Th. Göen
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  2. B. Schaller
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  3. Th. Jäger
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  4. Ch. Bräu-Dümler
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  5. K. H. Schaller
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  6. H. Drexler
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Th. Göen.

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Göen, T., Schaller, B., Jäger, T. et al. Biological monitoring of exposure and effects in workers employed in a selenium-processing plant. Int Arch Occup Environ Health 88, 623–630 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-014-0989-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-014-0989-7

Keywords

  • Selenium
  • Biomonitoring
  • Toxicokinetics
  • Occupational exposure
  • Metal dust