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Quantification of polychlorinated biphenyl contamination using human placenta as biomarker from Punjab Province, Pakistan

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Abstract

The present study biomonitored the placental polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) concentrations in women from Punjab Province, Pakistan, that provides the pioneer data for occurrence and body burden of PCBs in placental tissues from South Asian women. The ∑34PCB concentrations in placental tissues were ranged from 20.2 to 115.98 ng/g lipid weight (lip. wt.), with predominance of tetra-PCB (54.67%). The levels of ∑8DL-PCBs and ∑6-indicator PCBs were ranged from 2.03 to 27.64 ng/g (lip. wt.) and 1.71 to 30.8 ng/g (lip. wt.), respectively. The WHO-TEQ2005 values for DL-PCBs were ranged from 1.18 × 10−5 to 0.067 ng/g (lip. wt.), with highest value evaluated for CB-126. The estimated daily intake (EDI) for DL-PCBs was ranged from 9.27 × 10−8 to 5.25 × 10−4 pg WHO-TEQ/kg body weight (bw), which was within the tolerable daily intake (TDI) values established by international organizations. The spatial distribution patterns of Σ34PCB concentrations from study area have shown relative higher concentrations in samples from urban and industrial cities than rural areas, and industrial and urban releases along with e-waste handling were recognized as vital PCB sources in the environment. In order to ascertain the transplacental transfer of PCBs, the fetal growth parameters were correlated with the ∑34PCB concentrations in placental tissues. The relationship between ∑34PCB concentrations in placental tissues and infant’s anthropometric measures through multiple linear regression showed a negative correlation of infant’s body weight (R2 = 0.0728), crown to heel length (R2 = 0.068), head circumference (R2 = 0.0342), chest circumference (R2 = 0.0001), and mid arm circumference (R2 = 0.0096) that noticeably highlights the inhibited fetal anthropometric development associated with maternal PCB bioaccumulation. Hence, an immediate elimination of ongoing PCB addition in the studied area has been emphasized and further investigations are suggested to appropriately manage the public and neonatal health risks in the region.

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Acknowledgements

We express our sincere gratitude to the State Key Laboratory of Organic Geochemistry, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, China for providing support for laboratory analysis.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of the Punjab, Lahore, 54590, Pakistan

    Anber Naqvi, Abdul Qadir & Iqra Aslam

  2. Department of Environmental Sciences, Government College Women University, Sialkot, 51310, Pakistan

    Adeel Mahmood

  3. Sustainable Development Study Centre, Government College University, Lahore, 54000, Pakistan

    Mujtaba Baqar

  4. District Headquarters Hospital Khanewal, Department of Primary and Secondary Health Care, Government of the Punjab, Lahore, 58270, Pakistan

    Farhan Sajid

  5. School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China

    Mehvish Mumtaz

  6. State Key Laboratory of Organic Geochemistry, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510640, China

    Jun Li & Gan Zhang

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  1. Anber Naqvi
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Correspondence to Abdul Qadir or Mujtaba Baqar.

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Naqvi, A., Qadir, A., Mahmood, A. et al. Quantification of polychlorinated biphenyl contamination using human placenta as biomarker from Punjab Province, Pakistan. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 14551–14562 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-018-1535-z

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