Dodecyl gallate as a pro-ecological antioxidant for food packing materials

Synthetic phenolic antioxidants and their major metabolites in human fingernail

Synthetic phenolic antioxidants (SPAs) have been widely used in foods, polymers, and cosmetics, but very limited information is available about their occurrence in human tissues. In this study, five SPAs, namely 2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-methylphenol (BHT), 2-tert-butyl-4-hydroxyanisole (BHA), propyl-, octyl-, and dodecyl-gallate (PG, OG, and DG), and four major metabolites of BHT, including 3,5-di-tert-butyl-4 -hydroxybenzaldehyde (BHT-CHO), 2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-(hydroxymethyl) phenol (BHT-OH), 3,5-di-tertbutyl-4-hydroxybenzoic acid (BHT-COOH), and 2,6-di-tert-butyl-1,4-benzoquinone (BHT-Q), were determined in human fingernail samples collected from Nanjing, China. Total concentrations of the nine target analytes (∑₉SPAs) were 523-14,000 ng/g. BHT was the predominant SPA compound and detected in all samples at a range of 309-11,400 ng/g. The ∑₉SPAs was negatively correlated with age of fingernail donors (p < 0.05). In addition, indoor dust samples from the living places of the fingernail providers were collected with aim to better understand the SPA exposure pathways. A positive correlation (p < 0.05) was found only for DG concentrations between paired fingernail and dust samples, while not for other SPAs, suggesting that SPAs accumulated in fingernails may not be mainly from indoor dust. SPAs were measured for the first time in human fingernail, and the elevated concentrations in fingernail suggest that the health risk of SPAs should be paid more attention due to their bioaccumulation potential in human body. Further studies are warranted about exposure pathway, distribution and metabolism of SPAs in human body.

Synthetic Phenolic Antioxidants and Their Metabolites in Sediments from the Coastal Area of Northern China: Spatial and Vertical Distributions

Synthetic phenolic antioxidants (SPAs) are widely used in foodstuffs, cosmetics, plastics, and rubber products. Little is known about their spatiotemporal distribution in the marine environment. In this study, a total of 144 surface sediments and three sediment cores were collected from the coastal areas of northern China to determine the spatial and vertical distributions of SPAs. For surface sediments, the total concentrations of five SPAs and their four metabolites (∑₉SPAs) ranged from 133 to 4800 (mean: 588) ng/g dry weight (dw). The ∑₉SPAs in surface sediments showed a decrease trend with the distance from the coast to the open sea. For sediment core samples, the ∑₉SPAs in the inner-shelf mud (core-1 and core-3) showed a slight increase trend from the bottom to upper layers, whereas that in the central-shelf mud (core-2) did not. The principal component analysis suggests that the composition profiles of SPAs in both surface sediment and sediment core samples were similar, while the sediments close to the coast were obviously affected by the human activities. This is the first study to report the spatial and vertical distributions of SPAs and their metabolites in sediments from the coastal marine environment.

Synthetic Phenolic Antioxidants and Their Metabolites in Indoor Dust from Homes and Microenvironments

Synthetic phenolic antioxidants (SPAs), including 2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxytoluene (BHT), are extensively used in food, cosmetic and plastic industries. Nevertheless, limited information is available on human exposures, other than the dietary sources, to SPAs. In this study, occurrence of 9 SPAs and their metabolites/degradation products was determined in 339 indoor dust collected from 12 countries. BHT was found in 99.5% of indoor dust samples from homes and microenvironments at concentrations that ranged from < LOQ to 118 μg/g and 0.10 to 3460 μg/g, respectively. This is the first study to measure BHT metabolites in house dust (0.01-35.1 μg/g) and their concentrations accounted for 9.2-58% of the sum concentrations (∑SPAs). 3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxybenzaldehyde (BHT-CHO), 2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-(hydroxymethyl)phenol (BHT-OH), 2,6-di-tert-butyl-1,4-benzoquinone (BHT-Q) were the major derivatives of BHT found in dust samples. The concentrations of gallic acid esters (gallates) in dust from homes and microenvironments ranged from < LOQ to 18.2 and < LOQ to 684 μg/g, respectively. The concentrations and profiles of SPAs varied among countries and microenvironments. Significantly elevated concentrations of SPAs were found in dust from an e-waste workshop (1530 μg/g). The estimated daily intake (EDI) of BHT via house dust ingestion ranged from 0.40 to 222 ng/kg/d (95th percentile).