Elimination of short-chain chlorinated paraffins in diet after Chinese traditional cooking-a cooking case study

Associations between Cooking Methods and Socio-Demographic, Dietary, and Anthropometric Factors: Results from the Cross-Sectional Swiss National Nutrition Survey

INTRODUCTION

Appropriate cooking methods can improve food safety, decrease contaminants, and increase nutrient bioavailability. Few studies assessed the sociodemographic characterization of their use in European populations. We aimed to characterize the socio-demographic, lifestyle, and anthropometric predictors of cooking methods in the Swiss population.

METHODS

Adults aged 18-75 years (n = 2,050) participating in the cross-sectional national nutrition survey in Switzerland (menuCH) (2014-2015), representing the 7 main regions in the country. We used logistic regressions to assess the probability of the presence or absence of boiled, roasted, microwaved, oven-cooked, gratinated, fried, steamed, and grilled foods by sociodemographic variables.

RESULTS

Among all participants, the most frequently used cooking methods were boiling (46%), stove-cooking (19%), and steaming (8%). Single participants had a higher probability of consuming grilled or fried foods (68%) than their married counterparts and participants with obesity had a higher probability of consuming grilled or fried foods (67% or 135%) compared to those with normal weight. Divorced or separated participants had a 55% lower probability of consuming roasted foods than married participants. Those following a diet had a 57% lower probability of consuming grilled foods compared to those not on a diet.

CONCLUSION

We found differences in the distribution of cooking methods in the Swiss population by sociodemographic variables. Further studies should examine the link between cooking methods and disease risk.

Chlorinated paraffins in takeout food and its packaging in Beijing, China and dietary exposure risk

Chlorinated paraffins (CPs) are hazardous to humans, and dietary intake acts as the primary pathway for human exposure to CPs. Takeout food is popular worldwide, but the presence of CPs in takeout food and its packaging is unclear. In this study, the concentrations and distributions of short- and median-chain CPs (SCCPs and MCCPs, respectively) were measured in 97 samples of four categories of takeout food and 33 samples of three types of takeout packaging. The SCCP and MCCP median concentrations for the takeout food samples were 248 and 339, 77.2 and 98.2, 118 and 258, 42.9 and 64.4 ng/g wet weight in meat, starch, half meat/half starch, and vegetables, respectively. Takeout food contained higher concentrations of SCCPs than MCCPs. The dominant SCCP and MCCP congener groups in takeout food were C10Cl6-7 and C14Cl7-8, respectively. The CP concentrations in takeout food were lower than those in packaging. The SCCP and MCCP median concentrations, respectively, in packaging were 9750 and 245 ng/g in polypropylene, 2830 and 135 ng/g in paper, and 2060 and 119 ng/g in aluminum foil. The concentrations of SCCPs and MCCPs were comparable in aluminum foil, whereas the concentrations of SCCPs were higher than those of MCCPs in polypropylene and paper. Correlations between CP concentrations in the takeout food and packaging indicated that CPs in packaging were potentially an important source of CPs in the takeout food. A dietary exposure risk assessment showed the takeout food posed a low risk for human exposure to CPs; however, high-frequency consumption may pose a health risk. This study clarified the current contamination situation in takeout food in Beijing, China. The resulting data could be used to prevent human exposure to CPs through dietary intake and to facilitate the market's control over the quality of takeout food.

Biomonitoring, exposure routes and risk assessment of chlorinated paraffins in humans: a mini-review

Chlorinated paraffins (CPs), which were conventionally classified into short- (SCCPs), medium- (MCCPs) and long- (LCCPs) chain CPs, have received growing attention due to their wide usage and extensive detection in environmental samples and biota. The number of studies regarding the biomonitoring of CPs in human beings increased rapidly and their health risk gained great concern. This review summarized their occurrence and homologue patterns in human matrices including blood/serum, placenta, cord serum and breast milk. As the production and usage of SCCPs was progressively banned after being listed in Annex A of the Stockholm Convention, the production of MCCPs and LCCPs was stimulated. Accordingly, the ratio of MCCPs/SCCPs in human samples has increased rapidly in the last 5 years. The current understanding of exposure routes and risk assessments of CPs was also reviewed. Oral dietary intake is the most predominant source of daily CP intake, but dust ingestion, inhalation and dermal exposure is also nonnegligible, especially for MCCPs and LCCPs. Furthermore, the reported upper bound of the estimated daily intakes (EDIs) in various risk assessment studies was close to or exceeded the tolerable daily intakes (TDIs). Considering the bioaccumulation and long-lasting exposure of CPs, their health impacts on humans and the ecosystem required continuous monitoring and evaluation.

The potential health risks of short-chain chlorinated paraffin: A mini-review from a toxicological perspective

Short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) are ubiquitously distributed in various environmental matrics due to their wide production and consumption globally in the past and ongoing production and use in some developing countries. SCCPs have been detected in various human samples including serum, milk, placenta, nail, and hair, and internal SCCP levels were found to be positively correlated with biomarkers of some diseases. While the environmental occurrence has been reported in a lot of studies, the toxicity and underlying molecular mechanisms of SCCPs remain largely unknown. The current tolerable daily intakes (TDIs) recommended by the world health organization/international programme on chemical safety (WHO/IPCS, 100 μg/kg bw/d) and the UK Committee on Toxicity (COT, 30 μg/kg bw/d) were obtained based on a no observed adverse effect level (NOAEL) of SCCP from the repeated-dose study (90 d exposure) in rodents performed nearly 40 years ago. Importantly, the health risks assessment of SCCPs in a variety of studies has shown that the estimated daily intakes (EDIs) may approach and even over the established TDI by UK COT. Furthermore, recent studies revealed that lower doses of SCCPs could also result in damage to multiple organs including the liver, kidney, and thyroid. Long-term effects of SCCPs at environmental-related doses are warranted.

In Vivo Profiling and Quantification of Chlorinated Paraffin Homologues in Living Fish

Herein, we demonstrate the ability of a dual-purpose periodic mesoporous organosilica (PMO) probe to track the complex chlorinated paraffin (CP) composition in living animals by assembling it as an adsorbent-assisted atmospheric pressure chemical ionization Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (APCI-FT-ICR-MS) platform and synchronously performing it as the in vivo sampling device. First, synchronous solvent-free ionization and in-source thermal desorption of CP homologues were achieved by the introduction of the PMO adsorbent-assisted APCI module, generating exclusive adduct ions ([M - H]^-) of individual CP homologues (C_nCl_m) with enhanced ionization efficiency. Improved detection limits of short- and medium-chain CPs (0.10-24 and 0.48-5.0 pg/μL) were achieved versus those of the chloride-anion attachment APCI-MS methods. Second, the dual-purpose PMO probe was applied to extract the complex CP compositions in living animals, following APCI-FT-ICR-MS analysis. A modified pattern-deconvolution algorithm coupled with the sampling-rate calibration method was used for the quantification of CPs in living fish. In vivo quantification of a tilapia exposed to technical CPs for 7 days was successfully achieved, with ∑SCCPs and ∑MCCPs of the sampled fish calculated to be 1108 ± 289 and 831 ± 266 μg/kg, respectively. Meanwhile, 58 potential CP metabolites were identified in living fish for the first time during in vivo sampling of CPs, a capacity that could provide an important tool for future study regarding its expected risks to humans and its environmental fate.

Chlorinated paraffins: A review of sample preparation, instrumental analysis, and occurrence and distribution in food samples

Chlorinated paraffins (CPs) are released into natural environment during processes of production and utilization with diet being the most important exposure route of CPs for human beings. Short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) have lower molecular weights, higher vapor pressures, and higher water solubilities than medium-chain chlorinated paraffins (MCCPs) and long-chain chlorinated paraffins (LCCPs), making SCCPs more likely to be readily released into the environment. Thus, SCCPs were enlisted as persistent organic pollutants being included in the Stockholm Convention in 2017. This review article summarized sample preparation and instrumental analysis methods of CPs for food types such as oil, meat, and aquatic foods. In addition, reported concentrations and profiles, dietary intake and risk assessment of CPs in food samples from various regions, such as China, Japan, and Germany are discussed for studies published between 2005 and 2022. This review is timely given the lack of a recent literature summary of the concentration and distribution of CPs in food. All these studies warranted the necessity to maintain continuous monitoring of CPs concentrations and their potential health risks given the concentrations of CPs in food are increasing worldwide.

Evaluating the dynamic distribution process and potential exposure risk of chlorinated paraffins in indoor environments of Beijing, China

Chlorinated paraffins (CPs) are typical semi-volatile chemicals (SVOCs) that have been used in copious quantities in indoor material additives. SVOCs distribute dynamically between the gas phase and various condensate phases, especially organic films. Investigating the dynamic behaviors of existing CPs in indoor environments is necessary for understanding their potential risk to humans from indoor exposure. We investigate the distribution profiles of CPs in both gas phase and organic films in indoor environments of residential buildings in Beijing, China. The concentrations of CPs were in the range of 32.21-1447 ng/m³ in indoor air and in the range of 42.30-431.1 μg/m² and in organic films. Cooking frequency was identified as a key factor that affected the distribution profiles of CPs. Furthermore, a film/gas partitioning model was constructed to explore the transportation and fate of CPs. Interestingly, a re-emission phenomenon from organic films was observed for chemical groups with lower log K_oa components, and, importantly, their residue levels in indoor air were well predicted. The estimated exposure risk of CPs in indoor environment was obtained. For the first time, these results produced convincing evidence that the co-exposure risk of short-chain CPs (SCCPs), medium-chain CPs (MCCPs), and long-chain CPs (LCCPs) in indoor air could be further increased by film/gas distribution properties, which is relevant for performing risk assessments of exposure to these SVOCs in indoor environments.

Vertically-resolved indoor measurements of air pollution during Chinese cooking

Chinese cooking features several unique processes, e.g., stir-frying and pan-frying, which represent important sources of household air pollution. However, factors affecting household air pollution and the vertical variations of indoor pollutants during Chinese cooking are less clear. Here, using low-cost sensors with high time resolutions, we measured concentrations of five gas species and particulate matter (PM) in three different sizes at multiple heights in a kitchen during eighteen different Chinese cooking events. We found indoor gas species were elevated by 21%-106% during cooking, compared to the background, and PMs were elevated by 44%-159%. Vertically, the pollutants concentrations were highly variable during cooking periods. Gas species generally showed a monotonic increase with height, while PMs changed more diversely depending on the cooking activity's intensity. Intense cooking, e.g., stir-frying, pan-frying, or cooking on high heat, tended to shoot PMs to the upper layers, while moderate ones left PMs within the breathing zone. Individuals with different heights would be subject to different levels of household air pollution exposure during cooking. The high vertical variability challenges the current indoor standard that presumes a uniform pollution level within the breathing zone and thus has important implications for public health and policy making.

Initial dietary risk assessment of chlorinated paraffins in edible fungi in Chinese markets

Dietary intake is one of the main pathways for residents to become exposed to chlorinated paraffins (CPs). In China, due to the popularization of nutritional and medicinal edible fungi, consumption has increased on a yearly basis. Edible fungi have a variety of active substances and are consumed daily by residents. However, there is limited information on the concentration and source of chlorinated paraffins in edible fungi. In this study, the concentrations of short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) and medium-chain chlorinated paraffins (MCCPs) in 105 edible fungi samples and 36 culture material samples were detected. The concentration range of SCCPs was 79.8 ng/g dw to 3879.3 ng/g dw, and the MCCPs was ND to 572.3 ng/g dw. Spearman correlation analysis indicated that the sources of SCCPs and MCCPs in edible fungi were similar (r = 0.57, p < 0.01). The preponderant SCCPs and MCCPs congener group profiles were C₁₀ Cl_7-8 and C₁₄ Cl_6-8 . CPs were detected in culture materials, the concentration range of SCCPs was 320.2 ng/g dw to 4326 ng/g dw, and the MCCPs was 333.4 ng/g dw to 4517.4 ng/g dw. And the preponderant SCCPs and MCCPs homologues in culture materials were C_11-12 Cl₆ and C₁₄ Cl₆ . The linear discriminant analysis results indicated different contamination models of CPs between edible fungi and culture materials. The mean estimated daily intake values of SCCPs and MCCPs were 308.1 ng/kg bw/d and 94.4 ng/kg bw/d, respectively, indicating no potential health risk posed by CP exposure in edible fungi.

Occurrence, Distribution and Health Risk of Short-Chain Chlorinated Paraffins (SCCPs) in China: A Critical Review

With being listed in the Stockholm Convention, the ban on short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) has been put on the agenda in China. Based on the literature over the past decade, this study comprehensively analyzed the occurrence, distribution of and human exposure to SCCPs in China, aiming to provide a reference for the changes in SCCPs after the ban. SCCPs were ubiquitous in environmental matrices, and the levels were considerably higher than those in other countries. SCCPs from the emission region were 2–4 orders of magnitude higher than those in the background area. Environmental processes may play an important role in the SCCP profiles in the environment, and C10 and Cl6 were identified as potential factors distinguishing their spatial distribution. River input was the dominant source in the sea areas, and atmospheric transport was the main source in the remote inland areas. Ingestion and dermal absorption and food intake may pose potential risk to residents, especially for children and infants. More studies are needed on their temporal trend, source emission and environmental degradation. The enactment of the restriction order will have a great impact on China’s CP industry; nevertheless, it will play a positive role in the remediation of SCCP pollution in the environment.

Assessing Safety of Market-Sold Fresh Fish: Tracking Fish Origins and Toxic Chemical Origins

Increasing global and domestic food trade and required logistics create uncertainties in food safety inspection due to uncertainties in food origins and extensive trade activities. Modern blockchain techniques have been developed to inform consumers of food origins but do not provide food safety information in many cases. A novel food safety tracking and modeling framework for quantifying toxic chemical levels in the food and the food origins was developed. By integrating chemicals' multimedia environment exchange, food web, and source tracking systems, the framework was implemented to identify short-chain chlorinated paraffin (SCCP) contamination of fresh hairtail fish sold by a Walmart supermarket in Xi'an, northwestern China, and sourced in Eastern China Sea coastal waters. The framework was shown to successfully predict SCCP level with a mean of 17.8 ng g^-1 in Walmart-sold hairtails, which was comparable to lab-analyzed 21.9 ng g^-1 in Walmart-sold hairtails. The framework provides an alternative and cost-effective approach for safe food inspection compared to traditional food safety inspection techniques. These encouraging results suggest that the approach and rationale reported here could add additional information to the food origin tracking system to enhance transparency and consumers' confidence in the traded food they consumed.

Parameter Optimization of Catering Oil Droplet Electrostatic Coalescence under Coupling Field with COMSOL Software

At present, the common cooking fume purification devices are mostly based on electrostatic technology. There are few researches on the microscopic process of coalescence and electric field parameters’ optimization. In this paper, COMSOL MultiphysicsTM was used to simulate the electrostatic coalescence of oil droplets in the coupling field of an electric field and flow field. The degree of deformation of oil droplets (D) and the starting coalescence time (tsc) were used to evaluate the coalescence process. The feasibility of the model was verified through experimental results. The effects of voltage, flow speed and oil droplet radius on tsc were investigated, and the parameters were optimized by the response surface method and Matrix correlation analysis. It can be concluded that increasing the voltage, flow speed and oil droplet radius appropriately would be conducive to the coalescence of oil droplets. When the oil droplet radius was in the range of 0–1.5 mm, it promoted the coalescence of oil droplets. The influence of various factors on oil droplet coalescence was flow speed > voltage > oil droplet radius. The optimal result obtained by simulation was that when the radius of the oil droplet was 1.56 mm, the voltage 12 kV and the flow speed 180 mm/ms, the shortest coalescence time of oil droplets was 16.8253 ms.

Occurrences, congener group profiles, and risk assessment of short- and medium-chain chlorinated paraffins in cup instant noodles from China

Dietary intake is an important route of human exposure to chlorinated paraffins (CPs). Cup instant noodles are widely popular food and millions packet of instant noodles are consumed every year. To investigate the levels, congener groups, and health risk of SCCPs and MCCPs in each component of cup instant noodles, samples of nine common brands were collected and analyzed by comprehensive two dimensional gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry. The mean concentrations in the noodles were 1.2 × 10³ ng/g wet weight (ww) (SCCPs) and 1.2 × 10² ng/g ww (MCCPs), the mean concentrations in the seasoning were 1.4 × 10³ ng/g ww (SCCPs) and 1.3 × 10² ng/g ww (MCCPs), and the mean concentrations in the soup were 5.6 × 10² ng/L (SCCPs) and 5.4 × 10² ng/L (MCCPs). The SCCP to MCCP ratio were similar in the soup and soup container, which means CPs in the soup might be migrated from the soup container. Seasoning and noodles from the same brands have similar congener profiles of SCCPs and MCCPs, which may be raised from the manufacturing process or food packaging materials. The dominant SCCP congener groups were C_10-11Cl_6-7 in noodles and seasoning, and C_10,13Cl_6-7 in soup. The dominant MCCP congener groups were C_14-15Cl_6-7 in noodles and seasoning, and C_14-15Cl_6-7 in soup. A preliminary health risk assessment indicated that the current intakes of SCCPs and MCCPs through cup instant noodles in China did not pose a significant risk to human health.

Chlorinated paraffins in infant foods from the Chinese market and estimated dietary intake by infants

Food intake has been identified as a major route for infants to short- and medium-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs and MCCPs, respectively), but evaluations of SCCPs and MCCPs exposure for infants via dietary sources are limited. Here, SCCPs and MCCPs were analyzed in three categories of commonly used infant foods from the Chinese market. The mean concentrations (range) of SCCPs in infant formulas, cereals, and purees were 7.95 (2.32-54.2), 4.26 (2.73-8.81), and 4.66 (1.33-8.43) ng g^-1 fresh weight, respectively, and the mean (range) MCCP concentrations were 4.77 (1.67-20.9), 2.91 (1.21-8.24), and 1.89 (0.53-5.41) ng g^-1 fresh weight, respectively. Chlorinated paraffins (CP) concentrations in whole milk samples were significantly higher than those detected in the other infant foods (p < 0.01). This study is the first to determine the occurrence of CPs in baby purees. The estimated margin of exposure (MOE) values (SCCPs-MOE and MCCPs-MOE) in this study were all greater than 1000, indicating that there were no health risks posed by CP contamination in infant foods. Principal component analysis indicated that foods of animal origin were more influenced by MCCPs than those of plant-origin, indicating different contamination patterns of CPs between food groups.

Application of the GC-HRMS based method for monitoring of short- and medium-chain chlorinated paraffins in vegetable oils and fish

The aim of this study was to develop methods for the determination of short- and medium-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs; MCCPs) in vegetable oils and fish employing gas chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry because of a lack of information on the presence of chlorinated paraffins in food consumed in Europe. For isolation of CPs from fish, an ethyl acetate extraction followed by a clean-up of the extract by gel permeation chromatography was performed. The same purification step was used for the isolation of CPs from the vegetable oils. The concentration range for SCCPs was <10-389 ng/g lipid weight (lw, mean 36 ng/g lw for the oils and 28 ng/g lw for the fish) and that for MCCPs was <20-543 ng/g lw (mean 55 ng/g lw for the oils and 59 ng/g lw for the fish). There was found a high variability in concentrations of CPs influenced by area of origin.

Short- and medium-chain chlorinated paraffin exposure in South Germany: A total diet, meal and market basket study

Short- and medium-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs, MCCPs) are high-production volume industrial chemicals that have been previously reported to occur in food, packaging material and the environment. This study presents an assessment of dietary exposure for consumers in Southern Germany based on three different sampling approaches: (i) a classical market basket study (n = 154), (ii) the analysis of ready-made meals from restaurants (n = 10), and (iii) a total diet approach (n = 21). In 35% of the samples, CPs were below the method limit of quantification. Highest amounts of SCCPs and MCCPs were found especially in extra virgin olive oils (EVOOs) and fish. Homologue patterns indicated the partial removal of CPs during the refining of (other) edible oils. Ready-made meals contained only low amounts of CPs equal to estimations based on market basket samples. Total diet samples from the same hospital were generally comparable with each other regardless of diet, although vegetarian meal plans with high amounts of cheese and other dairy products contained up to an order of magnitude more CPs than other diets. Taking all approaches into account, calculated daily exposures for adults ranged 35-420 ng/kg bw/day for ΣSCCPs and 22-840 ng/kg bw/day for ΣMCCPs, which is between one and two orders of magnitude higher than the current dietary intake of polychlorinated biphenyls (indicator PCBs) in Europe.

Short- and Medium-Chain Chlorinated Paraffins in Foods from the Sixth Chinese Total Diet Study: Occurrences and Estimates of Dietary Intakes in South China

Food consumption has been identified as a major pathway for human exposure to short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) and medium-chain chlorinated paraffins (MCCPs), but evaluations of SCCP and MCCP intake from major dietary sources are limited. We used the sixth Chinese Total Diet Study to perform a comprehensive investigation of SCCPs and MCCPs in cereals, vegetables, potatoes, legumes, eggs, milk, meats, and aquatic foods from nine southern provinces. The geographical distribution of CP concentrations showed higher levels in Jiangsu, Hubei, and Zhejiang provinces. The CP concentrations in most animal-origin foods were higher than those in foods of plant origin. The total estimated daily intakes (EDIs) of SCCPs and MCCPs, with average values of 7.0 × 10² and 4.7 × 10² ng kg^-1 day^-1, respectively, were mostly contributed by cereals, vegetables, and meats. Risk assessment indicated the EDIs of CPs posed no significant risk to residents in South China.

Short-chain chlorinated paraffins in various foods from Republic of Korea: Levels, congener patterns, and human dietary exposure

Short-chain chlorinated paraffin (SCCP) concentrations in 419 food samples (from 59 species) from Republic of Korea were determined. The SCCP concentrations and lipid contents in whole foods positively correlated and the highest SCCP concentration (891 ng/g wet weight) was observed in fats and oils. The SCCP concentrations were higher in benthic fish/shellfish and demersal fish than other fish and shellfish. The SCCP concentrations were higher in duck meat and eggs than meat and eggs of other species. The chlorine-based congener group patterns were related to the lipid contents of the foods. SCCPs in eggs (high lipid content) were dominated by more-chlorinated SCCPs (particularly Cl₈-SCCPs, which contributed 43% of the total) but SCCPs in seaweed (low lipid content) were dominated by less-chlorinated SCCPs (particularly Cl₆-SCCPs, which contributed 46%). Dietary SCCP intakes were calculated using the median SCCP concentrations and estimated 888 and 781 ng/kg/d for male and female Korean adults, respectively. The predominant contributing foods to SCCP dietary exposure differed according to sex and age. Dairy products contributed most (about 50%) for infants/children (1-5 y old), but meat and dairy products contributed most for adult males and females, respectively. Grain contributed most for ≥65 y old.

Distributions and Congener Group Profiles of Short-Chain and Medium-Chain Chlorinated Paraffins in Cooking Oils in Chinese Markets

Chlorinated paraffins (CPs) are organic pollutants that have caused widespread concerns in recent years. Because of their lipophilic characteristics, CPs may enter into the body through diet or other routes and exert adverse effects on human health. In this study, we investigated the occurrence and congener profiles of short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) and medium-chain chlorinated paraffins (MCCPs) in 176 cooking oils and 19 oil containers collected from various markets in China. The concentrations of SCCPs and MCCPs in cooking oils were in the range of not detected (ND) to 16,055 ng/g and ND to 11,612 ng/g, respectively, and the geomean concentrations of MCCPs were lower than those of SCCPs. The concentrations of CPs in sesame oil, rapeseed oil, and camellia oil were higher than those in other types of oils, and different oil processing methods had different effects on the presence of CPs in the oils. CPs were detected in 5 out of 20 oil containers, although their concentrations were much lower than those detected in the oil samples, indicating that containers are not the main sources of CPs detected in the oils. The mean SCCP and MCCP intakes through cooking oils of the general Chinese population were 8.83 and 6.09 μg/kg/d, respectively.

Dietary exposure and risk assessment of short-chain chlorinated paraffins in supermarket fresh products in Jinan, China

Dietary intake is the major route for the exposure of residents to short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs). SCCPs are classified as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) by the Stockholm Convention since May 2017. This study assessed the general population's dietary exposure to SCCPs through supermarket products. Five food categories, which included 40 food species, were collected from five supermarkets in April 2019. The SCCP concentrations in all food matrices varied between 58.6 and 1977 ng g^-1 dry weight (dw), with the average and standard deviation (SD) value of 301 ± 379 ng g^-1 dw. Generally, the SCCP concentrations in animal-origin food matrices were higher than those in plant-origin food matrices. The C₁₀Cl₇ congeners were predominant among the congener groups of SCCPs. The proportion of C₁₀ congeners in the animal-origin food samples (29.8%) was lower than that in the plant-origin food samples (39.7%), and the C₁₃ congeners showed a contrasting result. The estimated daily intake (EDI) of SCCPs through dietary intake for the residents was 3109 ng kg^-1 day^-1, which is much lower than the standards of European Food Safety Authority (10 mg kg^-1 day^-1) for SCCPs. Risk assessment based on the supermarket foods indicated that SCCP exposure through dietary intake does not cause adverse effects to human health according to the margin of exposure (MOE).

Risk assessment of chlorinated paraffins in feed and food

The European Commission asked EFSA for a scientific opinion on the risks for animal and human health related to the presence of chlorinated paraffins in feed and food. The data for experimental animals were reviewed and the CONTAM Panel identified the liver, kidney and thyroid as the target organs for the SCCP and MCCP mixtures tested in repeated dose toxicity studies. Decreased pup survival and subcutaneous haematoma/haemorrhage were also identified as critical effects for an MCCP mixture. For the LCCP mixtures tested, the liver was identified as the target organ. The Panel selected as reference points a BMDL 10 of 2.3 mg/kg bw per day for increased incidence of nephritis in male rats, and of 36 mg/kg bw per day for increased relative kidney weights in male and female rats for SCCPs and MCCPs, respectively. For LCCPs, a reference point relevant for humans could not be identified. Due to the limitations in the toxicokinetic and toxicological database, the Panel concluded that derivation of a health-based guidance value was not appropriate. Only limited data on the occurrence of SCCPs and MCCPs in some fish species were submitted to EFSA. No data were submitted for LCCPs. Thus, a robust exposure assessment and consequently a complete risk characterisation could not be performed. A preliminary risk characterisation based only on the consumption of fish was performed, and the calculated margins of exposure suggested no health concern for this limited scenario. The Panel noted that dietary exposure will be higher due to the contribution of CPs from other foods. The Panel was not able to identify reference points for farm animals, horses and companion animals. No occurrence data for feed were submitted to EFSA. Therefore, no risk characterisation could be performed for any of these animal species.

Binding specificities of estrogen receptor with perfluorinated compounds: A cross species comparison

BACKGROUND

Perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) were reported to result in the endocrine disruption by activating the estrogen receptor (ER) and inducing ER-mediated transcriptions.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the present work was to perform cross-species comparisons on the characteristics of eight PFCs binding to humans ERα and to rats ERα.

METHODS

In the present work, in vivo tests, including serum estradiol level assay and immunohistochemical staining, fluorescence assay and molecular models were applied.

RESULTS

Based on the in vivo experiments, the exposure of PFOA and PFOS to female rats was proved to increase the ERα expression in the terus, suggesting that PFCs may act as estrogenic compounds to activate ERα in vivo. The further fluorescence assay presented that these eight PFCs have stronger binding abilities to human ERα than to rat ERα. In addition, the differences in binding specificities between human ERα and rat ERα were identified in the process of molecular dynamics modeling with the term of helix position and the ability of coregulator recruitment. It can be found that more and stronger charge clamps could form between PFCs with human ERα than with rat ERα. Also, the eight PFCs presented lower binding energies in human ERα systems, which proved that eight PFCs presented much stronger binding abilities with human ERα.

DISCUSSION

In all, it can be concluded that PFCs might be more sensitive to human ERα than to that of rats, which also suggested the greater susceptibility to adverse effects on humans. The present work was a beginning assessment of a cross-species comparison, providing important information on health impacts of PFCs in humans.

The environmental distribution and toxicity of short-chain chlorinated paraffins and underlying mechanisms: Implications for further toxicological investigation

Short-chain chlorinated paraffin (SCCP) pollution has become a global threat. Much attention has been paid to their environmental occurrence and toxicity. In this review, we summarized the wide distribution of SCCPs in various environmental matrices and biota, including human beings. Toxicokinetics and the toxicities of SCCPs, including lethality, hepatotoxicity, developmental toxicity, carcinogenicity, endocrine- and metabolism-disrupting effects, and immunomodulatory effects have been considered. The mechanisms of SCCP toxicity are mainly related to oxidative stress, metabolic disturbance, endocrine disruption and binding to biomacromolecules. In the future, further studies of SCCPs should focus on searching for their novel toxicity targets, and uncovering their toxic effects using transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and mutigenerational toxicity.

Methods for trace analysis of short-, medium-, and long-chain chlorinated paraffins: Critical review and recommendations

Many methods for quantifying chlorinated paraffins (CPs) yield only a total concentration of the mixture as a single value. With appropriate analytical instrumentation and quantification methods, more reliable and detailed analysis can be performed by quantifying total concentrations of short-, medium-, and long-chain CPs (SCCPs, MCCPs, and LCCPs), and in the current optimal situation by quantifying individual carbon-chlorine congener groups (C_nCl_m). Sample extraction and clean-up methods for other persistent organochlorines that have been adapted for recovery of CPs must be applied prior to quantification with appropriate quality assurance and quality control to ensure applicability of the methods for SCCPs, MCCPs, and LCCPs. Part critical review, part tutorial, and part perspective, this paper provides practical guidance to analytical chemists who are interested in establishing a method for analysis of CPs in their lab facilities using commercial reference standards, or for expanding existing analysis of total CPs or SCCPs to analysis of SCCPs, MCCPs, and LCCPs, or to analysis of C_nCl_m congener groups.