Arsenicosis history and research progress in Mainland China

Application of manganese oxide-based materials for arsenic removal: A review

In the context of growing arsenic (As) contamination in the world, there is an urgent need for an effective treatment approach to remove As from the environment. Industrial wastewater is one of the primary sources of As contamination, which poses significant risks to both microorganisms and human health, as the presence of As can disrupt the vital processes and synthesis of crucial macromolecules in living organisms. The global apprehension regarding As presence in aquatic environments persists as a key environmental issue. This review summarizes the recent advances and progress in the design, strategy, and synthesis method of various manganese-based adsorbent materials for As removal. Occurrence, removal, oxidation mechanism of As(III), As adsorption on manganese oxide (MnOx)-based materials, and influence of co-existing solutes are also discussed. Furthermore, the existing knowledge gaps of MnOx-based adsorbent materials and future research directions are proposed. This review provides a reference for the application of MnOx-based adsorbent materials to As removal.

Assessing Arsenic Species in Foods Using Regularized Linear Regression of the Arsenic K-edge X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure

The toxicity and bioavailability of arsenic is heavily dependent on its speciation. Therefore, robust and accurate methods are needed to determine arsenic speciation profiles for materials related to public health initiatives, such as food safety. Here, X-ray spectroscopies are attractive candidates as they provide in situ, nondestructive analyses of solid samples without perturbation to the arsenic species therein. This work provides a speciation analysis for three certified reference materials for the food chemistry community, whose assigned values may be used to assess the merit of the X-ray spectroscopy results. Furthermore, extracts of SRM 3232 Kelp Powder, which is value-assigned for arsenic species, are measured to provide further evidence of its efficacy. These analyses are performed on the results of As K-edge X-ray Absorption Near Edge Structure (XANES) measurements collected on each sample. Notably, such analyses have traditionally relied on linear combination fitting of a minimal subset of empirical standards selected by stepwise regression. This is known to be problematic for compounds with meaningfully collinear spectra and can yield overestimates of the accuracy of the analysis. Therefore, the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (lasso) regression method is used to reduce the risk of overfitting and increase the interpretability of statistical inferences. As this is a biased statistical method, results and uncertainties are estimated using a bootstrap method accounting for the dominant sources of variability. Finally, this method does not separate model and data selection from regression analysis. Indeed, a survey of many spectral influences is presented including changes in the: state of methylation, state of protonation, oxidation state, coordination geometry, and sample phase. These compounds were all included in the model's training set, preventing model over-simplification and enabling high-throughput and robust analyses.

Silica and graphene mediate arsenic detection in mature rice grain by a newly patterned current-volt aptasensor

Arsenic is a major global threat to the ecosystem. Here we describe a highly accurate sensing platform using silica nanoparticles/graphene at the surface of aluminum interdigitated electrodes (Al IDE), able to detect trace amounts of arsenic(III) in rice grain samples. The morphology and electrical properties of fabricated Al IDEs were characterized and standardized using AFM, and SEM with EDX analyses. Micrometer scale Al IDEs were fabricated with silicon, aluminum, and oxygen as primary elements. Validation of the bare Al IDE with electrolyte fouling was performed at different pH levels. The sensing surface was stable with no electrolyte fouling at pH 7. Each chemical modification step was monitored with current-volt measurement. The surface chemical bonds were characterized by fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and revealed different peaks when interacting with arsenic (1600-1000 cm^-1). Both silica nanoparticles and graphene presented a sensitive limit of detection as measured by slope calibration curves at 0.0000001 pg/ml, respectively. Further, linear regression was established using ΔI (A) = 3.86 E^-09 log (Arsenic concentration) [g/ml] + 8.67 E^-08 [A] for silica nanoparticles, whereas for graphene Y = 3.73 E^-09 (Arsenic concentration) [g/ml] + 8.52 E^-08 on the linear range of 0.0000001 pg/ml to 0.01 pg/ml. The R² for silica (0.96) and that of graphene (0.94) was close to the maximum (1). Modification with silica nanoparticles was highly stable. The potential use of silica nanoparticles in the detection of arsenic in rice grain extract can be attributed to their size and stability.

Untapped potentials of hazardous nanoarchitectural biopolymers

The First Industrial Revolution began when manual labour transitioned to machines. Fossil fuels and steam eventually replaced wood and water as an energy source used predominantly for the mechanized production of textiles and iron. The emergence of the required numerous enormous factories gave rise to smoke pollution due to the immense growth in coal consumption. The manufactured gas industry produced highly toxic effluent that was released into sewers and rivers polluting the water. Many pieces of legislation were introduced to overcome this issue, but with varying degrees of effectiveness. Alongside our growth in world population, the problems that we had with waste remained, but together with our increase in number the waste produced has also increased additionally. The immense volume of waste materials generated from human activity and the potentially detrimental effects on the environment and on public health have awakened in ourselves a critical need to embrace current scientific methods for the safe disposal of wastes. We are informed daily that our food waste must be better utilized to ensure enough food is available to feed the world's growing population in a sustainable way (Thyberg and Tonjes, 2016). Some things are easy, like waste food and cellulose products can be turned into compost, but how do we recycle sheep's wool? Or shrimp shells? Despite the fact that both these substances are hazardous, and have caused environmental and economic impact from being incinerated; but we anticipate that those substances may have the potential to convert into added value applications.We have been working in this area for over 15 years, working towards managing them and seeking their added value applications. We take the biological products, process (reconstitute) and engineer them into added value products such as functional and nanostructure materials including edible films, foams and composites including medical devices useful in the human body. Anything that we can ingest, should not cause an immune response in the human system. Natural biomacromolecules display the inherent ability to perform very specific chemical, mechanical or structural roles. Specifically, protein- and polysaccharide-based biomaterials have come to light as the most promising candidates for many biomedical applications due their biomimetic and nanostructured arrangements, their multi-functional features, and their capability to function as matrices that are capable of facilitating cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions.

Hydrogeochemical Processes Affecting Groundwater Chemistry in the Central Part of the Guanzhong Basin, China

Groundwater is essential for the sustainable development of the Guanzhong Basin, China, and its quality is mainly controlled by hydrogeochemical processes and anthropogenic pollution. This study used statistical and multivariate statistical analysis approaches to recognize the hydrogeochemical processes and affecting factors of groundwater in the central part of the Guanzhong Basin. Correlations among 14 hydrochemical parameters were statistically examined. Principal component analysis (PCA), factor analysis (FA), and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) techniques were applied to analyze the physicochemical variables to understand the affecting factors of groundwater quality in the study area. The correlation analysis results indicate that cation exchange is the dominant process affecting the concentration of Na⁺ and Ca²⁺ in the groundwater. Both the PCA and FA indicate that minerals dissolution/precipitation and human activities are the key factors that affect groundwater quality. All parameters except CO₃^2- and pH increase from C1 to C4 obtained through the Q mode HCA. C4 has a hydrochemical type of SO₄-Na·K, indicating that the sample of this cluster is primarily influenced by anthropogenic processes.

Prolonged inorganic arsenic exposure via drinking water impairs brown adipose tissue function in mice

Although epidemiologic studies show an association between long-term environmental inorganic arsenic (iAs) exposure and various disorders of glucose and lipid metabolism, the mechanisms of these ailments remain unclear. While white adipose tissue (WAT) essentially acts as a storage tissue for energy and is key to energy homeostasis, brown adipose tissue (BAT) consumes excess energy via uncoupling protein 1-mediated non-shivering thermogenesis in mitochondria and helps maintain the steady state of glucose and lipid metabolism. Our previous in vitro work found that iAs may inhibit adipogenesis and glucose uptake in adipocytes, leading us to hypothesize that chronic exposure to iAs in vivo may also affect the development and function of BAT, which plays a part in iAs-induced metabolic disorders. Thus, adult C57BL/6J female mice were provided drinking water containing 5 or 20 ppm of inorganic arsenicals (iAs³⁺ and iAs⁵⁺) for 17 weeks and control mice were given unaltered water. In these mice, iAs exposure induced cold intolerance and lipid accretion in BAT. In addition, iAs exposure impaired expression of various genes related to thermogenesis, mitochondrial function, adipocyte differentiation, as well as lipolysis in BAT of the exposed mice. These findings suggest a novel toxicity of iAs in BAT occurring via induction of BAT malfunction and impairment of thermogenesis. This novel toxicological linkage helps explain the mechanisms linking iAs exposure to increased risk of disorders of glucose and lipid metabolism.

On the Use of Hair Analysis for Assessing Arsenic Intoxication

Correlations between the concentrations of arsenic in scalp hair and in drinking water as well as in blood and/or urine have been reported. These correlations clearly show exposure–absorption–excretion relationships. In addition, arsenic metabolites such as monomethylarsonic acid and dimethylarsinic acid have been identified and quantified in these tissues and fluids, leaving little doubt that elevated levels of arsenic in the hair can reflect systemic arsenic intoxication. Consequently, hair analysis has potential merit as a screening procedure for poisoning by arsenic. However, questions regarding the exogenous versus the endogenous deposition of arsenic in the hair, and uncertainties about the normal level of arsenic in the hair remain unresolved. Pending their resolution, the determination of arsenic in hair should remain a screening tool, and clinical signs and symptoms should be employed to complete the diagnosis of arsenic poisoning.

Developments in the Diagnostic Techniques of Infectious Diseases: Rural and Urban Prospective

Objectives:

Diagnostics is the first step for the treatment and eradication of infectious microbial diseases. Due to ever evolving pathogens and emerging new diseases, there is an urgent need to identify suitable diagnostic techniques for better management of each disease. The success rate of specific diagnostic technique in any population depends on various factors including type of the microbial pathogen, availability of resources, technical expertise, disease severity and degree of epidemic of disease in the area. One of the important tasks of the policy makers is to identify and implement suitable diagnostic techniques for specific regions based on their specific requirements. In this review we have discussed various techniques available in the literature and their suitability for the target population based on above mentioned criteria.

Methods:

Diagnostic techniques evaluation of well documented representative microbial diseases; Tuberculosis (bacterial), Malaria (parasitic) and HIV (viral) were included in the study. Identification and collection of information and data was performed focusing on the diagnostic techniques used from the scientific publications from Pubmed, Science Access, Scopus, EMBASE and several regional databases. WHO and CDC database for Tuberculosis, Malaria and HIV were also included. These techniques were compared with respect to the financial resource availability, expertise and management, functional capacity, pathogen virulence and degree of epidemic in the population.

Results and Conclusion:

In case of Tuberculosis, ELISA and colorimetric techniques are successful in rural and urban communities with 80% – 90% sensitivity. Genotyping and SNP analysis are useful in drug resistant strains. Parasitic disease Malaria also follows the same trend with diagnostic techniques like RDTs being common in both population with fast results and around 90% sensitivity. STD disease like HIV however shows slight different trends due to urgent need of interference in rural epidemics of the disease. Rapid and sensitive immunotechniques like dipsticks and agglutination with almost 100% sensitivity are used in both rural and urban areas. For the confirmation further tests are done like protein Western and NAAT. Advance techniques could be the option for higher epidemic area, drug resistance and disease research, while rapid techniques would be suitable for low income areas and POC facilities. Therefore, suitability of the diagnostic techniques for better management depends not only on the financial resources and assessment skills of a community but sometimes on the disease itself. We have further discussed the technological improvements for specific settings (rural/urban) based on the past research for better management of diseases, which could be implemented for the understanding of understudied and newly emerging diseases.

An Oxidoreductase AioE is Responsible for Bacterial Arsenite Oxidation and Resistance

Previously, we found that arsenite (As^III) oxidation could improve the generation of ATP/NADH to support the growth of Agrobacterium tumefaciens GW4. In this study, we found that aioE is induced by As^III and located in the arsenic island near the As^III oxidase genes aioBA and co-transcripted with the arsenic resistant genes arsR1-arsC1-arsC2-acr3-1. AioE belongs to TrkA family corresponding the electron transport function with the generation of NADH and H⁺. An aioE in-frame deletion strain showed a null As^III oxidation and a reduced As^III resistance, while a cytC mutant only reduced As^III oxidation efficiency. With As^III, aioE was directly related to the increase of NADH, while cytC was essential for ATP generation. In addition, cyclic voltammetry analysis showed that the redox potential (ORP) of AioBA and AioE were +0.297 mV vs. NHE and +0.255 mV vs. NHE, respectively. The ORP gradient is AioBA > AioE > CytC (+0.217 ~ +0.251 mV vs. NHE), which infers that electron may transfer from AioBA to CytC via AioE. The results indicate that AioE may act as a novel As^III oxidation electron transporter associated with NADH generation. Since As^III oxidation contributes As^III detoxification, the essential of AioE for As^III resistance is also reasonable.

Joint effects of urinary arsenic methylation capacity with potential modifiers on arsenicosis: a cross-sectional study from an endemic arsenism area in Huhhot Basin, northern China

A lower arsenic methylation capacity is believed to be associated with various arsenic-related diseases. However, the synergistic effect of the arsenic methylation capacity and potential modifiers on arsenicosis risk is unclear. The current study evaluated the joint effect of the arsenic methylation capacity with several risk factors on the risk of arsenicosis characterized by skin lesions. In total, 302 adults (79 arsenicosis and 223 non-arsenicosis) residing in an endemic arsenism area in Huhhot Basin were included. Urinary levels of inorganic arsenic (iAs), monomethylarsonic acid (MMA), and dimethylarsinic acid (DMA) were determined, and the percentages of arsenic species (iAs%, MMA%, and DMA%), as well as two methylation indices (primary methylation index, PMI, and secondary methylation index, SMI), were calculated to assess the arsenic methylation capacity of individuals. The results showed that a lower methylation capacity, which is indicated by higher MMA% values and lower DMA% and SMI values, was significantly associated with arsenicosis after the adjustment for multiple confounders. The relative excess risk for interactions between higher MMA% values and older age was 2.35 (95% CI: -0.56, 5.27), and the relative excess risk for interactions between higher MMA% values and lower BMI was 1.08 (95% CI: -1.20, 3.36). The data also indicated a suggestive synergistic effect of a lower arsenic methylation capacity (lower DMA% and SMI) with older age, lower BMI, and male gender. The findings of the present study suggest that a lower arsenic methylation capacity was associated with arsenicosis and that certain risk factors may enhance the risk of arsenic-induced skin lesions.

Urinary Arsenic Concentrations and their Associated Factors in Korean Adults

Arsenic (As) is a well-known human carcinogen and its dietary exposure has been found to be the major route of entry into general population. This study was performed to assess the body levels of As and their associated factors in Korean adults by analyzing total As in urine. Urine and blood samples were collected from 580 adults aged 20 years and older, who had not been exposed to As occupationally. Demographic information was collected with the help of a standard questionnaire, including age, smoking, alcohol intake, job profiles, and diet consumed in the last 24 hrs of the study. Total As, sum of As(III), As(V), monomethylarsonic acid (MMA), dimethylarsinic acid (DMA), in urine was determined using atomic absorption spectrometer involving hydride generation method. The geometric mean concentration of total As in urine was 7.10 μg/L. Urine As was significantly higher in men (7.63 μg/L) than in women (6.75 μg/ L). Age, smoking, alcohol consumption, and job profiles of study subjects did not significantly affect the concentration of As in urine. No significant relationship was observed between body mass index (BMI), Fe, and total cholesterol in serum and urinary As. Urine As level was positively correlated with seaweeds, fishes & shellfishes, and grain intake. A negative correlation between urinary As level and HDL-cholesterol in serum and meat intake was observed. Overall, these results suggest that urinary As concentration could be affected by seafood consumption. Therefore, people who frequently consume seafood and grain need to be monitored for chronic dietary As exposure.

Coupling predicted model of arsenic in groundwater with endemic arsenism occurrence in Shanxi Province, Northern China

Statistical modeling has been used to predict high risk area of arsenic (As) hazard, but information about its application on endemic arsenism is limited. In this study, we aim to link the prediction model with population census data and endemic arsenicosis in Shanxi Province, Northern China. 23 explanatory variables from different sources were compiled in the format of grid at 1km resolution in a GIS environment. Logistic regression was applied to describe the relationship between binary-coded As concentrations data and the auxiliary predictors. 61 endemic arsenism villages were geo-located and combined with output maps of the prediction model. Linear regression was used to identify the relationship between arsenicosis occurrence rate and predictive As probability at village level. Our results show that 6 explanatory environmental variables were significantly contributed to the final model. Area of 3000 km(2) was found to have high risk of As concentrations above 50 μg L(-1). The linear regression indicates that 13% of the variation in arsenicosis occurrence rate can be predicted using predictive probability of As concentration above 50 μg L(-1) in Shanxi Province. These results suggest that As prediction model may be helpful for identifying As-contaminated area and endemic arsenism village.

Prolonged environmental exposure of arsenic through drinking water on the risk of hypertension and type 2 diabetes

Prolonged exposure to inorganic arsenic has been a severe environmental public health issue worldwide in the recent decades. Increasing evidence has suggested a possible role of prolonged arsenic exposure through drinking water in the development of arsenic-induced chronic noncancer diseases, among which hypertension and type 2 diabetes (T2D) are the focus of concern. Although exposure to high levels of arsenic has been reported to be associated with excess risk of hypertension or T2D in a dose-dependent manner, the association has yet to be established, especially low-level exposure. This cross-sectional study was designed to evaluate the potential association between prolonged environmental arsenic exposure through drinking water and the prevalence of hypertension and T2D in Inner Mongolia, China, with emphasis on the assessment of low-level exposure. In this study (a total of 669 men and women), we found that the blood pressure levels were significantly correlated with cumulative arsenic exposure and that the systolic blood pressure of the subjects with arsenic exposure>50 μg/L was significantly higher than those of the subjects with <10 and 10-50 μg/L exposure. Significant prevalence of hypertension was found in the subjects of the >50 μg/L group both before and after adjustment for confounders. In addition, a significant negative relationship was found between urinary arsenic percentage of dimethylated arsenic (DMA%) and the prevalence of hypertension in the >50 μg/L group. However, low-level arsenic exposure (10-50 μg/L) was not statistically associated with hypertension. No significant difference of blood glucose was found among the groups with different arsenic exposure levels. No statistical association was found between arsenic exposure and T2D. Our findings suggested that prolonged arsenic exposure might play a role in the development of hypertension; however, only high-level arsenic was associated with the risk of hypertension. Our findings also indicated that lower DMA% might be related with the increased susceptibility of arsenic-induced hypertension.

Groundwater arsenic contamination throughout China

Arsenic-contaminated groundwater used for drinking in China is a health threat that was first recognized in the 1960s. However, because of the sheer size of the country, millions of groundwater wells remain to be tested in order to determine the magnitude of the problem. We developed a statistical risk model that classifies safe and unsafe areas with respect to geogenic arsenic contamination in China, using the threshold of 10 micrograms per liter, the World Health Organization guideline and current Chinese standard for drinking water. We estimate that 19.6 million people are at risk of being affected by the consumption of arsenic-contaminated groundwater. Although the results must be confirmed with additional field measurements, our risk model identifies numerous arsenic-affected areas and highlights the potential magnitude of this health threat in China.

Association of urinary monomethylated arsenic concentration and risk of hypertension: a cross-sectional study from arsenic contaminated areas in northwestern China

BACKGROUND

Although some studies mainly from Taiwan, Bangladesh and the United States, have suggested a consistent dose-response increase in the prevalence of hypertension with increasing arsenic exposure, the association between chronic environmental arsenic exposure and the risk of hypertension is still inconclusive. Most of the studies discussed the association from the point of view of arsenic concentration in drinking water or cumulative arsenic exposure (CAE), few involved arsenic speciation into the discussion. In this cross-sectional study, we evaluated the potential association between environmental arsenic exposure through drinking water and the prevalence of hypertension by analyzing not only CAE but also urinary arsenic speciation, and provided data on arsenic exposure and hypertension from mainland of China.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted in one of the arsenic contaminated areas in the northwest of China. Among a total of 1005 residents who voluntarily participated in the study, 604 of eligible subjects were confirmed and interviewed door to door. Standing height, body weight, and blood pressure were measured. First void urine was collected and measured for the concentration of urinary arsenic speciation. CAE was calculated in a subpopulation of 360 subjects with detailed water consumption history. The association between urinary arsenic speciation, CAE and the risk of hypertension were analyzed by multiple logistic regressions.

RESULTS

We found that the levels of urinary arsenic species of inorganic arsenic (iAs), monomethylated arsenic (MMA), dimethylated arsenic (DMA) and total arsenic (tAs) were significantly correlated with systolic or pulse blood pressure. A positive relationship was found between the highest tertile of CAE and hypertension in a dose-dependent manner. Subjects with higher concentration of urinary MMA or lower percentage of DMA tended to be liable to suffer from hypertension. A significant increasing trend of the risk of hypertension with increasing tertiles of MMA concentration was also observed in the logistic regression models both before and after adjustment for confounders.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggested that arsenic exposure, especially high level of CAE, was positively associated with the prevalence of hypertension, and that higher concentration of urinary MMA might be related to the increased susceptibility to hypertension.

Arsenic metabolism and thioarsenicals

Arsenic has received considerable attention in the world, since it can lead to a multitude of toxic effects and has been recognized as a human carcinogen causing cancers. Here, we focus on the current state of knowledge regarding the proposed mechanisms of arsenic biotransformation, with a little about cellular uptake, toxicity and clinical utilization of arsenicals. Since pentavalent methylated metabolites were found in animal urine after exposure to iAs(III), methylation was considered to be a detoxification process, but the discovery of methylated trivalent intermediates and thioarsenicals in urine has diverted the view and gained much interest regarding arsenic biotransformation. To further investigate the partially understood phenomena relating to arsenic toxicity and the uses of arsenic as a drug, it is important to elucidate the exact pathways involved in metabolism of this metalloid, as the toxicity and the clinical uses of arsenic can be best recognized in context of its biotransformation. Thereby, in this perspective, we have focused on arsenic metabolic pathways including three proposed mechanisms: a classic pathway by Challenger in 1945, followed by a new metabolic pathway proposed by Hayakawa in 2005 involving arsenic-glutathione complexes, while the third is a new reductive methylation pathway that is proposed by our group involving As-protein complexes. According to previous and present in vivo and in vitro experiments, we conclude that the methylation reaction takes place with simultaneous reductive rather than stepwise oxidative methylation. In addition, production of pentavalent methylated arsenic metabolites are suggested to be as the end product of metabolism, rather than intermediates.