Analysis of breast milk to assess exposure to chlorinated contaminants in Kazakhstan: Sources of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) exposuresin an agricultural region of southern Kazakhstan

Citation
K. Hooper et al., Analysis of breast milk to assess exposure to chlorinated contaminants in Kazakhstan: Sources of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) exposuresin an agricultural region of southern Kazakhstan, ENVIR H PER, 107(6), 1999, pp. 447-457
Citations number
63
Language
INGLESE
art.tipo
Article
Categorie Soggetti
Environment/Ecology,"Pharmacology & Toxicology
Journal title
ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES
ISSN journal
0091-6765 → ACNP
Volume
107
Issue
6
Year of publication
1999
Pages
447 - 457
Database
ISI
SICI code
0091-6765(199906)107:6<447:AOBMTA>2.0.ZU;2-F
Abstract
High levels of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD; up to 208 pg/g fa t) were measured in samples of breast milk collected in 1997 from 64 donors [41 first-time mothers (primiparae)] living on state farms in southern Kaz akhstan. TCDD was the major contributor (70%) to the toxic equivalents, mat ching the congener patterns found in breast milk and serum samples collecte d in 1994 and 1996 from donors in nearby villages. The highest TCDD levels were found in state farms adjacent to a reservoir (zone A), which receives agricultural runoff from cotton fields. TCDD levels in zone A were signific antly higher than levels in a region more distant (zone B; > 10 miles) from the reservoir (zone A: mean 53 pg/g, n = 17; zone B: mean 21 pg/g, n = 24; p = 0.0017). Levels of TCDD in breast milk and animal-derived foodstuffs w ere 10 times U.S. levels. Body burden and dietary data suggest that exposur es to TCDD are chronic, environmental, and long term and may be related to the use of chemicals in cotton agriculture. The data suggest that the most likely source is the use of cotton defoliants contaminated with TCDD, and t he most likely pathway for human exposure is via the consumption of contami nated foodstuffs.