College of Natural Resources and Environment, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China; Guangzhou Quality Supervision and Testing Institute, Guangzhou 511447, China.
Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China.
Sci Total Environ. 2021 Sep 10;786:147524. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.147524. Epub 2021 May 5.
The ban of some antibacterial ingredients, such as triclosan (TCS) and triclocarban (TCC), in personal care products (PCPs) in some countries (but not in China) has resulted in the increasing use of antibacterial alternatives, such as chloroxylenol (PCMX). However, the underlying human health risks and environmental impacts of PCMX exposure are largely unknown. Thus, the distribution characteristics of PCMX in PCPs and susceptible populations and the major routes and health risks of human exposure to PCMX were investigated. The PCMX, TCS, and TCC concentrations in PCPs, urine, drinking water, and surface water were determined using high-performance liquid chromatograph system equipped with diode array detector or triple quadrupole mass spectrometer. Results showed that PCMX is widely used in antibacterial hand sanitizers and household disinfectants in China. The addition of PCMX as an antibacterial ingredient in PCPs showed an increasing trend. The geomean concentrations of urinary PCMX in children and pregnant women were 21.6 and 31.9 μg·L, respectively, which were much higher than TCS and TCC. A considerable concentration of PCMX ranging from 1.62 to 9.57 μg·L was observed in the aquatic environment, suggesting a potential massive-use of PCMX by humans. Human PCMX exposure via drinking was negligible because the PCMX concentrations in drinking water were less than 2.00 ng·L. During human simulation experiment, we found that dermal contact was the dominant route of human PCMX exposure, accounting for 92.1% of the urinary PCMX concentration. The estimated daily intake of PCMX in 9.68% of children and 5.66% of pregnant women was higher than the reference dose. However, the urinary 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine concentrations remained stable despite the elevated PCMX concentrations, thereby suggesting that daily PCMX exposure may not cause oxidative DNA damage in humans. Nevertheless, the potential ecotoxicity and health risks induced by chronic PCMX exposure cannot be ignored because of its increasing use.
一些国家(但中国不在此列)禁止在个人护理产品(PCP)中使用某些抗菌成分,如三氯生(TCS)和三氯卡班(TCC),这导致了抗菌替代品如对氯间二甲苯酚(PCMX)的使用增加。然而,PCMX 暴露对人类健康的潜在风险和环境影响在很大程度上仍是未知的。因此,本研究调查了 PCMX 在 PCP 和易感人群中的分布特征,以及人类接触 PCMX 的主要途径和健康风险。采用高效液相色谱系统(配备二极管阵列检测器或三重四极杆质谱仪)测定了 PCP、尿液、饮用水和地表水的 PCMX、TCS 和 TCC 浓度。结果表明,PCMX 在中国广泛用于抗菌洗手液和家用消毒剂。PCMX 作为抗菌成分添加到 PCP 中呈上升趋势。儿童和孕妇尿液中 PCMX 的几何平均值分别为 21.6 和 31.9μg·L,明显高于 TCS 和 TCC。在水环境中观察到相当浓度的 PCMX(范围为 1.62 至 9.57μg·L),表明人类大量使用 PCMX。由于饮用水中 PCMX 浓度低于 2.00ng·L,人类通过饮水接触 PCMX 导致的暴露可忽略不计。在人体模拟实验中,我们发现皮肤接触是人体 PCMX 暴露的主要途径,占尿液中 PCMX 浓度的 92.1%。9.68%的儿童和 5.66%的孕妇每日摄入 PCMX 的估计值高于参考剂量。然而,尽管 PCMX 浓度升高,尿液中的 8-羟基-2'-脱氧鸟苷浓度仍保持稳定,这表明每日 PCMX 暴露不会导致人体 DNA 氧化损伤。然而,由于 PCMX 的使用日益增加,其引发的慢性 PCMX 暴露的潜在生态毒性和健康风险不容忽视。