Chi Youngchan, Park Jong-Tae, Na Sewhan, Kwak Kyeongmin
Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Korea University Ansan Hospital, Ansan, Korea.
Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Seoul National University Graduate School of Public Health, Seoul, Korea.
Ann Occup Environ Med. 2023 Jul 31;35:e27. doi: 10.35371/aoem.2023.35.e27. eCollection 2023.
Environmental exposure is characterized by low concentration, chronic, and complex exposure. Traditional epidemiological studies show limitations in reflecting these characteristics since they usually focus on a single or very limited number of exposure factors at a time. In this study, we adopted the methodology of environment-wide association study (EWAS) to figure out the association of human liver function with various environmentally hazardous substances.
We analyzed 2,961 participants from the Korean National Environmental Health Survey Cycle 4 (2018-2020). Using generalized linear model (GLM) analysis, we analyzed the association of 72 variables with 3 liver function indices (aspartate aminotransferase [AST], alanine aminotransferase [ALT], and gamma glutamyl transferase [GGT]). Finally, we visualized our results with Manhattan plot.
In GLM analysis, perfluorooctanesulfonate were positively associated with ALT (odds ratio [OR]: 2.2; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.39-3.46; = 0.0147) and perfluorodecanoic acid showed positive association with GGT (OR: 2.73; 95% CI: 1.36-5.5; = 0.0256). Plasma mercury showed positive association with GGT (OR: 1.45; 95% CI: 1.14-1.84; = 0.0315). Using a plastic container while keeping food in the refrigerator was associated with elevated GGT compared to using a glass container (OR: 1.51; 95% CI: 1.16-1.95; = 0.0153). 2-ethyl-5-oxohexyl phthalate, showed a negative trend with all 3 indices, with AST (OR: 0.54; 95% CI: 0.39-0.73; = 0.00357), ALT (OR: 0.5; 95% CI: 0.34-0.75; = 0.036), GGT (OR: 0.55; 95% CI: 0.4-0.76; = 0.00697). Bisphenol S and frequent use of sunblock cream showed negative association with ALT (OR: 0.77; 95% CI: 0.66-0.89), and GGT (OR: 0.25; 95% CI: 0.11-0.55), respectively.
We conducted an exploratory study on environmental exposure and human liver function. By using EWAS methodology, we identified 7 factors that could have potential association with liver function.
环境暴露具有低浓度、慢性和复杂暴露的特点。传统的流行病学研究在反映这些特征方面存在局限性，因为它们通常一次只关注单一或非常有限数量的暴露因素。在本研究中，我们采用全环境关联研究（EWAS）方法来确定人类肝功能与各种环境有害物质之间的关联。
我们分析了来自韩国第四次国家环境卫生调查（2018 - 2020年）的2961名参与者。使用广义线性模型（GLM）分析，我们分析了72个变量与3个肝功能指标（天冬氨酸转氨酶[AST]、丙氨酸转氨酶[ALT]和γ-谷氨酰转移酶[GGT]）之间的关联。最后，我们用曼哈顿图展示了我们的结果。
在GLM分析中，全氟辛烷磺酸与ALT呈正相关（优势比[OR]：2.2；95%置信区间[CI]：1.39 - 3.46；P = 0.0147），全氟癸酸与GGT呈正相关（OR：2.73；95% CI：1.36 - 5.5；P = 0.0256）。血浆汞与GGT呈正相关（OR：1.45；95% CI：1.14 - 1.84；P = 0.0315）。与使用玻璃容器相比，在冰箱中保存食物时使用塑料容器与GGT升高有关（OR：1.51；95% CI：1.16 - 1.95；P = 0.0153）。邻苯二甲酸2 - 乙基 - 5 - 氧代己酯与所有3个指标呈负相关趋势，与AST（OR：0.54；95% CI：0.39 - 0.73；P = 0.00357）、ALT（OR：0.5；95% CI：0.34 - 0.75；P = 0.036）、GGT（OR：0.55；95% CI：0.4 - 0.76；P = 0.00697）。双酚S和频繁使用防晒霜分别与ALT（OR：0.77；95% CI：0.66 - 0.89）和GGT（OR：0.25；95% CI：0.11 - 0.55）呈负相关。
我们对环境暴露与人类肝功能进行了一项探索性研究。通过使用EWAS方法，我们确定了7个可能与肝功能有潜在关联的因素。
