Lai Xi, Zhu Jiang, Liu Yangyang, Ma Shengtao, Lin Meiqing, Hu Yan, Liang Jingjing, Song Yanyan, Li Wenyan, Zhao Tianxin
Department of Child Health Care, Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangdong Provincial Clinical Research Center for Child Health, Guangzhou 510623, China.
Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Joint Laboratory for Contaminants Exposure and Health, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Environmental Catalysis and Health Risk Control, Institute of Environmental Health and Pollution Control, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China.
Toxics. 2025 Mar 17;13(3):218. doi: 10.3390/toxics13030218.
Phthalates are widely used plasticizers that can leach from consumer products and pose potential health risks, particularly to infants whose developing systems are vulnerable to environmental toxicants. While various exposure pathways have been identified, the contribution of dermal absorption from disposable diapers remains inadequately characterized. This study recruited 66 infants from Guangzhou, a representative city in southern China. Paired disposable diaper and urine samples were collected from each participant. Six phthalates in the diapers and nine metabolites in the urine were quantitatively analyzed. The predominant phthalate detected in the diapers was bis-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP, with a median concentration of 1670 ng/g, range: 678-5200 ng/g), followed by di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP, 948 ng/g, range: 189-5980 ng/g), di-iso-butyl phthalate (DiBP, 333 ng/g, range: 16.1-4910 ng/g), and diethyl phthalate (DEP, 252 ng/g, range: 116-3350 ng/g). In urine, metabolites of DEHP (mEHP, mEHHP, and mEOHP) were the most abundant (87.1 ng/mL), followed by mnBP (metabolites of DnBP, 44.6 ng/mL), mEP (metabolites of DEP, 33.7 ng/mL), and miBP (metabolites of DiBP, 13.9 ng/mL). A positive correlation was observed between DnBP levels in diapers and mnBP levels in urine (r = 0.259, = 0.035). Additionally, several urinary metabolites (miBP, mnBP, and mEP) were positively associated with a biomarker of DNA oxidative damage, 8-hydroxydeoxyguanosine (r = 0.265-0.316, < 0.01). The estimated daily uptake of DEP, DiBP, DnBP, and DEHP through dermal absorption from diapers accounted for 44.9%, 19.5%, 15.1%, and 7.76% of total exposure to these phthalates, respectively. These findings suggest that dermal absorption from diapers is a significant exposure pathway for infants. Given that both the amount of exposure and the contribution of dermal uptake are higher in younger infants, further attention is warranted to understand the potential effects of transdermal phthalate exposure on infant growth and development.
邻苯二甲酸盐是广泛使用的增塑剂，可从消费品中渗出并带来潜在健康风险，尤其是对发育中的系统易受环境毒物影响的婴儿。虽然已确定了各种接触途径，但一次性尿布的皮肤吸收贡献仍未得到充分描述。本研究从中国南方具有代表性的城市广州招募了66名婴儿。从每位参与者处收集了配对的一次性尿布和尿液样本。对尿布中的六种邻苯二甲酸盐和尿液中的九种代谢物进行了定量分析。尿布中检测到的主要邻苯二甲酸盐是邻苯二甲酸二（2-乙基己基）酯（DEHP，中位浓度为1670 ng/g，范围：678 - 5200 ng/g），其次是邻苯二甲酸二正丁酯（DnBP，948 ng/g，范围：189 - 5980 ng/g）、邻苯二甲酸二异丁酯（DiBP，333 ng/g，范围：16.1 - 4910 ng/g）和邻苯二甲酸二乙酯（DEP，252 ng/g，范围：116 - 3350 ng/g）。在尿液中，DEHP的代谢物（mEHP、mEHHP和mEOHP）含量最高（87.1 ng/mL），其次是mnBP（DnBP的代谢物，44.6 ng/mL）、mEP（DEP的代谢物，33.7 ng/mL）和miBP（DiBP的代谢物，13.9 ng/mL）。尿布中DnBP水平与尿液中mnBP水平之间存在正相关（r = 0.259，P = 0.035）。此外，几种尿液代谢物（miBP、mnBP和mEP）与DNA氧化损伤生物标志物8-羟基脱氧鸟苷呈正相关（r = 0.265 - 0.316，P < 0.01）。通过尿布皮肤吸收估计的DEP、DiBP、DnBP和DEHP的每日摄入量分别占这些邻苯二甲酸盐总暴露量的44.9%、19.5%、15.1%和7.76%。这些发现表明，尿布的皮肤吸收是婴儿的一个重要接触途径。鉴于较小婴儿的接触量和皮肤吸收贡献都更高，有必要进一步关注了解经皮邻苯二甲酸盐暴露对婴儿生长发育的潜在影响。
