Essandoh Yaw Edu, Steiniche Tessa, Xia Chunjie, Romanak Kevin, Ogwang Jimmy, Mutegeki Richard, Wasserman Michael, Venier Marta
O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University, 702 North Walnut Grove, Bloomington, IN, 47405, USA.
Department of Anthropology, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA; Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA, USA.
Environ Res. 2025 Jul 15;277:121522. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2025.121522. Epub 2025 Apr 1.
The increasing use of synthetic chemicals, including pesticides for agriculture and flame retardants from consumer products like electronics, raises environmental concerns for public health and biodiversity, particularly in agricultural and rural communities. Although these chemicals have been extensively studied in industrialized regions, data on human exposure particulary near protected areas in sub-Saharan Africa, remain scarce. This study provides novel insights into chemical exposure among different occupational groups in Uganda using silicone wristbands. We collected 39 silicone wristbands from participants living around Kibale National Park, including tea workers (n = 8), researchers (n = 10), commercial farmers (n = 6), subsistence farmers (n = 7), and urban workers (n = 8), and analyzed for 21 polybrominated biphenyl ethers (PBDEs), 11 novel flame retardants (nFRs), 20 current-use pesticides (CUPs), and 21 organochlorine pesticides (OCPs). CUPs the most abundant chemicals detected (range 18.2-54.4 ng/g), were significantly higher for commercial and subsistence farmers and tea workers. Urban workers and researchers had higher levels of PBDEs and nFRs than the other three groups with BDE-47, -99, -139, -153, -209, bis (2-ethylhexyl) tetrabromophthalate (BETHTBP) and decabromodiphenylethane (DBDPE) being the most detected compounds. Ametryn, β-HCH, o,p'-DDT, p,p'-DDT, and endosulfan sulfate were the most frequently detected pesticides. The widespread detection of legacy and emerging chemicals at levels similar to urban and industrialized areas among populations near a protected area in Eastern Africa highlights an urgent environmental and public health concern.
合成化学品的使用日益增加，包括用于农业的杀虫剂和电子产品等消费品中的阻燃剂，这引发了对公众健康和生物多样性的环境担忧，尤其是在农业和农村社区。尽管这些化学品在工业化地区已得到广泛研究，但关于人类接触的数据，特别是在撒哈拉以南非洲保护区附近的数据，仍然稀缺。本研究使用硅胶腕带对乌干达不同职业群体的化学物质接触情况提供了新的见解。我们从基巴莱国家公园周边的参与者那里收集了39个硅胶腕带，其中包括茶农（n = 8）、研究人员（n = 10）、商业农民（n = 6）、自给农民（n = 7）和城市工人（n = 8），并对21种多溴联苯醚（PBDEs）、11种新型阻燃剂（nFRs）、20种现行使用的农药（CUPs）和21种有机氯农药（OCPs）进行了分析。检测到的最丰富的化学物质是CUPs（范围为18.2 - 54.4 ng/g），商业农民、自给农民和茶农的含量显著更高。城市工人和研究人员的PBDEs和nFRs水平高于其他三组，其中BDE - 47、- 99、- 139、- 153、- 209、双（2 - 乙基己基）四溴邻苯二甲酸酯（BETHTBP）和十溴二苯乙烷（DBDPE）是检测到最多的化合物。莠灭净、β - 六氯环己烷、o,p'-滴滴涕、p,p'-滴滴涕和硫丹硫酸盐是最常检测到的农药。在东非一个保护区附近的人群中，遗留和新兴化学物质的广泛检测水平与城市和工业化地区相似，这凸显了紧迫的环境和公共卫生问题。
