Toenail Arsenic Concentrations, GSTT1 Gene Polymorphisms, and Arsenic Exposure from Drinking Water

Toenail arsenic (As) concentrations were evaluated as a biomarker of inorganic As (Asin) exposure in a population residing in an As-endemic region of Bangladesh. Drinking water and toenail samples were collected from 48 families (n = 223) every 3 months for 2 years and analyzed for As using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. Drinking water collected 3, 6, and 9 months before each toenail sample collection was combined into a weighted lagged exposure variable. The contribution of each water sample to the measured toenail As concentration was estimated using maximum likelihood that accounted for fluctuations in drinking water exposure and toenail growth. The best model attributed 69%, 14%, and 17% of the toenail As content to drinking water exposures that occurred 3, 6, and 9 months before toenail collection [95% confidence intervals (95% CI), 0.46-0.97, 0.00-0.31, and 0.03-0.35, respectively]. Generalized additive mixed models using penalized regression splines were employed to model the data. Below a drinking water concentration of 2 μg As/L, no relationship between drinking water As and toenail As concentrations was observed. Above this concentration, toenail As content increased in a dose-dependent fashion as drinking water As increased. Age was a significant effect modifier of drinking water As exposure on toenail As (β = 0.01; 95% CI, 0.002-0.02). Individuals possessing GSTT1-null genotypes had significantly more As in their toenails in contrast to GSTT1 wild-type individuals (β = 0.11; 95% CI, 0.06-0.2). Therefore, it seems that GSTT1 modifies the relationship between Asin exposure and toenail Asin content.

[1]  Charles F. Harvey,et al.  Mobility of arsenic in a Bangladesh aquifer: Inferences from geochemical profiles, leaching data, and mineralogical characterization , 2004 .

[2]  Charles F Lynch,et al.  Toenail arsenic content and cutaneous melanoma in Iowa. , 2004, American journal of epidemiology.

[3]  Richard J. Howarth,et al.  Natural organic matter in sedimentary basins and its relation to arsenic in anoxic ground water: the example of West Bengal and its worldwide implications , 2004 .

[4]  H. Ahsan,et al.  Cancer burden from arsenic in drinking water in Bangladesh. , 2004, American journal of public health.

[5]  A. Hossain,et al.  Arsenic concentrations in rice, vegetables, and fish in Bangladesh: a preliminary study. , 2004, Environment international.

[6]  B. Caldwell,et al.  Searching for an optimum solution to the Bangladesh arsenic crisis. , 2003, Social science & medicine.

[7]  M. H. Smith,et al.  Arsenic in Drinking Water and Skin Lesions: Dose-Response Data from West Bengal, India , 2003, Epidemiology.

[8]  M. H. Smith,et al.  Arsenic in drinking water and skin lesions , 2003 .

[9]  M. Vahter.  Mechanisms of arsenic biotransformation. , 2002, Toxicology.

[10]  Charles F. Harvey,et al.  Arsenic Mobility and Groundwater Extraction in Bangladesh , 2002, Science.

[11]  Chih-Hung Lee,et al.  Peripheral Vascular Diseases Resulting from Chronic Arsenical Poisoning , 2002, The Journal of dermatology.

[12]  D. Christiani,et al.  Differential association of the codon 72 p53 and GSTM1 polymorphisms on histological subtype of non-small cell lung carcinoma. , 2001, Cancer research.

[13]  A. Chattopadhyay,et al.  Histopathology of skin lesions in chronic arsenic toxicity--grading of changes and study of proliferative markers. , 2000, Indian journal of pathology & microbiology.

[14]  T. Tosteson,et al.  Measurement of low levels of arsenic exposure: a comparison of water and toenail concentrations. , 2000, American journal of epidemiology.

[15]  D. Chakraborti,et al.  Groundwater arsenic contamination in Bangladesh and West Bengal, India. , 2000, Environmental health perspectives.

[16]  Debashis Kushary,et al.  Bootstrap Methods and Their Application , 2000, Technometrics.

[17]  David Ruppert,et al.  Variable Selection and Function Estimation in Additive Nonparametric Regression Using a Data-Based Prior: Comment , 1999 .

[18]  D. Christiani,et al.  Determination of total arsenic concentrations in nails by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry , 1999, Biological Trace Element Research.

[19]  Hunter,et al.  Evaluation of a Food Frequency Questionnaire-Food Composition Approach for Estimating Dietary Intake of Inorganic Arsenic and Methylmercury 1 , 2005 .

[20]  Y. Hsueh,et al.  Arsenic methylation capacity, body retention, and null genotypes of glutathione S-transferase M1 and T1 among current arsenic-exposed residents in Taiwan. , 1997, Mutation research.

[21]  M. Karagas,et al.  Toenail samples as an indicator of drinking water arsenic exposure. , 1996, Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology.

[22]  H. Idel,et al.  Hair analysis in environmental medicine. , 1996, Zentralblatt fur Hygiene und Umweltmedizin = International journal of hygiene and environmental medicine.

[23]  D. E. Carter,et al.  Interactions of rat red blood cell sulfhydryls with arsenate and arsenite. , 1995, Journal of toxicology and environmental health.

[24]  B. J. Lagerkvist,et al.  Assessment of exposure to arsenic among smelter workers: a five-year follow-up. , 1994, American journal of industrial medicine.

[25]  W. Willett,et al.  Toenail trace element levels as biomarkers: reproducibility over a 6-year period. , 1993, Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology.

[26]  W. Willett,et al.  A 1-y trial of the effect of high-selenium bread on selenium concentrations in blood and toenails. , 1993, The American journal of clinical nutrition.

[27]  A. Smith,et al.  Cancer risks from arsenic in drinking water. , 1992, Environmental health perspectives.

[28]  A. Smith,et al.  Arsenic ingestion and internal cancers: a review. , 1992, American journal of epidemiology.

[29]  J. Nelson,et al.  Arsenic levels in fingernails as a biological indicator of exposure to arsenic. , 1990, American Industrial Hygiene Association journal.

[30]  E. Marafante,et al.  Effects of low dietary intake of methionine, choline or proteins on the biotransformation of arsenite in the rabbit. , 1987, Toxicology letters.

[31]  D. Thomas,et al.  Contribution of metals to respiratory cancer. , 1986, Environmental health perspectives.

[32]  A. Nucci,et al.  Detection of repeated arsenical poisoning by neutron activation analysis of foot nail segments , 1982, Archives of Toxicology.

[33]  S. Charbonneau,et al.  Human retention studies with 74As. , 1980, Toxicology and applied pharmacology.

[34]  N. Orentreich,et al.  The effect of aging on the rate of linear nail growth. , 1979, The Journal of investigative dermatology.

[35]  D. Sax,et al.  Peripheral neuropathy in arsenic smelter workers , 1979, Neurology.

[36]  D. Kinniburgh.  Arsenic contamination of groundwater in Bangladesh Vol 1 : Summary , 2001 .

[37]  David G. Kinniburgh,et al.  Arsenic contamination of groundwater in Bangladesh , 2001 .

[38]  S. Korrick,et al.  Determination of the total arsenic concentration in human urine by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry: a comparison of the accuracy of three analytical methods. , 1998, The Analyst.

[39]  H. Roels,et al.  Comparison of the urinary excretion of arsenic metabolites after a single oral dose of sodium arsenite, monomethylarsonate, or dimethylarsinate in man , 1981, International archives of occupational and environmental health.

[40]  H. Roels,et al.  Urinary excretion of inorganic arsenic and its metabolites after repeated ingestion of sodium metaarsenite by volunteers , 1981, International archives of occupational and environmental health.