A general model of dioxin contamination in breast milk: results from a study on 94 women from the Caserta and Naples areas in Italy.

BackgroundThe Caserta and Naples areas in Campania Region experience heavy environmental contamination due to illegal waste disposal and burns, thus representing a valuable setting to develop a general model of human contamination with dioxins (PCDDs-PCDFs) and dioxin-like-PCBs (dl-PCBs).Methods94 breastfeeding women (aged 19-32 years; mean age 27.9 ± 3.0) were recruited to determine concentrations of PCDDs-PCDFs and dl-PCBs in their milk. Individual milk samples were collected and analyzed according to standard international procedures. A generalized linear model was used to test potential predictors of pollutant concentration in breast milk: age, exposure to waste fires, cigarette smoking, diet, and residence in high/low risk area (defined at high/low environmental pressure by a specific 2007 WHO report). A Structural Equation Model (SEM) analysis was carried out by taking into account PCDDs-PCDFs and dl-PCBs as endogenous variables and age, waste fires, risk area and smoking as exogenous variables.ResultsAll milk samples were contaminated by PCDDs-PCDFs (8.6 pg WHO-TEQ/98g fat ± 2.7; range 3.8-19) and dl-PCBs (8.0 pg WHO-TEQ/98g fat ± 3.7; range 2.5-24), with their concentrations being associated with age and exposure to waste fires (p < 0.01). Exposure to fires resulted in larger increases of dioxins concentrations in people living in low risk areas than those from high risk areas (p < 0.01).ConclusionsA diffuse human exposure to persistent organic pollutants was observed in the Caserta and Naples areas. Dioxins concentration in women living in areas classified at low environmental pressure in 2007 WHO report was significantly influenced by exposure to burns

Studio degli effetti tossici del ritardante di fiamma PBDE-47 su vongola Chamelea gallina (Linnaeus, 1758)

Lo studio ha avuto l'obiettivo di valutare gli effetti del 2,2',4,4'-tetrabromodifeniletere (PBDE‑47) su vongola Chamelea gallina (Venus gallina secondo la normativa commerciale vigente). I PBDE, impiegati in diversi prodotti industriali come ritardanti di fiamma, sono annoverati tra le sostanze pericolose dalla Direttiva 2011/65/UE. Si tratta di composti bioaccumulabili, ritenuti interferenti endocrini, genotossici e neurotossici, praticamente ubiquitari, la cui concentrazione nell'ambiente, negli ultimi anni, è aumentata in maniera considerevole. Il presente studio ha avuto l'obiettivo di verificare gli effetti del PBDE-47 su Chamelea gallina: potere tossico ed eventuali effetti dannosi sulle gonadi, capacità di bioaccumulo nei tessuti e possibile ingresso nella catena trofica. La ricerca si è avvalsa di prove sperimentali a 96 h e a 14-21gg su esemplari di vongola stabulati in acqua marina filtrata. Le prove sono state precedute da un periodo di adattamento dei molluschi della durata di 5-7gg. Le vongole sono state alimentate con alghe marine (Dunaliella tertiolecta). La scelta del composto tossico PBDE-47 è stata effettuata in considerazione delle maggiori concentrazioni, tra i congeneri di PBDE, riscontrate in alcune specie acquatiche. Lo studio ha evidenziato che le concentrazioni impiegate del contaminante non hanno alterato le funzioni vitali, causato livelli significativi di mortalità e determinato alterazioni evidenti alle gonadi di Chamelea gallina. La ricerca ha evidenziato, comunque, il potere di bioaccumulo del mollusco bivalve, permettendo al PBDE-47 l'ingresso nella catena trofica

Dioxins levels in breast milk of women living in Caserta and Naples : Assessment of environmental risk factors

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Polybrominated dibenzo-p-dioxins and furans (PBDD/Fs) in Italian food: Occurrence and dietary exposure

Human exposure to polychlorinated dioxins and furans (PCDD/Fs) through the dietary pathway is widely recognised and regulations in some regions of the world help to limit food contamination. Similar information on the analogous polybrominated dioxins and furans (PBDD/Fs) is scarce, partly due to the higher threshold to analytical access and unavailability of some standard materials. The analytical methodology developed here determined twelve planar PBDD/F congeners using 13Carbon labelled PBDD/F surrogates and high resolution mass spectrometric detection, and was extensively validated prior to the analysis of a range of commonly consumed Italian foods. The methodology also allowed simultaneous determination of PCDD/Fs and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The results show that PBDD/Fs occurred in different foods over a range of concentrations from <0.001 pg/g to 4.58 pg/g in fish. The dietary exposure (upper bound) of different Italian population groups, resulting from these occurrence levels was estimated using the toxic equivalency (TEQ) approach that is commonly used for dioxin-like contaminants and ranged from 0.17 to 0.42 pg TEQ/kg bodyweight/day (lower bound – 0.01 pg TEQ/kg bodyweight/day) depending on the population subgroup. Although precautionary, upper bound values may provide a more realistic estimate of toxicity as not all congeners and foods were measured. As expected, children were more highly exposed than adults due to lower body weight. These exposure levels were between a quarter and a third of that arising from the sum of PCDD/Fs and PCBs (0.61 to 1.38 pg WHO-TEQ/kg bodyweight/day), but they contribute to the dioxin-like toxicity. If this data is considered in view of the revised tolerable dioxin-like dietary intake published by EFSA in 2018, it is evident that the tolerable weekly intake of 2 pg/kg bodyweight/week would be exceeded by some of the assessed population sub-groups, or all sub-groups if the cumulative intake is considered

Chloramphenicol in royal jelly: analytical aspects and occurrence in Italian imports

Chloramphenicol (CAP) residues were determined in 35 samples of royal jelly. Fourteen samples were collected by Veterinary Border Inspection officials in Milan and Turin and 21 were submitted by private importers to confirm the quality of their product. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was used for the identification and determination of CAP, according to the isotope dilution approach for the analysis of royal jelly. The presence of chloramphenicol was detected in 29 out of 35 tested samples at concentrations ranging from 0.6 $\mu$g/kg to 28 $\mu$g/kg, with an average content of 6.1 $\mu$g/kg

Survey on Antibiotic Residues in Egg Samples in Italy

The presence of antibiotic residue in eggs is a current issue due to the increasingly important phenomenon of antibiotic resistance. A multiclass, confirmatory method for the determination of seventy-three antimicrobial agents (amphenicols, cephalosporins, diaminopyrimidines, lincosamides, macrolides, penicillins, pleuromutilins, quinolones, sulfonamides, and tetracyclines) with liquid chromatography high-resolution mass spectrometry was applied to 200 egg samples collected from 119 Italian farms during the years 2018–2021

Concentrations of Contaminants with Regulatory Limits in Samples of Clam (Chamelea gallina) Collected along the Abruzzi Region Coast in Central Italy

Concentrations of pollutants with regulatory limits were determined in specimens of Chamelea gallina, a species of clam collected along the Abruzzi coastal region of the central Adriatic Sea. Nine sampling sites were selected to evaluate the distribution of contaminants in the environment and the health risk for consumers. The concentrations of all the examined compounds were lower than the maximums set by European legislation. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and total mercury were below the detection limit (0.18 μg/kg for benzo[a]anthracene, 0.30 μg/kg for chrysene, 0.12 μg/kg for benzo[b]fluoranthene, 0.08 μg/kg for benzo[a]pyrene, and 0.0050 mg/kg for total mercury) in all the analyzed samples. Mean concentrations of lead and cadmium were 0.104 and 0.110 mg/kg, respectively. Of the non-dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls, PCB-153, PCB-180, and PCB-138 were the most abundant at all sampling sites (1a to 9a) at 0.25 mi (ca. 0.4 km) and at some sampling sites (1b, 2b, 3b, 5b and 7b) at 0.35 mi (ca. 0.56 km). Principal component analysis revealed that the concentrations of dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls were similar at the majority of sampling sites, and O8CDD and 2,3,7,8-T4CDF were the predominant dioxin congeners

Occurrence of Polychlorinated Dibenzo-p-Dioxins and Dibenzofurans and Polychlorinated Biphenyls in Fruit and Vegetables from the “Land of Fires” Area of Southern Italy

The concentrations of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-concentrations dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) (PCDD/Fs), and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were determined in fruit and vegetables collected in farms located in the well-known “Land of Fires” area of Southern Italy, in an effort to learn more about the environmental pollution of this high-risk area due to illegal waste dumping and uncontrolled burning near cultivated fields. Concentrations were in the range 0.011–2.26 ng g−1 for the six “indicator” non-dioxin-like PCBs (NDL-PCBs), and 0.0009–0.096 pg WHO toxic equivalent (TEQ) g−1 for the sum of dioxin-like PCBs (DL-PCBs) and PCDD/Fs. Lacking maximum limits for these contaminants in fruit and vegetables, the concentration values found were compared with the action levels set out in the EU Recommendations. These levels were never exceeded in the examined samples. In the present study, the highest mean value for PCDD/Fs + DL-PCB corresponded to apricots, olives, and nuts, while the lowest values were observed in endive and green beans. The results showed also that NDL-PCB levels in apricots were much higher than in any other food, suggesting that they can accumulate PCBs: this fruit might be proposed as a “sentinel” of the presence of these contaminants in the environment

Study of the toxic effects of flame retardant PBDE-47 on the clam Chamelea gallina (Linnaeus, 1758)

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the effects of 2,2',4,4'-tetrabromodiphenylether (PBDE-47) on the Chamelea gallina clam (according to current commercial regulations: Venus gallina). PBDEs, which are used as flame retardants in various industrial products, are classed as hazardous substances by Directive 2011/65/EU. They are bioaccumulative compounds, considered to be endocrine disruptors, genotoxic, neurotoxic and practically ubiquitous, and their concentration in the environment has considerably increased in recent years. The aim of this study is to establish the effects of PBDE-47 on Chamelea gallina: toxic power and any harmful effects on the gonads, bioaccumulation capacity in the tissues, and possible entry into the food chain. The research used 96-hour and 21-day experimental tests on clams housed in filtered seawater. The tests were preceded by a period of acclimatisation of the molluscs lasting five to seven days. The clams were fed on seaweed (Dunaliella tertiolecta). The choice of the toxic compound PBDE-47 was based on the high concentration, among the congeners of PBDE, found in some aquatic species. The study demonstrated that the concentration of the contaminant used did not alter the vital functions, cause significant levels of mortality or lead to evident alteration in the gonads of Chamelea gallina. However, the research demonstrated the bioaccumulation capacity of the bivalve mollusc, allowing PBDE-47 to enter the food chain