Human exposure to metals through the diet in Tarragona, Spain

The concentrations of arsenic (As), beryllium (Be), cadmium (cd), chromium (Cr), mercury (Hg), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), tin (Sn), thallium (Tl), and vanadium (V) were determined in a number of food items purchased in zones of Tarragona, County (Catalonia, Spain) near a hazardous waste incinerator (HWI), which has been operating since 1999. Food samples corresponded to the following groups: meat, fish and seafood, pulses, cereals, vegetables, fruits, tubers, whole milk, yogurt, eggs, and sugar. Be and Tl were under their respective limits of detection in all samples. For the analyzed trace elements, the dietary intake by the general population of Tarragona was 458.5 μg/d for As, 14.3 μg/d for Cd, 88.3 μg/d for Cr, 5.3 μg/d for Hg, 2421.4 μg/d for Mn, 138.3 μg/d for Ni, 44.8 μg/d for Pb, 34.6 μg/d for Sn, and 28.9 μg/d for V. Results were compared with those found in a baseline survey carried out in the same area during the construction of the HWI (1996–1998). In general terms, the dietary intake of metals in 2003 was comparatively similar to those found in the baseline survey. For the most toxic elements (As, Cd, Hg, and Pb), it was under their respective Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intake (PTWI) estabished by the FAO/WHO.     

Monitoring Metals in Blood and Hair of the Population Living Near a Hazardous Waste Incinerator: Temporal Trend

The concentrations of As, Be, Cd, Cr, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sn, Tl, and V were determined in hair of 96 school children and in blood of 144 adults living in the vicinity of a hazardous waste incinerator (HWI) (Constantí, Tarragona County, Catalonia, NE Spain). The results were compared with those obtained in previous (1998 and 2002) surveys performed in the same area. Data were analyzed in terms of age, sex, and specific place of residence. Current mean concentrations in hair ranged between not detected (ND) (As, Be, and Tl) and 1.31 μg/g for Cr. In blood, Be, Hg, Mn, Sn, and Tl levels were under the respective detection limits. The mean blood concentrations of the remaining elements ranged from 0.34 μg/dL for Cd, to 2.40 μg/dL for Pb. Significant differences in hair and blood in relation to gender were only noted for Pb in blood. In general terms, metal concentrations in hair and blood from subjects living in Tarragona County are lower than most levels reported for other countries in recent years.     

Human Exposure to Arsenic,Cadmium, Mercury,and Lead from Foods in Catalonia,Spain: Temporal Trend

The main purpose of this study was to establish the temporal trend in the daily dietary intake of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg), and lead (Pb) by the population of Catalonia, Spain. Concentrations of these elements were determined in samples of a number of food items widely consumed in that country. The dietary intake of As, Cd, Hg, and Pb was then estimated for various age–gender groups of population: children, adolescents, adults, and seniors. In the present study, the dietary intakes of As, inorganic As, Cd, Hg, methylmercury, and Pb were 328.37, 16.22, 19.47, 11.39, 10.25, and 101.47 μg/day, respectively, while in a previous (2006) survey, the dietary intakes of As, inorganic As, Cd, Hg, methylmercury, and Pb were 261.01, 33.17, 9.80, 12.61, 11.35, and 45.13 μg/day, respectively. The estimated intakes of Cd, Hg, and Pb are still notably lower than the respective PTWIs, while that of inorganic As is also lower than its BMDL₀₁. In summary, the results of this study indicate that, currently, the dietary intakes of As, Cd, Hg, and Pb should not mean additional health risks for the consumers.     

Concentrations of Metals in Soils in the Neighborhood of a Hazardous Waste Incinerator: Assessment of the Temporal Trends

The concentrations of arsenic (As), beryllium (Be), cadmium (Cd), cobalt (Co), chromium (Cr), copper (Cu), mercury (Hg), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), antimony (Sb), tin (Sn), thallium (Tl), and vanadium (V) were determined in 30 soil samples collected in April 2011 near a hazardous waste incinerator (HWI; Constantí, Catalonia, Spain), which is under regular operations since 1999. The results were compared with those of recent surveys performed in the same zone, as well as with data from a background study (1996?C1998). We also assessed the human health risks derived from metal exposure in the area under potential influence of the emissions of the HWI. Manganese was the most abundant element in soils, with a mean value of 316.4???g/g, followed by Pb and Cu (mean values, 42.5 and 38.2???g/g, respectively). In contrast, Sb, Cd, and Tl presented the lowest values (0.12, 0.27, and 0.29???g/g, respectively), while Hg was below its limit of detection. In the period 1998?C2011, only As, Cr, Sn, Tl, and V levels presented significant increases in soils. The estimated carcinogenic and noncarcinogenic risks derived from exposure to these metals from soils should not mean any special concern for the population living in the surroundings of the HWI.     

Dietary Intake of Arsenic, Cadmium, Mercury, and Lead by the Population of Catalonia, Spain

The concentrations of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg), and lead (Pb) were determined in samples of food items widely consumed by the population of Catalonia, Spain. All samples were randomly acquired in 12 cities of Catalonia between March and June of 2006 and analyzed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The dietary intake of these elements was estimated for various age–gender groups of population: children, adolescents, adults, and seniors. In order to determine the temporal trend on the dietary exposure to As, Cd, Hg, and Pb, the current results were compared with those of a previous survey (2000). In the present market basket study, for a standard male adult of 70-kg body weight living in Catalonia, the dietary intakes of As, Cd, Hg, and Pb were 261.01, 9.80, 12.61, and 45.13 μg/day, respectively, while in the 2000 survey, these intakes were 223.59, 15.73, 21.22, and 28.37 μg/day, for As, Cd, Hg, and Pb, respectively. For As, the only food groups currently contributing with measurable amounts to intake of total As were fish and shellfish and cereals, while for Cd the highest contribution to total intake corresponded to pulses, tubers, and cereals. For Hg, the contribution was only due to fish and shellfish, while cereals were the group with the highest contribution to total Pb intake. The estimated intakes of As, Cd, Hg, and Pb are notably lower than the respective provisional tolerable weekly intakes, which indicate that these intakes should not mean additional health risks for the consumers.     

Monitoring metals in the population living in the vicinity of a hazardous waste incinerator

Hair samples of 134 school children (12-14 yr old) living in three residential zones in the vicinity of a new hazardous waste incinerator (HWI) (Constanti, Tarragona County, Catalonia, Spain) were analyzed by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) for arsenic (As), beryllium (Be), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), mercury (Hg), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), tin (Sn), thallium (Tl), and vanadium (V) concentrations. These concentrations were compared with those obtained in a baseline survey performed in the same area during the period of construction of the HWI. Current mean concentrations ranged from values under the respective limit of detection (As, Be, Cd, Tl, and V) to 0.70 and 0.86 microg/g for Hg and Pb, respectively. In comparison to the baseline survey, the levels of Cr, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Sn showed a significant reduction, whereas Hg concentrations were similar. No significant differences were observed according to the sex of the children. However, some differences were noted, especially for Pb and Cr, with respect to the specific zone of residence. In general terms, the current metal levels in hair of school children are similar or even lower than those recently reported for a number of industrial and residential areas of various regions and countries.     

Monitoring metals in the population living in the vicinity of a hazardous waste incinerator

This study is a part of a monitoring program for the determination of metals in various human tissues of the population living in the vicinity of a new hazardous waste incinerator (HWI) in Constantí (Tarragona County, Spain). Concentrations of arsenic (As), beryllium (Be), cadmium (Cd), chromium (Cr), mercury (Hg), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), tin (Sn), thallium (Tl), and vanadium (V) were determined in brain, bone, kidney, liver, and lung autopsy samples collected in 2003 from 22 individuals who had been living for at least 10 yr in the area under evaluation. Results were compared with the metal levels obtained in a baseline study, which was performed during the construction of the HWI (1996–1998). In the present survey, As, Be, Tl, and V levels were not detected in any of the analyzed tissues, while Cr concentrations were very close to the limit of detection. The highest levels of Cd and Hg were found in kidney (17.46 μg/g and 0.23 μg/g, respectively), those of Mn in liver (1.07 μg/g), and those of Ni, Pb, and Sn in bone (1.16 μg/g, 2.11 μg/g, and 0.34 μg/g, respectively). In comparison to the results of the baseline study, a general reduction of most metal concentrations was observed in the current survey.     

Human Health Risks Derived from Dietary Exposure to Toxic Metals in Catalonia,Spain: Temporal Trend

The present study was aimed at estimating the current (2012) dietary intake of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), mercury (Hg), and lead (Pb) by the population of Catalonia, Spain. The temporal trends with respect to previous surveys, performed in 2000, 2005, and 2008, were also determined. For that purpose, metal concentrations were analyzed in a number of widely consumed foodstuffs. A speciation study was also conducted by experimentally determining the levels of inorganic As (InAs) and methylmercury (MeHg) in the same food items. Furthermore, the dietary intake of those metals and species was calculated both deterministically and probabilistically by considering two food consumption surveys: ENCAT and ENIDE, representative of the Catalan and Spanish populations, respectively. An important temporal decrease of the dietary intake was noted for most elements, irrespective of the age-gender population group. Considering data for a male adult, the current dietary intake of As, InAs, Cd, Hg, MeHg, and Pb was estimated in 216, 2.6, 8.7, 10, 7.3, and 8.4 μg/day, respectively, being these values lower than the respective provisional tolerable weekly intakes (PTWIs) or benchmark dose lower confidence limits (BMDLs). Moreover, new calculations by means of ENIDE survey indicated similar results to those previously obtained by ENCAT, with the exception of MeHg, whose intake exceeded the maximum recommended values for some part of the population. Although our data are similar to those frequently found in other European countries, the important intake of MeHg, which is linked to the high consumption of fish and shellfish, deserves further investigation.     

Quantification of 26 metals in human urine samples using ICP-MSMS in a random sample collective of an occupational and environmental health care center in Aachen,Germany

Despite several studies on metal exposure in the general population, the knowledge on the background burden of distinct metals is still sparse (e.g. Cu, In, Mn, Pb, Sn, Sr, Ta, Te). While up to date reference values exist for 16 distinct metals as Biological Reference Value (BAR) or the 95th percentile for Al, As, Ba, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Hg, Li, Mo, Ni, Pt, Sb, Se, Tl and U respectively, the background burden of the general population for the remaining elements is unknown or yet no matter of scientific counselling. We established and validated an inductively coupled plasma triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (ICP-MSMS) human biomonitoring method (HBM), that enabled us to determine 26 metals in urine. Al, As, Ba, Be, Cd, Co, Cu, Ga, Gd, Hg, In, Li, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Se, Sn, Sr, Ta, Te, Tl, V and Zn were analyzed. The method was applied to 88 urine samples collected in the ambulance of the Institute for Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine (IASU) Aachen, Germany. Patients from two major metal processing companies (steel and copper) and a more heterogenous group of occupational exposed and non-exposed persons were defined and distinguished. HBM data from about 88, in general occupationally unexposed persons against certain metals served as a collective representing the general population in first approximation. For these the 95th percentiles are reported. Significant differences of urinary metal concentrations of the employees of the two metal processing companies compared to the third group were observed among others for Cu, Cr, Ni, Mn and are discussed, thus demonstrating the usefulness of the method for both environmental and occupational purposes.     

Elemental profile of cerebrospinal fluid in patients with Parkinson''s disease

To ascertain the potential role of chemical elements (namely, Al, Ba, Be, Bi, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Li, Mg, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Si, Sn, Sr, Tl, V, W, Zn and Zr) as markers in the Parkinson's disease (PD), the elemental concentration of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of 42 patients with PD and 20 age-matched controls was assessed. Analyses were performed by Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission Spectrometry (ICP-AES) and Sector Field Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (SF-ICP-MS). Significantly lower levels of Co, Cr, Fe, Pb, Si and Sn were observed in the CSF of PD patients compared with those in controls, with a percentage of depletion up to 50% for Cr and Pb. No such variations were detected for all the other elements. Results suggested that Pb, Cr, Fe were the most suitable elements to distinguish between normality and PD. Different cut-off concentrations for these elements could be tentatively proposed as a predictive tool for the PD condition.     

Reaction of some decomposer basidiomycetes to toxic elements

Høiland, K. 1995. Reaction of some decomposer basidiomycetes to toxic elements. -Nord. J. Bot. 15: 305–318. Copenhagen. ISSN 0107–055X.
Cultures of 15 decomposer basidiomycete samples were examined for resistance to Al. As, Be, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, H, Hg₂(I), Hg(II), Ni, Pb, Sn, and Zn using a micro-well technique. Aluminium was found to be slightly toxic; Be, Zn, and As moderately toxic; Cr, Cu, Sn, Co, Hg(II), Ni, Hg₂(I), and Pb toxic: and Cd very toxic. Generally, the fungitoxicity rises with increasing electronegativity of the element, if we exclude As and Cd. According to the fungal reactions, the elements can be arranged into several groups with similar toxicity: The Cu-Hg₂(I)-Hg(II)-Ni group, the Al-Cr-H group, and the As-Pb-Zn group. Tin is related both to the first and the second group. Beryllium, Cd, and Co occupy more isolated positions. Resistance to Hg, Ni, and Cu generally increases with the ability of the fungus to produce phenoloxidases, especially the intracellular tyrosinase. One explanation may be that these fungi decompose the substances that actually bind Hg, Ni, and Cu and hence protect them from the toxic action. Resistance to A1 and H (expressed as pH) may be higher in fungi from poor soils. The physiological effect of soluble A1 on fungi seems to depend more on its ability to release H₃O+ in the medium than on the toxic action of the metal itself. On the other hand, resistance to Cd is possibly higher in fungi from rich soils, probably because toxicity of Cd usually increase with pH.     

Toxic and essential elements in children's blood (<6 years) from Kinshasa,DRC (the Democratic Republic of Congo)

In this study we determined the concentration of 9 trace elements (As, Cd, Cu, Hg, Mn, Mo, Pb, Se and Zn) in whole blood of children (n = 100, 64 girls, 36 boys and median age: 36 months) using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The proportion of children potentially deficient in essential elements or poisoned by toxic elements was evaluated. The aging effects on the concentration of these elements were also investigated. The median values were 3.17 μg/L (As), 0.15 μg/L (Cd), 1.1 mg/L (Cu), 2.1 μg/L (Hg), 10.4 μg/L (Mn), 17.7 μg/L (Mo), 8.7 μg/dL (Pb), 10.7 μg/L (Se) and 5.0 mg/L (Zn). The concentration of many elements (As, Cd, Hg, Mn, Pb and Zn) showed significant age variations but not sex influence. Regarding levels of the essential elements (Cu, Mn, Mo, Se and Zn), B-Cu, B-Mn, B-Se and B-Zn were in the normal range, whereas exceeded levels were observed for B-Mo. None of these children was deficient in essential elements. Except B-Cd, all toxic elements showed exceeded blood levels. The proportion of children potentially poisoned by toxic elements varies from 10% (n = 10) to 95% (n = 95) and depends on toxic element: 95% for As, 10% for Hg and 35% for Pb. The main health concerns emerging from this study are the high As, Hg and Pb exposures of the Kinshasan children requiring further documentation, corrective actions and the implementation of appropriate regulations.     

Monitoring Environmental Levels of Trace Elements near a Hazardous Waste Incinerator

In 1998, we initiated an environmental surveillance program of the only hazardous waste incinerator (HWI) in Spain. The concentrations of a number of metals (As, Be, Cd, Cr, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sn, Tl, and V) were analyzed in soil and vegetation samples collected around the facility. Since then, periodical measurements of these same elements have been performed in both matrices. In 2009 and 2010, soil and vegetation samples were again collected, and the levels of the above elements were determined. In general terms, the temporal trends in metal concentrations were not homogeneous, showing significant changes between the baseline and the latest surveys. Metal levels in soil and herbage samples analyzed in the current survey were similar to recent data reported for other urban and industrial areas, being notably lower than the reference values set by national regulatory organisms. Moreover, more than 10?years after regular operations of the HWI, exposure to metals would not mean, either now or in past surveys, any carcinogenic or non-carcinogenic health risks for the population living in the neighborhood.     

Trace Metals (Cd,Co, Cr,Cu, Hg,Ni, Pb,and Zn) in Food Supplements of Marine Origin

We determined the concentrations of Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn in dietary supplements of marine origin. Four supplement categories were studied; algae, coral, krill, and shark cartilage. A direct mercury analyzer was used for Hg determinations while acid digestions and ICP-AES were used for Cr analysis and ICP-MS for the other trace metals. Algae are the supplements showing the highest concentrations of Pb, Cr, and Ni with respective means of 1.6 mg Pb/kg dry weight (d.w.), 3.2 Cr mg/kg d.w., and 8.0 mg Ni/kg d.w. Krill supplements have the highest levels of Cd, Cu, and Zn with 0.65 mg Cd/kg d.w., 63 mg Cu/kg d.w., and 50 mg Zn/kg d.w., respectively. Shark cartilage supplements show the highest levels of Hg and Co with mean concentrations of 160 μg Hg/kg d.w. and 73 ± 51 μg Co/kg d.w., respectively. No samples in our study exceeded the provisional tolerable daily intakes set by Health Canada, the joint committee of the World Health Organization/Food and Agricultural Organization, or the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Nevertheless, Ni and Pb in algae and Hg in shark cartilage may end up contributing to a very significant portion of the allowable daily intake—leaving little room for normal intake through food consumption and other exposure pathways.     

Preparation of hair for measurement of elements by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)

The preparation of hair for the determination of elements is a critical component of the analysis procedure. Open-beaker, closedvessel microwave, and flowthrough microwave digestion are methods that have been used for sample preparation and are discussed. A new digestion method for use with inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) has been developed. The method uses 0.2 g of hair and 3 mL of concentrated nitric acid in an atmospheric pressurelow-temperature microwave digestion (APLTMD) system. This preparation method is useful in handling a large numbers of samples per day and may be adapted to hair sample weights ranging from 0.08 to 0.3 g. After digestion, samples are analyzed by ICP-MS to determine the concentration of Li, Be, B, Na, Mg, Al, P, S, K, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Ge, As, Se, Rb, Sr, Zr, Mo, Pd, Ag, Cd, Sn, Sb, I, Cs, Ba, Pt, Au, Hg, Tl, Pb, Bi, Th, and U. Benefits of the APLTMD include reduced contamination and sample handling, and increased precision, reliability, and sample throughput.     

Controlling Factors and Pollution Assessment of Potentially Toxic Elements in Topsoils of the Issyk-Kul Lake Region,Central Asia

The Issyk-Kul Lake region is well known for its magnificent scenery and unique scientific significance. With multivariable statistical methods, the contents of several geochemical elements (Fe, Mn, V, Zn, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, As, Mo, Cd, Sb, Tl, Pb, and Hg) and total organic matter of 61 topsoil samples were analyzed, and then, the results were used to assess the environmental factors controlling the concentrations of potentially toxic elements (PTE) in the region. The results showed that most of the elements including Fe, Mn, V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, As, and Sb reflected the natural state, but several PTE (Zn, Mo, Hg, Cd, Pb, and Tl) had been influenced by anthropogenic factors. Among these, Zn, Mo, Hg, and Cd were significantly correlated with the organic matter content, which suggests that agricultural soils will accumulate more PTE. From the calculations for the human risk assessment of anthropogenically derived PTE (Zn, Mo, Hg, Cd, Pb, and Tl), the risks for ingestion in this region were found to be higher than those for inhalation and dermal absorption; however, the results also suggested there are no non-carcinogenic risks for all anthropogenically influenced PTE in the current state.     

Trace element status of hemodialyzed patients

The trace elements Ba, Bi, Cd, Co, Cs, Cu, Hg, La, Mn, Mo, Pb, Rb, Sb, Sn, Sr, Tl, and Zn were determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry in plasma samples of 68 hemodialysis patients. The same elements (with exception of La and Mn) were also determined in whole blood after mineralization with high-purity nitric acid/hydrogen peroxide in a closed-pressurized microwave system. The accuracy and precision was checked by analyzing two Seronorm “whole blood” reference materials. All samples were contaminated with barium (heparinized tubes) and the plasma samples with tin (collection tubes). The concentrations for Bi, Hg, Pb, Rb, Sb, and Sr in whole blood were within the literature ranges for healthy adults. All of the concentrations for Co, and some of the concentrations for Cd, Cs, Tl, and Zn were higher than the high limits of the normal ranges. Approximately 14% of the Cu concentrations were lower than the low limit of the normal range. The Mo and Sn concentrations are difficult to evaluate, because the normal ranges appears to be unreliable. All concentrations for Cd, Co, Mo, Pb, Sn, and Sr and some of the concentrations for Cu (15%) and Mn (75%) in the plasma samples were higher than the high limits of the normal ranges. The concentrations for Rb tended to be lower than the normal range. To establish unequivocally the causes for elevated and reduced concentrations of trace elements in whole blood and plasma of dialysis patients, all fluids in the dialysis process must be investigated.     

A Discriminant Analysis of Trace Elements in Scalp Hair of Healthy Controls and Stage-IIIB Non-small Cell Lung Cancer (NSCLC) Patients

Our work aimed at extending the search for the trace elements (TE) abnormalities in patients with lung cancer and in healthy controls who smoke, and also for evidence of a possible association between lung cancer and TE. The analysis of the hair from patients with Stage-IIIB non-small cell lung cancer (group 1) and healthy controls (group 2) were analyzed using the inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry technique in order to obtain information on the correlation between the lung cancer patients and healthy controls. Sixty-seven one-hair samples in group 1 were individually collected before chemoradiotherapy. For comparison, 74 hair samples were collected from group 2. In group 1, the trace elements present at the highest levels were measured to be Ca, Zn, Sn, Na and Mg, respectively, and they were quantified as 68.2, 53.2, 33.9, 23.3, and 28.9?μg.kg(-1), respectively. In group 2, the trace elements present at the highest levels were Zn, Mg, Ca, Fe, and Se, respectively, and they were quantified as 109.7, 31.9, 30.8, 25.0, and 20.1?μg.kg(-1). In group 1, the highest levels of Ca, Sn, and Na were 2.03, 1.06, and 1.01 times higher, respectively, compared with group 2. In group 2, Zn, Mg, Fe, and Se were 2, 1.01, 2.7, and 1.6 times higher, respectively, compared with group 1. When the levels of trace elements were compared between groups 1 and 2 using Student's t test, the levels of Ag, Au, Be, Bi, Ca, Cd, Ce, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ga, Hg, K, Ni, Rb, Rh, Sb, Sc, Ti, V, and Zn were found to be statistically different (p?相似文献   

Seasonal Variation of Metals in Seawater, Sediment, and Manila Clam Ruditapes philippinarum from China

Concentrations of trace metals (Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, Cr, Hg, and As) were determined for the first time in seawater, sediment, and Manila clam from Deer Island, Liaoning Province, China. The seawater, sediment, and clam samples were collected seasonally at three clam farming sites around Deer Island during 2010–2011. The average concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, Cr, Hg, and As in the seawater samples were 4.16, 0.72, 5.88, 0.45, 2.51, 0.03, and 1.02 μg/l, respectively. The seasonal variations of trace metals in seawater showed a significant difference in the concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn, Hg, and As among seasons. The average concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, Cr, Hg, and As in the sediment samples were 6.43, 13.80, 53.08, 1.10, 36.40, 0.05, and 4.78 mg/kg dry weight, respectively. Trace metal concentrations in sediment seasonally varied significantly except for Cd and Hg. The average concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, Cr, Hg, and As in the clam samples were 11.28, 0.61, 92.50, 0.58, 3.98, 0.03, and 1.98 mg/kg dry weight, respectively. Concentrations of Cu, Zn, Cd, Cr, and As in Manila clam showed marked seasonal fluctuations with significant difference. Cu and Zn were the metals with the highest mean biosediment accumulation factor values in Manila clam. Besides, significant correlations for the concentrations of Cu and Zn relative to their concentrations in sediment were also found. Such differences in regression analyzes may be explained by differential bioaccumulation of essential and xenobiotic metals. Concentrations of trace metals in Manila clam did not exceed the maximum established regulatory concentrations for human consumption. Moreover, the calculations revealed that the estimated daily intake values for the examined clam samples were below the internationally accepted dietary guidelines and the calculated hazard quotient values were well less than 1, thus strongly indicating that health risk associated with the intake studied metals through the consumption of Manila clam from Deer Island was absent.     

Trace elements in formulas based on cow and soy milk and in austrian cow milk determined by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry

With inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), the 18 trace elements Ba, (Be), (Bi), Cd, Co, Cs, Cu, La, Li, Mn, Mo, Pb, Rb, (Sb), (Sn), Sr, (Tl), and Zn were quantified in the digests of 13 formulas based on cow milk, of two formulas based on soy protein, of two milk powders, from which formulas were prepared, of two samples of Austrian cow milk, and in the water, with which the powders were suspended. Concentrations in parentheses were at or below the method detection limits in the formulas. The accuracy and precision of the analytical procedure tested with milk powder reference materials BCR 063 and BCR 150 were satisfactory. The concentrations of trace elements in the powders vary considerably from batch to batch. The ratios of high to low concentrations ranged from 1.1 to 4.8 and were higher for the essential trace elements Co, Cu, Mn, Mo, Sn, and Zn than for nonessential or toxic elements. The contribution of tap water from the water system of the city of Graz, Austria to the concentrations of trace elements in the formulas ranges from 45% for Pb to 0.2% for Rb and is negligible, for instance, for Cd, Cs, La, Mo, and Sn. Preformulas and follow-up formulas are partly supplemented with the essential trace elements Cu, Mn, and Zn and, therefore, concentrations of these trace elements in the formulas vary considerably. However, supplementation of a formula with a particular element must not necessarily result in higher concentrations compared to nonsupplemented formulas. Concentrations of the essential elements were in the following ranges for preformulas, follow-up formulas, soy-based formulas (in μg/kg): Co, 8.3–11.2, 4.5–13, 5.0–5.7; Cu, 330–750, 27–730, 440–530; Mn, 33–580, 40–390, 440–530; Mo, 10–32, 9–39, 44-6; Sn, <0.44-3.8, <0.44-1.0, <0.44-5.8; Zn, 3340-11,380, 4120–7100, 5590-6,840. A preformula supplemented with Mn had a 10 times higher manganese concentration than preformulas without supplementation. Concentrations of all trace elements quantified were lower in cow milk than in formulas and do not meet the dietary requirements of infants.