benzofurans and 1-2-3-6-7-8-hexachlorodibenzodioxin

Thirty-five years have been passing since the outbreak of Kanemi rice oil poisoning, namely, Yusho in the western Japan. However, even now the patients with Yusho have been still suffering from several objective and subjective symptoms. In order to improve or, if possible, to cure the such symptoms, the most important therapeutic treatment is considered to actively excrete the most toxic causative PCDFs/DDs congeners, that is, 2,3,4,7,8-pentachlorodibenzofuran (PenCDF) and 1,2,3,6,7,8-hexachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (HxCDD) from the bodies of the patients and to reduce their body burdens. In rats, dietary fiber and chlorophyll have been shown to promote the fecal excretion of dioxins and to reduce their levels in rat liver. In this study, we examined whether such kinds of effect were also observed by FBRA, which was the health food and relatively rich with dietary fiber and chlorophyll in nine married Japanese couples. As a result, concentrations of PenCDF and HxCDD on the lipid weight basis in the blood of the FBRA-intake group in which they took 7.0 to 10.5 g of FBRA after each meal and three times a day for one year were more lowered than those in the blood of the non-intake group; Blood levels of PenCDF and HxCDD in the FBRA-intake group were decreased by 30.5 and 33.9%, respectively, and those decreases were 22.0 and 24.5% in the non-intake group. Their total body burdens just before and one year after the study were calculated on the assumptions that the body fat was also contaminated with these congeners at their blood levels on the lipid weight basis and the content of body fat was 20% of the body weight. Then, we computed the average amounts in excretion of PenCDF and HxCDD from the body in both the FBRA-intake and non-intake groups. Consequently, the amounts of excretion of PenCDF and HxCDD in the FBRA-intake group were 2.1 and 1.9 times, respectively, greater than those in the non-intake group. Therefore, FBRA seemed to promote the fecal excretion of PenCDF and HxCDD, the main causative PCDFs/DDs congeners of Yusho, from the human body. We also expect FBRA to reduce their body burdens of patients with Yusho and to improve some objective and subjective symptoms of Yusho patients.

Topics: Adult; Aspergillus oryzae; Benzofurans; Body Burden; Dietary Fiber; Female; Food Contamination; Food, Organic; Humans; Japan; Male; Middle Aged; Oryza; Plant Oils; Polychlorinated Biphenyls; Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins; Time Factors

Spatial and temporal trends of sources of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) in the Baltic Sea were evaluated by positive matrix factorization (PMF) and principal component analysis (PCA). Sediment cores were sampled at eight coastal, one coastal reference, and six offshore sites covering the northern to the southern Baltic Sea. The cores, which covered the period 1919-2010, were sliced into 2-3 cm disks among which 8-11 disks per core (in total 141 disks) were analyzed for all tetra- through octa-CDD/Fs. Identification and apportionment of PCDD/F sources was carried out using PMF. Five stable model PCDD/F congener patterns were identified, which could be associated with six historically important source types: (i) atmospheric background deposition (ABD), (ii) use and production of penta-chlorophenol (PCP), (iii) use and production of tetra-chlorophenol (TeCP), (iv) high temperature processes (Thermal), (v) hexa-CDD-related sources (HxCDD), and (vi) chlorine-related sources (Chl), all of which were still represented in the surface layers. Overall, the last four decades of the period 1920-2010 have had a substantial influence on the Baltic Sea PCDD/F pollution, with 88 ± 7% of the total amount accumulated during this time. The 1990s was the peak decade for all source types except TeCP, which peaked in the 1980s in the northern Baltic Sea and has still not peaked in the southern part. The combined impact of atmospheric-related emissions (ABD and Thermal) was dominant in the open sea system throughout the study period (1919-2010) and showed a decreasing south to north trend (always >80% in the south and >50% in the north). Accordingly, to further reduce levels of PCDD/Fs in the open Baltic Sea ecosystem, future actions should focus on reducing atmospheric emissions.

Topics: Benzofurans; Chlorophenols; Dibenzofurans, Polychlorinated; Dioxins; Ecosystem; Environmental Monitoring; Geologic Sediments; Oceans and Seas; Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins; Water Pollutants, Chemical