Concentration Distribution and Analysis of Urinary Glyphosate and Its Metabolites in Occupationally Exposed Workers in Eastern China

Feng Zhang, Yanqiong Xu, Xin Liu, Liping Pan, Enmin Ding, Jianrui Dou and Baoli Zhu
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Feng Zhang: Department of Occupational Disease, Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Nanjing 210009, China
Yanqiong Xu: Department of Occupational Disease, Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Nanjing 210009, China
Xin Liu: Department of Occupational Disease, Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Nanjing 210009, China
Liping Pan: Medical Examination Center, Nanjing Prevention and Treatment Center for Occupational Disease, Nanjing 210038, China
Enmin Ding: Department of Occupational Disease, Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Nanjing 210009, China
Jianrui Dou: Department of Occupational Hygiene, Yangzhou City Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Yangzhou 225000, China
Baoli Zhu: Department of Occupational Disease, Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Nanjing 210009, China

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 8, 1-13

Abstract: Background : There are few published studies concerning occupational exposure to glyphosate (GLY), and these are limited to spraying, horticulture and other agricultural aspects. Therefore, the concentration of glyphosate and its metabolite aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), in the urine of workers exposed to glyphosate during glyphosate production was determined, and the relationship between internal (urinary glyphosate and AMPA concentration) and external exposure dose (time weighted average (TWA) value of glyphosate in the air of workplace) was analyzed. Methods : To avoid the influence of preparations, we selected people who were only involved in GLY production (without exposure to its preparations) as our research subjects. We collected 134 urine samples of workers exposed to GLY (prototype, not preparation). The urinary concentrations of GLY and AMPA (internal exposure dose) were detected by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. The subjects’ exposure to the amount of GLY in the air (external dose) was determined using ion chromatography. Conventional statistical methods, including quartiles, t -tests and regression analysis, were applied for data processing. Results : An on-site investigation revealed that the workers involved in centrifugation, crystallization, drying, and packaging and feeding were exposed to GLY. The TWA value of GLY in the workshop air was <0.02 mg/m 3 –34.58 mg/m 3 . The detection rates of GLY and AMPA in the urine samples were 86.6% and 81.3%, respectively. The concentration of urinary GLY was <0.020–17.202 mg/L (median, 0.292 mg/L). The urinary AMPA concentration was <0.010 mg/L–2.730 mg/L (median, 0.068 mg/L). The geometric means were 0.262 mg/L and 0.072 mg/L for GLY and AMPA, respectively. There was a correlation between the urinary concentration of GLY and AMPA and the TWA value of exposed workers (correlation coefficient [r] = 0.914 and 0.683, respectively; p < 0.01). Furthermore, there was a correlation between the urinary concentration of GLY and AMPA in the exposure group (r = 0.736, p < 0.01). Conclusions : The urinary concentration of GLY and AMPA of workers was correlated with the TWA value of workers’ exposure, which could reflect the actual exposure of the workers.

Keywords: workers; glyphosate; aminomethylphosphonic acid; urine; concentration distribution (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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