title: Biological monitoring of human exposure to coal tar. Urinary excretion of total polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, 1-hydroxypyrene and mutagens in psoriatic patients.
abstract: Three methods for the biological monitoring of human exposure to coal tar were compared. Levels of 1-hydroxypyrene(1-OH PYR), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and mutagens (Ames plate incorporation assay using Salmonella typhimurium strain TA98 in the presence of S9 and beta-glucuronidase) were determined in urinary samples from psoriatic patients undergoing topical treatment with mineral coal tar. A single sample of urine with a high content of PAH was diluted with urine of nonexposed, non-smoking subjects in order to obtain nine samples with a decreasing content of PAh metabolites. Mutagenicity of the extracts was detectable down to the dilution corresponding to a content in 1-OH PYR of about 50 micrograms/g creatinine and total PAH of 7 micrograms/g creatinine. In a second phase the three indicators of exposure to PAH were compared in 16 urinary samples from four psoriatic patients. The total PAH levels determined by the acidic deconjugation/reduction method were confirmed to be nearly always lower than the corresponding levels of 1-OH PYR alone. Most of the extracts were mutagenic, however, some of the samples with a high content in PAh metabolites were not mutagenic. In all the urinary samples analyzed the excretion of 1-OH PYR was markedly greater than in control subjects. 1-OH PYR and urinary mutagenicity levels were well correlated. The present data suggest that both the determination of mutagenicity and 1-OH PYR in urine may be used to monitor occupational exposure to PAH, the latter method being cheaper and of greater specificity and sensitivity.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Occupational Health, University of Padua, Italy.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Clonfero
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zordan
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Venier
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Paleologo
authors.forename: A G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Levis
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cottica
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pozzoli
authors.forename: F J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Jongeneelen
authors.forename: R P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Bos
authors.forename: R B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Anzion
mesh_terms: D003033:Coal Tar / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic / Q000379:methods*; D009152:Mutagenicity Tests / Q000379:methods; D009153:Mutagens / Q000652:urine*; D011083:Polycyclic Compounds / Q000652:urine*; D011565:Psoriasis / Q000628:therapy / Q000652:urine*; D011721:Pyrenes / Q000652:urine*
chemical_list: D009153:Mutagens; D011083:Polycyclic Compounds; D011721:Pyrenes; D003033:Coal Tar; C033146:1-hydroxypyrene