title: Association of exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (estimated from job category) with concentration of 1-hydroxypyrene glucuronide in urine from workers at a steel plant.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Increased risk of lung cancer has been associated with employment in the steel industry. This association is thought to be due in part to increased concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in air found in this work environment. Measurement of PAH metabolites in human urine provides a means of assessing individual internal dose of PAHs. This study examined the relative contribution of occupation and smoking to urinary concentration of 1-hydroxypyrene glucuronide (1-OHPG) among a group of workers at a steel plant.
  
  
  METHODS
  Concentrations of 1-OHPG in urine from 44 workers with jobs associated with increased air concentrations of PAHs and 40 workers with jobs with low or no exposure to PAHs were measured. 20 workers in each group were not current smokers. Urinary 1-OHPG was measured by synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy after immunoaffinity chromatography specific for PAH metabolites.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean (SEM) urinary 1-OHPG concentration was 2.16 (0.42) pmol/ml urine among the 44 occupationally exposed workers compared with 0.38 (0.05) among the 40 workers with no or low exposure (P < 0.0001). Mean urinary 1-OHPG concentration was 1.82 (0.41) pmol/ml urine among the 44 current smokers compared with 0.75 (0.20) among the 40 non-smokers (P < 0.005). Mean 1-OHPG concentrations in non-smokers were 0.26 (n = 20), 0.70 (n = 15), and 2.84 pmol/ml urine (n = 5) for strata of exposure to PAHs (no or low, mid, and high) based on job category; the corresponding values in smokers were 0.55 (n = 20), 0.94 (n = 12), and 4.91 pmol/ml (n = 12), respectively. Multiple linear regression showed significant differences between subjects in different PAH exposure with increased concentrations of 1-OHPG in urine. Amounts of foods containing PAHs ingested by this group of workers were relatively low and did not contribute significantly to urinary 1-OHPG concentrations.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results indicate that 1-OHPG is a common urinary metabolite in people with recent occupational exposure to PAHs and is associated with both job category and estimated stratum of PAH exposure.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rothman
authors.forename: S H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: H S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Lim
authors.forename: H J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Kwon
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schwartz
authors.forename: P T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: Strickland
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002846:Chromatography, Affinity; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D005965:Glucuronates / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008669:Metallurgy; D008875:Middle Aged; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D011083:Polycyclic Compounds / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000378:metabolism; D011721:Pyrenes / Q000378:metabolism*; D012907:Smoking / Q000652:urine; D013050:Spectrometry, Fluorescence
chemical_list: C093851:1-hydroxypyrene-glucuronide; D005965:Glucuronates; D011083:Polycyclic Compounds; D011721:Pyrenes