Measurement of p-nitrophenol in the urine of residents whose homes were contaminated with methyl parathion.
During the last several years, illegal commercial application of methyl parathion (MP) in domestic settings in several U.S. Southeastern and Midwestern States has affected largely inner-city residents. As part of a multiagency response involving the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA), the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), and state and local health departments, our laboratory developed a rapid, high-throughput, selective method for quantifying p-nitrophenol (PNP), a biomarker of MP exposure, using isotope dilution high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. We measured PNP in approximately 16,000 samples collected from residents of seven different states. Using this method, we were able to receive sample batches from each state; prepare, analyze, and quantify the samples for PNP; verify the results; and report the data to the health departments and ATSDR in about 48 hr. These data indicate that many residents had urinary PNP concentrations well in excess of those of the general U.S. population. In fact, their urinary PNP concentrations were more consistent with those seen in occupational settings or in poisoning cases. Although these data, when coupled with other MP metabolite data, suggest that many residents with the highest concentrations of urinary PNP had significant exposure to MP, they do not unequivocally rule out exposure to PNP resulting from environmental degradation of MP. Even with their limitations, these data were used with the assumption that all PNP was derived from MP exposure, which enabled the U.S. EPA and ATSDR to develop a comprehensive, biologically driven response that was protective of human health, especially susceptible populations, and included clinical evaluations, outreach activities, community education, integrated pest management, and decontamination of homes.
Barr
Dana B
DB
National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. dbarr@cdc.gov
Turner
Wayman E
WE
DiPietro
Emily
E
McClure
P Cheryl
PC
Baker
Samuel E
SE
Barr
John R
JR
Gehle
Kimberly
K
Grissom
Raymond E
RE
Bravo
Roberto
R
Driskell
W Jack
WJ
Patterson
Donald G
DG
Hill
Robert H
RH
Needham
Larry L
LL
Pirkle
James L
JL
Sampson
Eric J
EJ
D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis*; D002138:Calibration; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D004781:Environmental Exposure; D006801:Humans; D007300:Insect Control; D007306:Insecticides / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis; D007373:Interinstitutional Relations; D009111:Local Government; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D008743:Methyl Parathion / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis; D009596:Nitrophenols / Q000652:urine*; D011786:Quality Control; D012016:Reference Values; D012042:Registries; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013219:State Government; D014481:United States; D014484:United States Environmental Protection Agency
D015415:Biomarkers; D007306:Insecticides; D009596:Nitrophenols; D008743:Methyl Parathion; C024836:4-nitrophenol