title: Level and temporal trend of perfluoroalkyl acids in Greenlandic Inuit.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) have been detected in human blood, breast milk and umbilical cord blood across the globe. PFAAs do accumulate in the marine food chain in Arctic regions. In Greenland, increasing PFAA concentrations were observed during 1982-2006 in ringed seals and polar bears. However, until now, no data have been reported for PFAAs in Greenlandic Inuit. This study assesses the level and temporal trend of serum PFAAs in Greenlandic Inuit.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-section and temporal time trend survey.
  
  
  METHODS
  Serum PFAA levels were determined in 284 Inuit from different Greenlandic districts using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry with electrospray ionization. The temporal time trend of serum PFAAs in Nuuk Inuit during 1998-2005 and the correlation between serum PFAAs and legacy persistent organic pollutants (POPs) were explored.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Serum PFAA levels were higher in Nuuk Inuit than in non-Nuuk Inuit. Within the same district, higher PFAA levels were observed for males. An age-dependent, increasing trend of serum PFAA levels in the period from 1998-2005 was observed for Nuuk Inuit. For the pooled gender data, no significant association between PFAAs and legacy POPs was observed for Nuuk Inuit while for non-Nuuk Inuit this correlation was significant. No correlation between PFAAs and legacy POPs was found for male Inuit, whereas significant correlation was observed both for pooled female Inuit and for non-Nuuk Inuit females.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We suggest that sources other than seafood intake might contribute to the observed higher PFAA levels in Nuuk Inuit compared to the pooled non-Nuuk Inuit.
authors.affiliation: Aarhus University, School of Public Health, Centre of Arctic Environmental Medicine, Aarhus, Denmark.
authors.forename: Manhai
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Long
authors.forename: Rossana
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bossi
authors.forename: Eva C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Bonefeld-Jørgensen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D017738:Alkanesulfonic Acids / Q000097:blood; D002210:Caprylates / Q000097:blood; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005466:Fluorocarbons / Q000097:blood*; D006116:Greenland; D006801:Humans; D004930:Inuit; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013997:Time Factors; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D017738:Alkanesulfonic Acids; D002210:Caprylates; D005466:Fluorocarbons; C023036:perfluorooctanoic acid; C076994:perfluorooctane sulfonic acid