Evaluation of Residual Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Concentrations of Processed and Unprocessed Fish Body Parts: a Human Health Risk Assessment

Concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from a dry extract of fresh and smoked body parts of Clarias gariepinus were examined to determine associated potential human health risks. Gas chromatography analysis was employed for the PAHs determination. The PAHs levels ranged from 0.001 µg/kg [indeno (1,2,3-cd)pyrene] to 11.7 µg/kg (acenaphthene) in fresh (extract), while the smoked (extract) showed 0.001 µg/kg [indeno (1,2,3-cd)pyrene] to 12.7 µg/kg (pyrene). The liver and head smoked were observed to be more contaminated as compared to fresh parts. Individual PAHs in the fish parts were less than the 12.0 µg/kg limit in food as set by the European Union (EU). Although there was evidence of contamination, the potential health risk associated with the fish consumption revealed no observable potential health risk to consumers.

Carbonyl Composition and Electrophilicity in Vaping Emissions of Flavored and Unflavored E-Liquids

It has been demonstrated that propylene glycol (PG), vegetable glycerin (VG), and flavoring chemicals can thermally degrade to form carbonyls during vaping, but less is known about carbonyl emissions produced by transformation of flavoring chemicals and the interactive effects among e-liquid constituents. This study characterized carbonyl composition and levels in vaping emissions of PG-VG (e-liquid base solvents) and four e-liquid formulations flavored with trans-2-hexenol, benzyl alcohol, l-(-)-menthol, or linalool. Utilizing gas chromatography (GC)- and liquid chromatography (LC)-mass spectrometry (MS) methods, 14 carbonyls were identified and quantified. PG-VG emitted highest levels of formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, and acrolein. However, flavored e-liquids contributed to the production of a wider variety of carbonyls, with some carbonyls directly corresponding to the oxidation of alcohol moieties in flavoring compounds (e.g., trans-2-hexenol and benzyl alcohol transformed into trans-2-hexenal and benzaldehyde, respectively). Detections of formaldehyde-GSH and trans-2-hexenal-GSH adducts signify interactions of carbonyls with biological nucleophiles. The global reactivity descriptors (I, A, μ, η, and ω) and condensed Fukui parameters (fk0, fk−, fk+, and dual-descriptor) were computed to elucidate site reactivities of selected simple and α,β-unsaturated carbonyls found in vaping emissions. Overall, this study highlights carbonyl emissions and reactivities and their potential health risk effects associated with vaping.

Fuel and energy enterprises as objects of risk-oriented sanitary-epidemiologic surveillance

The present research aims to provide analytical support for the risk-oriented model of sanitary-epidemiologic control over fuel and energy enterprises. The research task were to reveal the most common violations of sanitary-epidemiologic requirements by fuel and energy enterprises; to determine priority environmental indicators that should be included into a program of laboratory support for control and surveillance activities; to estimate actual impacts exerted by fuel and energy enterprises. We established that in 2020 there were totally more than 6 thousand economic entities that performed their activity in the sphere of “Electric energy, gas and steam supply; air conditioning”. Since fuel and energy enterprises tend to be located close to residential areas, violations in the sphere of ambient air protection (Clause 20) involve negative influence on a considerable number of people. In 2020 the greatest number of revealed violation regarding requirements to ambient air quality was registered for heat and power engineering enterprises in the Far East Federal District (FEFD), Siberian FD (SFD), Central FD (CFD), and Ural FD (UFD) and varied from 10.6 to 42.9 %. Average potential health risk (Rlav) per one economic entity amounted to 5.44∙10-4 for heat and power engineering. A share of economic entities dealing with this economic activity and assigned into extremely high and high (the 1st and 2nd accordingly) risk categories as per potential health risk amounts to 21.7 %. A scale of exposure (Mli) for economic entities operating in heat and power engineering can reach 930 thousand people. The greatest share of economic entities belonging to the 1st and 2nd risk categories as per potential health risk is registered in the SFD, Volga FD, CFD, UFD, and FEFD and amounts to 78.5 %. The greatest average potential health risk per one economic entity (Rlav) in the sphere of “Electric energy, gas and steam supply; air conditioning” was registered in the Siberian Federal District and amounted to 9.88∙10-4. The greatest numbers of economic entities operating in the sphere of “Electric energy, gas and steam supply; air conditioning” that belonged to the 1st and 2nd risk categories as per potential health risk are located in the Krasnoyarsk region (37.9 %), Kemerovo region (32.6 %), Tomsk and Omsk regions (29.7 % each).