Profiles of neonicotinoid insecticides and characteristic metabolites in paired urine and blood samples: Partitioning between urine and blood and implications for human exposure

Miaomiao Xu; Zhanpeng Zhang; Zhiyong Li; Shunyan Kan; Zhaoxiang Liu; Desheng Wang; Qihui Liu; Hua Zhang

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145582

Profiles of neonicotinoid insecticides and characteristic metabolites in paired urine and blood samples: Partitioning between urine and blood and implications for human exposure

Sci Total Environ. 2021 Jun 15:773:145582. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145582. Epub 2021 Feb 5.

Authors

Miaomiao Xu¹, Zhanpeng Zhang², Zhiyong Li¹, Shunyan Kan¹, Zhaoxiang Liu³, Desheng Wang⁴, Qihui Liu⁵, Hua Zhang⁶

Affiliations

¹ The Biomedical Translational Research Institute, Jinan University Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510632, PR China.
² Department of Dermatology, The first Affiliated Hospital of Jinan University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510632, PR China.
³ Xiangtan Central Hospital, Xiangtan, Hunan 411100, PR China. Electronic address: 327223489@qq.com.
⁴ School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510275, PR China.
⁵ The Biomedical Translational Research Institute, Jinan University Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510632, PR China. Electronic address: Qihui_liu@126.com.
⁶ The Biomedical Translational Research Institute, Jinan University Faculty of Medical Science, Jinan University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510632, PR China. Electronic address: zhanghua9201@jnu.edu.cn.

PMID: 33582343
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.145582

Abstract

Neonicotinoid insecticides (NEOs) are widely used for pest control worldwide. However, only a few studies have analyzed NEOs and their metabolites in blood samples, and no study has measured the concentrations of NEOs and their metabolites in paired urine and blood samples. In this study, six NEOs and three characteristic metabolites were detected in 196 paired urine and blood samples collected from young adults from China. The NEOs and their metabolites were widely detected in paired urine (67%-91%) and blood (64%-97%) samples, and the median levels ranged within 0.01-1.15 ng/mL in urine and 0.08-0.80 ng/mL in blood. Olefin-imidacloprid (Of-IMI) and 1-methyl-3-(tetrahydro-3-furylmethyl) urea (UF) were the most abundant target compounds in the urine (32.4%) and blood (26.4%) samples, respectively. Gender-related differences were observed in the concentrations of most NEOs and their metabolites in the urine and blood samples. The partitioning of target analytes between blood and urine (NEOs-B/NEOs-U ratios) was also calculated in this study. The B/U ratios of most NEOs and their metabolites were below 1, and positive correlations were observed between urine and blood in most levels of NEOs and their metabolites. This finding indicates that urinary levels are good predictors of human exposure to NEOs and their metabolites. The estimated daily intake (EDI) and the imidacloprid-equivalent (IMI_eq) levels of NEOs and their metabolites in 196 young adults were also determined. The median EDI values (ng/kg bw/day) of ΣNEOs (sum of NEOs and their metabolites) and IMI_eq in females (194.9 and 458.2) were slightly higher than (p > 0.05) those in males (157.1 and 439.7). This finding shows young adults are extensively exposed to NEOs and their metabolites. To our knowledge, this study is the first to report about NEOs and their metabolites in paired samples of urine and blood in China.

Keywords: Blood; Metabolites; Neonicotinoid insecticides; Partitioning; Urine.

MeSH terms

Alkenes
China
Female
Humans
Insecticides* / analysis
Male
Neonicotinoids
Young Adult

Substances

Alkenes
Insecticides
Neonicotinoids