The occurrence of eight phosphorus flame retardants (PFRs) was investigated in 53 composite food samples from 12 food categories, collected in 2015 for a Swedish food market basket study. 2-ethylhexyl diphenyl phosphate (EHDPHP), detected in most food categories, had the highest median concentrations (9 ng/g ww, pastries). It was followed by triphenyl phosphate (TPHP) (2.6 ng/g ww, fats/oils), tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TDCIPP) (1.0 ng/g ww, fats/oils), tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP) (1.0 ng/g ww, fats/oils), and tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCIPP) (0.80 ng/g ww, pastries). Tris(2-ethylhexyl) phosphate (TEHP), tri-n-butyl phosphate (TNBP), and tris(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate (TBOEP) were not detected in the analyzed food samples. The major contributor to the total dietary intake was EHDPHP (57%), and the food categories which contributed the most to the total intake of PFRs were processed food, such as cereals (26%), pastries (10%), sugar/sweets (11%), and beverages (17%). The daily per capita intake of PFRs (TCEP, TPHP, EHDPHP, TDCIPP, TCIPP) from food ranged from 406 to 3266 ng/day (or 6-49 ng/kg bw/day), lower than the health-based reference doses. This is the first study reporting PFR intakes from other food categories than fish (here accounting for 3%). Our results suggest that the estimated human dietary exposure to PFRs may be equally important to the ingestion of dust.

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Synthetic phenolic antioxidants (SPAs), including 2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxytoluene (BHT), are extensively used in food, cosmetic and plastic industries. Nevertheless, limited information is available on human exposures, other than the dietary sources, to SPAs. In this study, occurrence of 9 SPAs and their metabolites/degradation products was determined in 339 indoor dust collected from 12 countries. BHT was found in 99.5% of indoor dust samples from homes and microenvironments at concentrations that ranged from < LOQ to 118 μg/g and 0.10 to 3460 μg/g, respectively. This is the first study to measure BHT metabolites in house dust (0.01-35.1 μg/g) and their concentrations accounted for 9.2-58% of the sum concentrations (∑SPAs). 3,5-di-tert-butyl-4-hydroxybenzaldehyde (BHT-CHO), 2,6-di-tert-butyl-4-(hydroxymethyl)phenol (BHT-OH), 2,6-di-tert-butyl-1,4-benzoquinone (BHT-Q) were the major derivatives of BHT found in dust samples. The concentrations of gallic acid esters (gallates) in dust from homes and microenvironments ranged from < LOQ to 18.2 and < LOQ to 684 μg/g, respectively. The concentrations and profiles of SPAs varied among countries and microenvironments. Significantly elevated concentrations of SPAs were found in dust from an e-waste workshop (1530 μg/g). The estimated daily intake (EDI) of BHT via house dust ingestion ranged from 0.40 to 222 ng/kg/d (95th percentile).

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Indoor dust is a sink for many kinds of pollutants, including flame retardants (FRs), plasticizers, and their contaminants and degradation products. These pollutants can be migrated to indoor dust from household items such as televisions and computers. To reveal high-priority end points of and contaminant candidates in indoor dust, using CALUX reporter gene assays based on human osteosarcoma (U2OS) cell lines, we evaluated and characterized the endocrine-disrupting potencies of crude extracts of indoor dust collected from Japan (n = 8), the United States (n = 21), Vietnam (n = 10), the Philippines (n = 17), and Indonesia (n = 10) and for 23 selected FRs. The CALUX reporter gene assays used were specific for compounds interacting with the human androgen receptor (AR), estrogen receptor α (ERα), progesterone receptor (PR), glucocorticoid receptor (GR), and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ2 (PPARγ2). Indoor dust extracts were agonistic to ERα, GR, and PPARγ2 and antagonistic against AR, PR, GR, and PPARγ2. In comparison, a majority of FRs was agonistic to ERα and PPARγ2 only, and some FRs demonstrated receptor-specific antagonism against all tested nuclear receptors. Hierarchical clustering clearly indicated that agonism of ERα and antagonism of AR and PR were common, frequently detected end points for indoor dust and tested FRs. Given our previous results regarding the concentrations of FRs in indoor dust and in light of our current results, candidate contributors to these effects include not only internationally controlled brominated FRs but also alternatives such as some phosphorus-containing FRs. In the context of indoor pollution, high-frequency effects of FRs such as agonism of ERα and antagonism of AR and PR are candidate high-priority end points for further investigation.

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