Arsenic exposures alter clinical indicators of anemia in a male population of smokers and non-smokers in Bangladesh

Abstract

Drinking water arsenic (WAs) exposure has been linked to a number of detrimental health outcomes including anemia, primarily among pregnant women. Little is known about the effects of As on hematological disorders among men. We have examined the role of As exposure on hematological indicators of anemia in a group of men exposed to a wide range of As in their drinking water. We conducted a cross-sectional investigation among 119 healthy men in the Health Effects of As Longitudinal Study cohort, in rural Bangladesh. The participants are part of an ongoing study focused on evaluating the influence of As and smoking on immune function. Samples were collected at recruitment and analyzed for WAs, urinary As (UAs) and UAs metabolites to assess As exposure. Blood samples were also collected at recruitment and assayed immediately for hematological parameters. We found that increased WAs was associated with decreased red blood cell counts [β= −0.13, p<0.0001] as well as hematocrit packed cell volume [β= −0.68, p=0.008] following adjustment for age, smoking, body mass index and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-DNA adducts. Other measures of As exposure (UAs and its metabolites) demonstrated similar associations. Slightly stronger effects were observed among smokers. We also observed an effect of As on hemoglobin among smokers in relation to urinary As [β= −0.54, p<0.05]. Our analysis revealed effects of As exposure on hematological indicators of anemia in a group of healthy male smokers and non-smokers.

Assessment of arsenic and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) exposures on immune function among males in Bangladesh

“…We performed routine hematology analyses on fresh blood, and found that urinary arsenic was associated with a decline in RBC counts, and many participants had a mild elevation of white blood cell counts [28]. For immune assessments, the present study mostly focused on examining the function of peripheral blood lymphocytes, especially T-cells, as these cells have previously been found to be sensitive to the effects of arsenic exposure.…”

“…Participants were recruited and consented as described by Parvez et al [28]. Briefly, we recruited subjects from the Health Effects Arsenic Longitudinal Study (HEALS) [1].…”

Cellular and Molecular Mechanisms of Environmental Pollutants on Hematopoiesis

“…Epidemiological studies carried out in Bangladesh and Romania, areas characterized by geogenic contamination of underground drinking water, correlated chronic As exposure with anemia [ 251 , 252 , 253 , 254 ]. A case report demonstrated pronounced histological alterations in the BM of a patient suffering from arsenic poisoning, characterized by marked nuclear aberrations involving nucleus shape, chromatin distribution, and nuclear envelope [ 255 ].…”

Does drinking water with a high concentration of arsenic cause anemia in children?

“…Si bien se esperaba que los niños pertenecientes a familias de posición económica "Rico" presenten mayores probabilidades de ausencia de anemia, el efecto contrario de esta variable posiblemente se deba a que cerca del 75% de los niños Juliaqueños padecen de anemia y el 43% de las familias exhiben niveles de riqueza entre Muy rico y Rico, por su parte Falivene y Fattore (2016) no hallan diferencias en la prevalencia de anemia en niños menores de dos años de acuerdo a las necesidades básicas insatisfechas. En cuanto al consumo de agua subterránea (agua de pozo), nuestros resultados concuerdan con las evidencias de Taheri et al (2016), Surdu et al (2015), Kile et al (2016) y Parvez et al (2017) sobre asociación directa entre agua con concentraciones de arsénico y prevalencia de anemia en los consumidores.…”

“…El Plan de Desarrollo Urbano 2016-2025 de Juliaca señala que el abastecimiento de agua y desagüe es limitado debido a la infraestructura obsoleta, siendo el servicio limitado en cuanto a cobertura y deficiente en cuanto a calidad, en barrios urbano marginales y zonas peri urbanas los pobladores se abastecen de agua mediante pozos tubulares (agua subterránea) además de usar letrinas. A través de diferentes técnicas de correlación estadísticas, diversos trabajos de investigación relacionan el consumo de agua potable con distintos niveles de concentración de arsénico con la salud de las personas, obteniendo como resultado asociaciones directas entre prevalencia de anemia en los moradores y agua potable con altas dosis de arsénico (Cotta et al, 2011;Leal et al, 2011;Surdu et al, 2015;Kile et al, 2016;Taheri et al, 2016;Parvez et al, 2017;Stewart et al, 2019). En relación a las características socioeconómicas, la condición de pobreza y pobreza extrema de las familias repercuten de manera directa en la presencia de anemia en infantes (Velásquez-Hurtado et al, 2016;Cárdenas-Quintana y Roldan-Arbieto, 2017;Magalhães et al, 2018), al respecto Kuehnle (2014) concluye que el ingreso familiar tiene un efecto pequeño sobre la salud del niño, pero ningún efecto sobre las condiciones crónicas de salud aparte de enfermedades respiratorias.…”