Comparison of monoamine oxidase and selected heavy metal levels in the blood and the workplace among e-waste sorting workers in Ubon Ratchathani Province, Thailand

Abstract

Background. E-waste sorting workers usually separate electronic waste. Therefore, they can be exposed to heavy metals. Objectives. This study compared monoamine oxidase (MAO) levels affected by the levels of lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and nickel (Ni) in the blood and their workplace among e-waste sorting workers (EWSW). Material and methods. The exposed group included 76 EWSW, and the non-exposed group included 49 village health volunteers. An interview form was used to assess the risk factors. We measured Pb, Cd, and Ni on the work surfaces and in the blood, and MAO levels as a neurological enzymes. Results. Among the EWSW, 42 were males (55.3%), and the mean age (SD) 48.0 (12.64) years, and income were 156.37 ± 88.08 USD. In the work areas of the exposed group, the concentration of Pb, Cd, and Ni were 245.042 (± 613.910), 0.375 (± 0.662), and 46.115 (± 75.740) μg/100 cm2, respectively, while the non-exposed group, the concentration of Pb, Cd, and Ni were 0.609 (± 0.934), 0.167 (± 1.171) and 1.020 (± 0.142) μg/100 cm2. Pb and Ni concentrations in the workplace of the exposed groups were statistically different from that of the non-exposed group. Pb, Cd, and Ni concentrations in serum were 6.411 ± 1.492 μg/dL, 0.9480 ± 0.350 μg/L, 2.568 ± 0.468 μg/L, respectively, while in the non-exposed group, the heavy metal concentrations were 6.411 ± 1.620 μg/dL, 0.909 ± 0.277 μg/L, 2.527 ± 0.457 μg/L. The MAO in the exposed group was 362.060 ± 97.981 U/L, while that in the non-exposed group was 369.771 ± 86.752 U/L. Moreover, MAO concentration was significantly different from Ni concentration (p < 0.05). Conclusion. The electronic waste sorting workers should clean their work areas to reduce the Pb, Cd, and Ni levels on the working surfaces, and health surveillance should be performed.

A Bio-Indicator Pilot Study Screening Selected Heavy Metals in Female Hair, Nails, and Serum from Lifestyle Cosmetic, Canned Food, and Manufactured Drink Choices

“…Keratin is a cysteine that contains protein and can interact with heavy metals [65,66]; hence, it may be the first way to interact with heavy metals and enter the human body, which agrees with current results and explains the high binding energy with keratin in the selected heavy metals in the docking analysis. Previous publications report that heavy metals can accumulate in the human body as a result of lifestyle exposure and entrance via the blood into the brain; they also find a relationship between measured heavy metals in humans and mono amino oxidase and various neurotransmitters mediators, relationships, and interactions that are reflected in the current docking analysis results, where there was high binding energy with the selected heavy metals in this study and mono amino oxidase with target receptors and enzymes [67][68][69][70][71][72][73][74][75]. Our result also showed binding energy with adrenaline target receptors and molecules with Cr, Cd, Pb, and Al, which explains the results of the effect of heavy metals and neurological disturbances of many previous findings [6,76].…”

Improving the environmental quality of Kesiman Village, Mojokerto Regency through household waste sorting

“…Household waste generally consists of paper, electronic equipment, food scraps, plastic and glass bottles, metal cans, and discarded clothes. Garbage separation, or garbage classification or garbage separation, is the process of separating waste of different elements operated manually in households or through curbside collection schemes (Harasarn et al, 2022;Taghipour et al, 2016). There is an urgent need to address this significant problem by implementing effective household waste sorting programs (Xu et al, 2017).…”