Concentrations of Bisphenol A and Seven Other Phenols in Pooled Sera from 3–11 Year Old Children: 2001–2002 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey

Abstract

Concerns exist regarding children's exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) and other phenols because of the higher sensitivity, compared to adults, of children's developing organs to endocrine disruptors. Several studies reported the urinary concentrations of these phenols in children, but data on levels of these compounds in children's serum are limited. We present here the total (free plus conjugated) and free concentrations of BPA and seven other phenols in 24 pooled serum samples prepared from individual specimens collected from 936 children 3-11 years old who participated in the 2001-2002 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. We detected benzophenone-3, triclosan, 2,4-dichlorophenol, 2,5-dichlorophenol, and three parabens in at least 60% of the pools suggesting children's exposure to these compounds or their precursors. Conjugated phenols were the major species. However, although many previous studies have shown widespread detection of BPA in children's urine, we only detected total or free BPA in 3 and 2 pooled serum samples, respectively, at concentrations of 0.1-0.2 µg/L. The non-persistent nature of BPA and the phenols examined and the likely episodic nature of the exposures to these compounds (or their precursors) suggest that for general population biomonitoring of these nonpersistent phenols, urine, not serum or plasma, is the preferred matrix.

A round robin approach to the analysis of bisphenol a (BPA) in human blood samples

“…The indirect method used by Laboratory 2, which was selected to replicate the methods used by the US CDC [46] typically underestimated the total BPA spiked. Similarly, both Laboratories 3 and 4 reported fewer BPA values within 20% of the spiked levels for the indirect versus the direct method (Figure 5).…”

Exposure to bisphenol A at physiological concentrations observed in Chinese children promotes primordial follicle growth through the PI3K/Akt pathway in an ovarian culture system

“…The dose employed in our study is similar to blood BPA levels measured in Chinese children (3.18 ng/ml, 0.1 lM) (Zhang et al, 2013), although it is lower than the blood BPA levels for children residing in other countries (Ye et al, 2012). Few studies have investigated the effect of BPA on the ovary at this clinically relevant dose.…”

Early Life Metabolism of Bisphenol A: A Systematic Review of the Literature

“…In order to ensure adequate laboratory method specificity, only human biomarker and animal studies were considered in which analytes were quantified by high- (or ultra-) performance liquid chromatography or gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry; studies in which measurements made using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay or electrochemical and ultraviolet detection were excluded because they are not adequately specific and may overestimate concentrations of BPA in samples [20]. In addition, human studies were limited to those in which BPA was measured in urine, since serum BPA concentrations in children in the general population are generally too low to be detected [21]. Studies of cord blood, amniotic fluid, or fluids collected from mothers during pregnancy reflecting prenatal exposure and metabolism were not included in this review.…”