Dataset Information

Environmental and individual PAH exposures near rural natural gas extraction.

ABSTRACT: Natural gas extraction (NGE) has expanded rapidly in the United States in recent years. Despite concerns, there is little information about the effects of NGE on air quality or personal exposures of people living or working nearby. Recent research suggests NGE emits polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) into air. This study used low-density polyethylene passive samplers to measure concentrations of PAHs in air near active (n?=?3) and proposed (n?=?2) NGE sites. At each site, two concentric rings of air samplers were placed around the active or proposed well pad location. Silicone wristbands were used to assess personal PAH exposures of participants (n?=?19) living or working near the sampling sites. All samples were analyzed for 62 PAHs using GC-MS/MS, and point sources were estimated using the fluoranthene/pyrene isomer ratio. ?PAH was significantly higher in air at active NGE sites (Wilcoxon rank sum test, p?

SUBMITTER: Paulik LB

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7169985 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Environmental and individual PAH exposures near rural natural gas extraction.

Paulik L Blair LB Hobbie Kevin A KA Rohlman Diana D Smith Brian W BW Scott Richard P RP Kincl Laurel L Haynes Erin N EN Anderson Kim A KA

Environmental pollution (Barking, Essex : 1987) 20180529

Natural gas extraction (NGE) has expanded rapidly in the United States in recent years. Despite concerns, there is little information about the effects of NGE on air quality or personal exposures of people living or working nearby. Recent research suggests NGE emits polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) into air. This study used low-density polyethylene passive samplers to measure concentrations of PAHs in air near active (n = 3) and proposed (n = 2) NGE sites. At each site, two concentric rin ...[more]

PMID: 29857308

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Project description:Studies of neonatal health risks of unconventional natural gas development (UNGD) have not included comprehensive assessments of environmental chemical exposures. We investigated a clustering of dysphagic cases in neonatal foals born between 2014 and 2016 in an area of active UNGD in Pennsylvania (PA),USA. We evaluated equine biological data and environmental exposures on the affected PA farm and an unaffected New York (NY) farm owned by the same proprietor. Dams either spent their entire gestation on one farm or moved to the other farm in late gestation. Over the 21-month study period, physical examinations and blood/tissue samples were obtained from mares and foals on each farm. Grab samples of water, pasture soil and feed were collected; continuous passive sampling of air and water for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons was performed. Dysphagia was evaluated as a binary variable; logistic regression was used to identify risk factors. Sixty-five foals were born, 17 (all from PA farm) were dysphagic. Odds of dysphagia increased with the dam residing on the PA farm for each additional month of gestation (OR = 1.4, 95% CI 1.2, 1.7, p = 6.0E-04). Males were more likely to be born dysphagic (OR = 5.5, 95% CI 1.2, 24.5, p = 0.03) than females. Prior to installation of a water filtration/treatment system, PA water concentrations of 3,6-dimethylphenanthrene (p = 6.0E-03), fluoranthene (p = 0.03), pyrene (p = 0.02) and triphenylene (p = 0.01) exceeded those in NY water. Compared to NY farm water, no concentrations of PAHs were higher in PA following installation of the water filtration/treatment system. We provide evidence of an uncommon adverse health outcome (dysphagia) in foals born near UNGD that was eliminated in subsequent years (2017-2019) following environmental management changes. Notably, this study demonstrates that domestic large animals such as horses can serve as important sentinels for human health risks associated with UNGD activities.

Project description:BACKGROUND:Gut microbiota composition is associated with child health, but the effect of the environment on microbiota composition is not well understood. Few studies have been conducted in low-income settings where childhood malnutrition is common and possibly related to microbiota composition. OBJECTIVES:To investigate whether gut microbiota composition in young children and their mothers is associated with different environmental exposures in rural Malawi. We hypothesized that more adverse environmental exposures would be associated with lower levels of microbiota maturity and diversity. METHODS:Faecal samples from up to 631 children and mothers participating in a nutrition intervention trial were collected at 1, 6, 12, 18, and 30 months (children) and at 1 month (mothers) after birth and analysed for microbiota composition with 16S rRNA sequencing. Bacterial OTU and genus abundances, measures of microbiota maturity and diversity, and UniFrac distances were compared between participants with different environmental exposures. The exposure variables included socio-economic status, water source, sanitary facility, domestic animals, maternal characteristics, season, antibiotic use, and delivery mode. RESULTS:Measures of microbiota maturity and diversity in children were inversely associated with maternal education at 6, 18, and 30 months and did not otherwise differ consistently between participants with different environmental exposures. Phylogenetic distance was related to season of stool sample collection at all time points. At the level of individual OTUs and genera, season of stool sample collection, type of water source, and maternal education showed most associations with child gut microbiota, while HIV status was the most important predictor of relative OTU and genus abundances in mothers. CONCLUSION:The results do not support the hypothesis that adverse environmental exposures are broadly associated with lower microbiota maturity and diversity but suggest that environmental exposures influence the abundance of several bacterial OTUs and genera and that low maternal education is associated with higher microbiota maturity and diversity.

Project description:Measurement methods for chemicals in biological and personal environmental samples have expanded rapidly and become a cornerstone of health studies and public health surveillance. These measurements raise questions about whether and how to report individual results to study participants, particularly when health effects and exposure reduction strategies are uncertain. In an era of greater public participation and open disclosure in science, researchers and institutional review boards (IRBs) need new guidance on changing norms and best practices. Drawing on the experiences of researchers, IRBs, and study participants, we discuss ethical frameworks, effective methods, and outcomes in studies that have reported personal results for a wide range of environmental chemicals. Belmont Report principles and community-based participatory research ethics imply responsibilities to report individual results, and several recent biomonitoring guidance documents call for individual reports. Meaningful report-back includes contextual information about health implications and exposure reduction strategies. Both narrative and graphs are helpful. Graphs comparing an individual's results with other participants in the study and benchmarks, such as the National Exposure Report, are helpful, but must be used carefully to avoid incorrect inferences that higher results are necessarily harmful or lower results are safe. Methods can be tailored for specific settings by involving participants and community members in planning. Participants and researchers who have participated in report-back identified benefits: increasing trust in science, retention in cohort studies, environmental health literacy, individual and community empowerment, and motivation to reduce exposures. Researchers as well as participants gained unexpected insights into the characteristics and sources of environmental contamination. Participants are almost universally eager to receive their results and do not regret getting them. Ethical considerations and empirical experience both support study participants' right to know their own results if they choose, so report-back should become the norm in studies that measure personal exposures. Recent studies provide models that are compiled in a handbook to help research partnerships that are planning report-back. Thoughtful report-back can strengthen research experiences for investigators and participants and expand the translation of environmental health research in communities.

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Environmental and individual PAH exposures near rural natural gas extraction.

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Environmental and individual PAH exposures near rural natural gas extraction.

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