Toxicological Properties of Persistent Organic Pollutants and Related Health Effects of Concern for the Arctic Populations

• Main Authors: Bonefeld-Jørgensen, Eva Cecilie, Ayotte, Pierre
• Format: Other Non-Article Part of Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) 2003
• Subjects: Arctic; AMAP; Human health
• Online Access: https://pure.au.dk/portal/da/publications/toxicological-properties-of-persistent-organic-pollutants-and-related-health-effects-of-concern-for-the-arctic-populations(240e8cd0-1271-11dc-bee9-02004c4f4f50).html; http://www.amap.no/documents/doc/amap-assessment-2002-human-health-in-the-arctic/95; http://amap.no/documents/index.cfm?action=getfile&dirsub=%2FAMAP%20Assessment%202002%20-%20Human%20Health%20in%20the%20Arctic&filename=HH%5FC06.pdf&CFID=4174636&CFTOKEN=68786802&sort=default

Summary Human exposure to environmental contaminants is ubiquitous and not only limited to individuals living close to the sources of contaminants. Everyone carries a burden of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in their body. The burden of POPs in Arctic peoples has been monitored for some years, however, it is only recently that a programme for measuring the potential biological effects of these contaminants has been established: the AMAP Human Health Effects Monitoring Programme. Body burden data alone are not enough to allow the health risks associated with exposure to environmental contaminants in Arctic peoples to be assessed. Furthermore, laboratory studies on the effects of single chemicals or chemical mixtures in laboratory animals and cell cultures cannot fully elucidate the human health risks. Integration of epidemiological and biomarker studies on humans from exposed populations in the Arctic is needed in order to obtain information about the real health risks resulting from exposure to the accumulated mixtures of contaminants in the Arctic. The broad category of human health effects that are suspected to result from exposure to environmental contaminants include cancer, birth defects, effects on the reproductive and the neuro-endocrine-immune systems, altered metabolism, and specific organ dysfunction. This chapter gives an introduction to these various health effects and presents possible biomarkers that may be useful to include in epidemiological studies. It also discusses the connection between traditional toxicological studies and new methods designed to study the potential of chemicals to interfere with the normal homeostasis by exerting endocrine-disrupting effects. Summary: Human exposure to environmental contaminants is ubiquitous and not only limited to individuals living close to the sources of contaminants. Everyone carries a burden of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in their body. The burden of POPs in Arctic peoples has been monitored for some years, however, it is only recently that a programme for measuring the potential biological effects of these contaminants has been established: the AMAP Human Health Effects Monitoring Programme. Body burden data alone are not enough to allow the health risks associated with exposure to environmental contaminants in Arctic peoples to be assessed. Furthermore, laboratory studies on the effects of single chemicals or chemical mixtures in laboratory animals and cell cultures cannot fully elucidate the human health risks. Integration of epidemiological and biomarker studies on humans from exposed populations in the Arctic is needed in order to obtain information about the real health risks resulting from exposure to the accumulated mixtures of contaminants in the Arctic. The broad category of human health effects that are suspected to result from exposure to environmental contaminants include cancer, birth defects, effects on the reproductive and the neuro-endocrine-immune systems, altered metabolism, and specific organ dysfunction. This chapter gives an introduction to these various health effects and presents possible biomarkers that may be useful to include in epidemiological studies. It also discusses the connection between traditional toxicological studies and new methods designed to study the potential of chemicals to interfere with the normal homeostasis by exerting endocrine-disrupting effects.