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Low levels of lead and glutathione markers of redox status in human blood

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Abstract

Exposure to lead (Pb) is implicated in a plethora of health threats in both adults and children. Increased exposure levels are associated with oxidative stress in the blood of workers exposed at occupational levels. However, it is not known whether lower Pb exposure levels are related to a shift toward a more oxidized state. To assess the association between blood lead level (BLL) and glutathione (GSH) redox biomarkers in a population of healthy adults, BLL and four GSH markers (GSH, GSSG, GSH/GSSG ratio and redox potential E h ) were measured in the blood of a cross-sectional cohort of 282 avid seafood-eating healthy adults living on Long Island (NY). Additionally, blood levels of two other metals known to affect GSH redox status, selenium (Se) and mercury (Hg), and omega-3 index were tested for effect modification. Regression models were further adjusted for demographic and smoking status. Increasing exposure to Pb, measured in blood, was not associated with GSSG, but was associated with lower levels of GSH/GSSG ratio and more positive GSH redox potential E h , driven by its association with GSH. No effect modification was observed in analyses stratified by Hg, Se, omega-3 index, sex, age, or smoking. Blood Pb is associated with lower levels of GSH and the GSH/GSSG ratio in this cross-sectional study of healthy adults.

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Acknowledgements

We wish to thank the participants and research support staff of the Long Island Seafood Study, including the Clinical Research Core at Stony Brook Medical Center, Izolda Mileva, Susan Silbernagel, Karen Warren, Nikita Timofeev, Jia Juan (Tommy) Chu, Rebecca Monastero, Paige de Rosa, and Shivam Kothari. This work was supported by NY SeaGrant# R/SHH-17 and the Gelfond Fund for Mercury Research and Outreach (Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY). The study was reviewed and approved by Stony Brook University’s Institutional Review Board for human subjects (IRB# 2010-1179).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Program in Public Health, Department of Family, Population, and Preventive Medicine, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA

    Caterina Vacchi-Suzzi, Laura Viens & Jaymie R. Meliker

  2. Trace Inorganics Laboratory, RTI International, Durham, NC, 27709, USA

    James M. Harrington & Keith Levine

  3. School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794, USA

    Roxanne Karimi

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  1. Caterina Vacchi-Suzzi
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  2. Laura Viens
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  5. Roxanne Karimi
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  6. Jaymie R. Meliker
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Correspondence to Caterina Vacchi-Suzzi.

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Vacchi-Suzzi, C., Viens, L., Harrington, J.M. et al. Low levels of lead and glutathione markers of redox status in human blood. Environ Geochem Health 40, 1175–1185 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-017-0034-3

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