Abstract
While it is known that exposure to disinfection by-products (DBPs), including trihalomethanes (THMs), impairs liver function, few epidemiological studies have explored this association. Here, we determined the concentrations of four urinary trihalomethanes (chloroform [TCM], and three Br-THMs, bromodichloromethane [BDCM], dibromochloromethane [DBCM], and bromoform [TBM]), and nine serum liver function indicators in 182 adults ≥ 18 years of age, examined at a medical examination center in Wuxi, China, in 2020 and 2021. Generalized linear model analysis revealed positive associations between urinary DBCM and alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), total bilirubin (TBIL), total protein (TP), and albumin (ALB). Urinary Br-THMs and total THMs (TTHMs) were positively associated with ALT, AST, TBIL, indirect bilirubin (IBIL), TP, and ALB (all P < 0.05). Urinary THMs were not associated with alkaline phosphatase (ALP) or glutamine transaminase (GGT) (all P > 0.05). Generalized additive model–based penalized regression splines were used to confirm these associations. In conclusion, THM exposure was associated with altered serum biomarkers of liver function.
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Data availability
The datasets used and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding authors on reasonable request.
Abbreviations
- DBP:
-
Disinfection by-product
- THM:
-
Trihalomethane
- TCM:
-
Chloroform
- BDCM:
-
Bromodichloromethane
- DBCM:
-
Dibromochloromethane
- TBM:
-
Bromoform
- ALT:
-
Alanine aminotransferase
- AST:
-
Aspartate aminotransferase
- ALP:
-
Alkaline phosphatase
- GGT:
-
Glutamine transaminase
- TBIL:
-
Total bilirubin
- IBIL:
-
Indirect bilirubin
- TP:
-
Total protein
- ALB:
-
Albumin
- LOD:
-
Limits of detection
- Cr:
-
Creatinine
- GLM:
-
Generalized linear model
- GAM:
-
Generalized additive model
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Acknowledgements
We thank all participants for providing urine and serum samples, as well as those who provided technical assistance.
Funding
This work was supported by the Top Talent Support Program for young and middle-aged people of the Wuxi Health Commission (grant numbers BJ2020095, HB2020098), the Open Project of The Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology, Ministry of Education, Nanjing Medical University (grant number NMUMT202002), the Medical Key Discipline Program of Wuxi Health Commission (grant number LCZX2021006), and the Scientific Research Project of Wuxi Health Commission (grant number M202047).
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Li Yang and Limei Chen drafted the first version of the manuscript. Li Yang and Yamei Hao designed the study and analyzed the data. Run Zhou, Zhu Jingying, Xun Zhu, Qianqian Wang, and Xiuzhu Li collected the samples and questionnaires. Xinliang Ding and Yanhua Qian were responsible for supervision, project administration, and funding acquisition. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Yang, L., Chen, L., Hao, Y. et al. Urinary trihalomethane concentrations and liver function indicators: a cross-sectional study in China. Environ Sci Pollut Res 30, 39724–39732 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-25072-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-25072-4