| Summary: | 碩士 === 國立陽明大學 === 環境與職業衛生研究所 === 98 === Abstract
Taiwan’s rapid technological development and an increase population have resulted in an excessive amount of garbage produced. Because Taiwan is a small country and landfills are full, incinerators are used to reduce the amount of garbage. However, incinerators emit gas and particle pollutants such as smoke, SOx, HCL, NOx, poly-aromatic hydrocarbon substances (PAHs) and toxins like heavy metals and dioxins. PAHs contain carcinogens and produce adverse effects in humans. Although we installed an air monitoring system near the incinerator, we cannot measure PAHs emitted from the incinerator. The objective of this study is to measure metabolite levels in residents living near an incinerator who are exposed to PAHs. As usual, we use 1-OHP and 2-NP in urine samples to represent metabolites of pyrene and naphthalene in the air. The exposure group was composed of 137 schoolchildren and their parents living near an incinerator, and the control group was composed of 106 schoolchildren and their parents. Each participant filled out a questionnaire, and we collected morning urine samples one time from each person.Using HPLC-Fluorescence, we analyzed 1-OHP and 2-NP levels in urine.
The results showed that urine samples from schoolchildren in the exposure group high levels of 1-OHP and 2-NP, but urine samples from adults in the exposure group contained low levels of 1-OHP and 2-NP. Urinary 2-NP levels (2.578μmol/mol cre.) in adults who smoke were significantly higher than in adults who do not smoke (1.089μmol/mol cre.). Using multiple logistic regression adjusted for covariates, we found that there was a significant correlation between high levels of 1-OHP in the urine of schoolchildren and schoolchildren who cough a lot. Furthermore, there is significant correlation between schoolchildren who report that air pollution where they live is a serious problem and the same children suffering from severe respiratory problems. In conclusion, our results showed that smoking and air pollution increase urinary metabolites of PAHs levels. In addition, schoolchildren living near an incinerator who had high metabolites of PAHs levels were likely to suffer from severe respiratory problems. We need to establish a baseline data of exposure to PAHs in residents living near an incinerator and to reduce air pollutants emitted from the incinerator.
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