The Use of Human Biomonitoring to Assess Occupational Exposure to PAHs in Europe: A Comprehensive Review
Henriqueta Louro,
Bruno Costa Gomes,
Anne Thoustrup Saber,
Anna Laura Iamiceli,
Thomas Göen,
Kate Jones,
Andromachi Katsonouri,
Christiana M. Neophytou,
Ulla Vogel,
Célia Ventura,
Axel Oberemm,
Radu Corneliu Duca,
Mariana F. Fernandez,
Nicolas Olea,
Tiina Santonen,
Susana Viegas,
Maria João Silva
Affiliations
Henriqueta Louro
Department of Human Genetics, National Institute of Health Dr. Ricardo Jorge (INSA), Av. Padre Cruz, 1649-016 Lisbon, Portugal
Bruno Costa Gomes
Department of Human Genetics, National Institute of Health Dr. Ricardo Jorge (INSA), Av. Padre Cruz, 1649-016 Lisbon, Portugal
Anne Thoustrup Saber
National Research Centre for the Working Environment, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Anna Laura Iamiceli
Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS), 00161 Rome, Italy
Thomas Göen
IPASUM, Institute and Outpatient Clinic of Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, 91054 Erlangen, Germany
Kate Jones
Health and Safety Executive, Buxton, Derbyshire SK17 9JN, UK
Andromachi Katsonouri
Cyprus State General Laboratory, Ministry of Health, P.O. Box 28648, Nicosia 2081, Cyprus
Christiana M. Neophytou
Cyprus State General Laboratory, Ministry of Health, P.O. Box 28648, Nicosia 2081, Cyprus
Ulla Vogel
National Research Centre for the Working Environment, DK-2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Célia Ventura
Department of Human Genetics, National Institute of Health Dr. Ricardo Jorge (INSA), Av. Padre Cruz, 1649-016 Lisbon, Portugal
Axel Oberemm
German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Max-Dohrn-Straße 8-10, 10589 Berlin, Germany
Radu Corneliu Duca
Unit Environmental Hygiene and Human Biological Monitoring, Department of Health Protection, Laboratoire National de Santé (LNS), 1, Rue Louis Rech, 3555 Dudelange, Luxembourg
Mariana F. Fernandez
Centre of Biomedical Research (CIBM), University of Granada, 18016 Granada, Spain
Nicolas Olea
Centre of Biomedical Research (CIBM), University of Granada, 18016 Granada, Spain
Tiina Santonen
Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, 00250 Helsinki, Finland
Susana Viegas
Public Health Research Centre, NOVA National School of Public Health, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa, 1600-560 Lisbon, Portugal
Maria João Silva
Department of Human Genetics, National Institute of Health Dr. Ricardo Jorge (INSA), Av. Padre Cruz, 1649-016 Lisbon, Portugal
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are among the chemicals with proven impact on workers’ health. The use of human biomonitoring (HBM) to assess occupational exposure to PAHs has become more common in recent years, but the data generated need an overall view to make them more usable by regulators and policymakers. This comprehensive review, developed under the Human Biomonitoring for Europe (HBM4EU) Initiative, was based on the literature available from 2008–2022, aiming to present and discuss the information on occupational exposure to PAHs, in order to identify the strengths and limitations of exposure and effect biomarkers and the knowledge needs for regulation in the workplace. The most frequently used exposure biomarker is urinary 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OH-PYR), a metabolite of pyrene. As effect biomarkers, those based on the measurement of oxidative stress (urinary 8-oxo-dG adducts) and genotoxicity (blood DNA strand-breaks) are the most common. Overall, a need to advance new harmonized approaches both in data and sample collection and in the use of appropriate biomarkers in occupational studies to obtain reliable and comparable data on PAH exposure in different industrial sectors, was noted. Moreover, the use of effect biomarkers can assist to identify work environments or activities of high risk, thus enabling preventive risk mitigation and management measures.
