Co-detection of azoxystrobin and thiabendazole fungicides in mold and mildew resistant wallboards and in children
Wenxin Hu,
Yun-Chung Hsiao,
Nikolas Morrison-Welch,
Sophia Lamberti,
Chih-Wei Liu,
Weili Lin,
Stephanie M. Engel,
Kun Lu,
Mark J. Zylka
Affiliations
Wenxin Hu
UNC Neuroscience Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Department of Cell Biology & Physiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
Yun-Chung Hsiao
Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
Nikolas Morrison-Welch
UNC Neuroscience Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Department of Cell Biology & Physiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
Sophia Lamberti
UNC Neuroscience Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Department of Cell Biology & Physiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
Chih-Wei Liu
Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
Weili Lin
Biomedical Research Imaging Center and Department of Radiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
Stephanie M. Engel
Department of Epidemiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
Kun Lu
Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA
Mark J. Zylka
UNC Neuroscience Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Department of Cell Biology & Physiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Carolina Institute for Developmental Disabilities, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA; Corresponding author. UNC Neuroscience Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA.
The study measured the levels of azoxystrobin (AZ) and thiabendazole (TBZ) in wallboards and metabolite levels of these fungicides in children. The paper covering of wallboard samples contained a higher concentration of AZ and TBZ than the gypsum core, and similar amounts (w/w) of these two fungicides were present in the samples. These data suggest that commercial products containing a 1:1 (w/w) amount of AZ and TBZ, such as Sporgard® WB or Azo Tech™, were applied to the wallboard paper. This is the first detection of TBZ in mold-and-mildew resistant wallboards. The TBZ metabolite, 5OH-TBZ, was detected in 48% of urine samples collected from children aged 40–84 months, and was co-detected with AZ-acid, a common AZ metabolite, in 37.5% of the urine samples. The detection frequency of 5OH-TBZ was positively associated with the detection frequency of AZ-acid. These findings suggest that certain types of wallboards used in homes and commercial buildings may be a potential source of co-exposure to AZ and TBZ in humans.
