Urinary porphyrins in children exposed transplacentally to polyhalogenated aromatics in Taiwan
In 1979, there was a large (>2000 cases) outbreak of poisoning due to contaminated rice oil in central Taiwan. The causal agent was a mixture of thermally degraded polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polychlorinated quaterphenyls, and polychlorinated dibenzofurans, which had become mixed with the oil during processing. Patients remained symptomatic for several years afterward, and the chemicals persisted in their tissue. Women who became pregnant had children with high perinatal mortality and a dysmorphic syndrome. We examined urines from 75 children born to exposed mothers after the oil was confiscated, 74 controls, and 12 sibs of the exposed children. Four of the transplancentally exposed children, 2 controls, and 1 sib had a type B hepatic porphyria (i.e., uroporphyrin > coproporphyrin); total porphyrin excretion was elevated in the exposed children as a group (95 vs. 81 ..mu..g/L); and 8 of the 75 exposed children and 2 controls had total urinary porphyrin concentrations of >200 ..mu..g/L.
- Research Organization:
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, NC (USA)
- OSTI ID:
- 6861093
- Journal Information:
- Arch. Environ. Health; (United States), Journal Name: Arch. Environ. Health; (United States) Vol. 43:1; ISSN AEHLA
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
AROMATICS
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BIOLOGICAL WASTES
BODY FLUIDS
CARBOXYLIC ACIDS
CHLORINATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
CLEARANCE
CONTAMINATION
EXCRETION
FETAL MEMBRANES
FETUSES
HALOGENATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
HAZARDS
HEALTH HAZARDS
HETEROCYCLIC ACIDS
HETEROCYCLIC COMPOUNDS
MATERIALS
MEMBRANE TRANSPORT
MEMBRANES
MORTALITY
OILS
ORGANIC ACIDS
ORGANIC CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC NITROGEN COMPOUNDS
OTHER ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PATIENTS
PORPHYRINS
URINE
VEGETABLE OILS
WASTES