Pollution level, inhalation exposure and lung cancer risk of ambient atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Taiyuan, China.

Passive air samplers were deployed to collect both gas and particulate phase polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in Taiyuan between 2009 and 2010. Annual average concentrations of BaP equivalent concentration (B[a]P(eq)) in background, rural and urban areas were 2.90 ± 0.29, 23.2 ± 30.8 and 27.4 ± 28.1 ng/m(3), respectively, with higher concentration in the winter than in other seasons. The median B[a]P(eq) concentrations of annual inhalation exposure were estimated to be in the range of 103-347 ng/d for all population groups in rural as well as in urban areas. The median values of incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) induced by whole year inhalation exposure for all groups were basically larger than 10(-6), with higher values in winter than in other seasons and in urban than in rural area. In the same season and area, the ILCR of adults was larger than other age groups and that of females was a little higher than males.

Health risk assessment on dietary exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Taiyuan, China.

Twenty-five kinds of seven categories of foods were sampled in December 2008 and the concentrations of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were determined. The highest level of total PAHs was detected in pork (195.30ng/g) whereas the lowest concentration was found in milk (8.73ng/g). The median values of B[a]P equivalent (B[a]P(eq)) daily exposure doses for children, adolescents, adults and seniors of male were estimated to be 392.42, 511.01, 571.56 and 532.56ng/d, respectively, whereas those for the above population groups of female were found to be 355.16, 440.51, 487.64 and 444.85ng/d, respectively. The incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) values at the 22.1th, 26.1th, 12.7th, 24.9th, 22.7th, 27.0th, 12.9th, and 25.5th percentiles for male children, male adolescents, male adults, male seniors, female children, female adolescents, female adults and female seniors, respectively, were larger than 10(-6), indicating high potential carcinogenic risk, and were larger than 10(-4) at the 74.5th, 78.7th, 60.6th, 77.4th, 75.3th, 79.5th, 60.8th and 77.9th percentiles for the above groups, respectively, which implied significant cancer risk. Sensitivity analysis found that the two variables of oral cancer slope factor of benzo(a) pyrene (SF) and the daily dietary PAH exposure level (ED) had the greater impact than that of body weight (BW) on the ILCR.