Improving the predictive value of bioaccessibility assays and their use to provide mechanistic insights into bioavailability for toxic metals/metalloids - A research prospectus.

Widespread contamination of soil, dust, and food with toxic metal(loid)s pose a significant public health concern. Only a portion of orally ingested metal(loid) contaminants are bioavailable, which is defined as the fraction of ingested metal(loid)s absorbed across the gastrointestinal barrier and into systemic circulation. Bioaccessibility tools are a class of in vitro assays used as a surrogate to estimate risk of oral exposure and bioavailability. Although development and use of bioaccessibility tools have contributed to our understanding of the factors influencing oral bioavailability of metal(loid)s, some of these assays may lack data that support their use in decisions concerning adverse health risks and soil remediation. This review discusses the factors known to influence bioaccessibility of metal(loid) contaminants and evaluates experimental approaches and key findings of SW-846 Test Method 1340, Unified BARGE Method, Simulated Human Intestinal Microbial Ecosystem, Solubility Bioaccessibility Research Consortium assay, In Vitro Gastrointestinal model, TNO-Gastrointestinal Model, and Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment bioaccessibility models which are used to assess oral absolute bioavailability and relative bioavailability in solid matrices. The aim of this review was to identify emerging knowledge gaps and research needs with an emphasis on research required to evaluate these models on (1) standardization of assay techniques and methodology, and (2) use of common criteria for assessing the performance of bioaccessibility models.

Bioaccessibility of arsenic from contaminated soils and alteration of the gut microbiome in an in vitro gastrointestinal model.

Arsenic exposure has been reported to alter the gut microbiome in mice. Activity of the gut microbiome derived from fecal microbiota has been found to affect arsenic bioaccessibility in an in vitro gastrointestinal (GI) model. Only a few studies have explored the relation between arsenic exposure and changes in the composition of the gut microbiome and in arsenic bioaccessibility. Here, we used simulated GI model system (GIMS) containing a stomach, small intestine, colon phases and microorganisms obtained from mouse feces (GIMS-F) and cecal contents (GIMS-C) to assess whether exposure to arsenic-contaminated soils affect the gut microbiome and whether composition of the gut microbiome affects arsenic bioaccessibility. Soils contaminated with arsenic did not alter gut microbiome composition in GIMS-F colon phase. In contrast, arsenic exposure resulted in the decline of bacteria in GIMS-C, including members of Clostridiaceae, Rikenellaceae, and Parabacteroides due to greater diversity and variability in microbial sensitivity to arsenic exposure. Arsenic bioaccessibility was greatest in the acidic stomach phase of GIMS (pH 1.5-1.7); except for GIMS-C colon phase exposed to mining-impacted soil in which greater levels of arsenic solubilized likely due to microbiome effects. Physicochemical properties of different test soils likely influenced variability in arsenic bioaccessibility (GIMS-F bioaccessibility range: 8-37%, GIMS-C bioaccessibility range: 2-18%) observed in this study.

In vitro bioaccessibility of copper azole following simulated dermal transfer from pressure-treated wood.

Micronized copper azole (MCA) and micronized copper quaternary (MCQ) are the latest wood preservatives to replace the liquid alkaline copper and chromated copper arsenate preservatives due to concerns over the toxicity or lack of effectiveness of the earlier formulations. Today, the use of MCA has become abundant in the wood preservative industry with approximately 38millionlbs of copper carbonate being used to treat lumber each year. Despite this widespread usage, little information is available on the bioaccessibility of this preservative upon gastrointestinal exposure. Using a simulated hand-to-mouth/gastric system exposure study we investigated several types of commercially available copper-treated lumber products as-purchased and after exposure to outdoor weathering conditions. Soluble and particulate fractions of copper were measured after transfer to and release from surface wipes passed along copper-treated lumber and exposed to synthetic stomach fluid (SSF, pH1.5) or deionized (DI) water. Wipes passed along new boards contained greater amounts of copper than wipes from weathered boards. The total copper recovered from the wipes after microwave extraction varied among the different wood types. For all wood types the copper released into SSF was more soluble than what was soluble in DI water. The data suggest that copper from treated wood is highly bioaccessible in SSF regardless of wood type and weathering condition.

Effects of atrazine and metolachlor on the survivorship and infectivity of Echinostoma trivolvis trematode cercariae.

Parasites play important roles in ecosystems and can be impacted by chemical inputs. In a series of experiments, we examined the impact of two common herbicides, metolachlor and atrazine, on a host-parasite system consisting of the trematode, Echinostoma trivolvis and its two intermediate hosts, the snail Planorbella trivolvis and larval Rana spp. tadpoles. Metolachlor and atrazine are two widely used agricultural herbicides that inhibit the growth of pre-emergent vegetation. Residues of these pesticides are commonly found in water bodies near agricultural areas. In our first experiment in the laboratory, we examined changes in survivorship when free-living trematode cercariae were exposed to a low concentration (10 ppb: 15 ppb) and high concentration (85 ppb: 100 ppb) mixture of metolachlor and atrazine, respectively. These exposure levels were chosen to represent the higher end of levels that have been documented in aquatic systems. There was a significant decline in cercarial survivorship in the high concentration treatment at 14 hours. In our second experiment, we exposed the parasites, the second intermediate host tadpoles, or both the parasites and the tadpoles, to the pesticide mixtures for a maximum of 10 hours prior to infection and examined subsequent tadpole infection levels. The atrazine and metolachlor mixtures had no significant effects on parasite load, although newly shed cercariae were more likely than 10-hour-old cercariae to infect tadpoles. In our final experiment, we utilized outdoor mesocosms to expose parasites, infected snail hosts, and Rana sylvatica tadpoles to the pesticide mixtures for two weeks and examined differences in tadpole parasite loads. The pesticides had no significant effect on tadpole parasite loads in the mesocosms. Overall, our findings suggest that atrazine and metolachlor mixtures at the doses we examined do not significantly alter the short-term dynamics of Echinostoma trivolvis infection in aquatic systems.