Emerging Contaminants and Issues of Concern Research Program

National Institute Of Environmental Health Sciences

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

The goal of the ECIC research program is to develop strategies to provide high-quality data and knowledge to decision-makers and affected communities in a timely manner to address contemporary public health issues. These strategies include scoping activities to proactively identify environmental conditions that lead to the release of new hazards, increases in exposure to previously contained hazards, increases in environmentally related disease, and gaps in capabilities that, if addressed, would improve response to issues of concern. Emerging contaminant exposures or health conditions are typically highly visible issues that may be affected by outside factors (i.e., political, legal, and societal). While there are challenges in addressing time-sensitive issues of concern, there are also rewards: benefits to public health, the advancement of science, and expansion of collaborations. Our portfolio consists of program projects/activities for developing strategies and interactions with partners on problems related to specific ECIC. Our work in the last year has focused on: 1. Building a stakeholder network and strategies. In addition to connecting with stakeholders of interest by virtual zoom meetings, particularly those stakeholders that may have a vested interest in proactively identifying emerging contaminants or public health issues of concern through horizon scanning, we have further developed inter-agency and inter-divisional relationships on the topics of disaster response (DR2) and drinking water contaminants (National Emerging Contaminants Research Initiative or NECRI). Specifically, our team members have engaged with the weekly inter-agency/grantee DR2 meetings to develop and undertake a rapid scoping and systematic review of the East Palestine train derailment chemicals that is nearing completion. We are participating in the National Academy of Sciences review of these chemicals, and our report will inform the committee. As a follow-up to our involvement in NECRI activities, three ECIC team members are currently attending bi-monthly OSTP-sponsored interagency committee meetings (NTA-EBM or RC teams) to design cross-agency projects driven to assay for emerging contaminants in drinking water. We are also developing methods for rapid systematic review that could potentially be part of the DR2 Resource Portal of tools. The ECIC team developed and chaired a Society of Toxicology 2023 workshop entitled "Scanning the environmental horizon: Developing strategies to proactively identify and address tomorrows emerging issues". Speakers presented their work on mapping PFAS in drinking water, nanoplastic bioactivities, chronic kidney disease of unknown origin, and a rapid response toolbox. The ECIC team will also be sponsoring the DTT Seminar Series speaker from California EPA to hear about recent updates to the Cal EnvironScreen and how it might help to identify communities with potential environmental health disparities. 2. Management of our ECIC project portfolio. Most of our ECIC project portfolio existed prior to our team, so in FY23 we completed a couple of projects listed in the publications section and heard updates on other projects. The project addressing the chemical exposome in cord blood of infants and their mothers in three different regions of NC aims to address the questions of existing environmental health disparities in some communities of NC. The project has made substantial progress and has validated the methods for identifying and quantifying about 60 suspect contaminants in human plasma, including heavy metals, persistent organic pollutants, and some short half-life contaminants. The ECIC research program published work demonstrating excretion of and exposure to vanadium, a contaminant present in food, dietary supplements and drinking water, following perinatal drinking water exposure to vanadyl sulfate and sodium metavanadate in rats and characterized the short-term toxicity of vanadium in drinking water in rats and mice. In follow-up studies published this FY, although these compounds were not found to be mutagenic, oral exposures resulted in hematological effects and epithelial hyperplasia of sections of the gastrointestinal tract in male and female rats and mice. Thallium is a heavy metal, sometimes found in drinking water, and known to induce a broad spectrum of adverse health effects in humans. Initial findings in a perinatal 28d rat study and an adult mouse study confirmed that thallium in drinking water may increase clinical signs of alopecia and decreased body weights in mice and rats and indicated placental transfer of the compound. Glyphosate, a pesticide used in numerous commercial mixtures (or glyphosate-based formulations; GBF) to control weeds, has had mixed findings in terms of genotoxicity, depending on the mixture tested. Therefore, the NTP tested glyphosate, glyphosate isopropylamine (IPA), and (aminomethyl)phosphonic acid (AMPA, a microbial metabolite of glyphosate), 9 high-use agricultural GBFs, 4 residential-use GBFs, and additional herbicides (metolachlor, mesotrione, and diquat dibromide) present in some of the GBFs in bacterial mutagenicity tests, and in human TK6 cells using a micronucleus assay and a multiplexed DNA damage assay. NTP results showed no genotoxicity or notable cytotoxicity for glyphosate or AMPA at concentrations up to 10mM, while all GBFs and herbicides other than glyphosate were cytotoxic, and some showed genotoxic activity. Finally, a series of studies on sulfolane, a solvent used in the petrochemical industry and a groundwater contaminant in areas near refineries, have been published. Following the earlier work on disposition and metabolism of sulfolane in mice and rats, work in FY22 reported the 28-d toxicity studies in three species following oral exposures, and the immunotoxicity outcomes in developmentally exposed rats and in adult-exposed mice. The sulfolane chronic toxicity and carcinogenicity study is going to peer review in FY23. 3. Development of new projects. The ECIC research program has reviewed and facilitated approval of a project evaluating the toxicological effects of bromo-azo dyes (June Dunnick lead), often found in children's clothing and other colored materials, that are suspected of having a link to some cancers. The study will evaluate genomic signatures linked to acute exposure and characterize the genotoxic and immunotoxic effects of three bromo-azo dyes compared to previously studied chemicals that are structurally related. Additionally, the ECIC team reviewed and had approved a Rapid Scoping and Systematic Review of East Palestine chemicals project. Using authoritative sources, recent reviews, and primary literature, the project has developed a list of definitive, possible, and null associations of chemicals involved in the East Palestine, OH train derailment with health outcomes. Additionally, research gaps (e.g., no conclusions or data) were identified. These data will be delivered to the affected community and the National Academies committee as soon as possible. We also plan on developing systematic review methods for disasters or other ECIC issues. Finally, the ECIC team is in the planning stages of a workshop to identify tools used in horizon scanning of emerging contaminants of issues of health concern, and to coordinate inter-agency programs interested in developing further horizon scanning efforts. The workshop is proposed for FY24.