• Journal of environmental and Sanitary engineering
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• v.2 no.2 s.2
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• pp.1-22
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• 1987

Measurements of kidney, liver, lung along with blood trace metal levels were obtained in 20 exposed and 40 control cattle. The level of cadmium, mercury and arsenic were the highest in the kidney while copper, lead and zinc concentrations were the highest in the liver. Statistically significant correlation between the kidney and the liver were found for cadmium, copper, zinc, mercury and arsenic. No significant differences were observed between the area, sex and age in this study. The levels found were generally within the ranges compared with those found in similar studies in and outside.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.42 no.6
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• pp.450-464
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• 2016

Objectives: This study developed and validated reference materials (RMs) to analyze metal compounds in blood. Methods: We referred to KoNEHS (Korea National Environmental Health Survey) to estimate concentrations of blood metals (cadmium, Cd; lead, Pb; mercury, Hg) and applied analytical methods (inductively coupled plasma - mass spectroscopy, ICP-MS, for Cd and Pb; graphite furnace - atomic absorption spectrometry, GF-AAS, for Cd and Pb; and direct mercury analyzer, DMA, for Hg). Homogeneity and stability tests were carried out. In addition, certified values and uncertainties of RMs were calculated through internal and external experiments. All RMs were developed and assessed in various forms according to element, analytical method, and two types of concentration levels high concentration for occupational exposure and low concentration for environmental exposure. Results: All samples showed acceptable homogeneity, except for low concentration of Cd in the GF-AAS method. Short- and long-term stabilities were satisfied by ANOVA testing. In the inter-laboratory comparison, robust medians were lower than the certified values of all RMs (robust median/reference value; $1.301/1.327{\mu}g/L$ for Cd, ICP-MS, low concentration; $3.152/3.388{\mu}g/L$ for Cd, ICP-MS, high concentration; $1.219/1.301{\mu}g/L$ for Cd, GF-AAS, low concentration; $3.074/3.321{\mu}g/L$ for Cd, GF-AAS, high concentration; $14.473/14.516{\mu}g/L$ for Pb, ICP-MS, low concentration; $50.069/50.114{\mu}g/L$ for Pb, ICP-MS, high concentration; $12.881/14.147{\mu}g/L$ for Pb, GF-AAS, low concentration; $47.015/47.591{\mu}g/L$ for Pb, GF-AAS, high concentration; $4.059/4.218{\mu}g/L$ for Hg, DMA, low concentration; $11.474/11.181{\mu}g/L$ for Hg, DMA, high concentration). Conclusion: This study demonstrates procedures for developing and validating RMs for biomonitoring in the field of the environmental health.

• Journal of Korean Society of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
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• v.9 no.1
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• pp.56-72
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• 1999

Airborne concentrations of welding fumes in which 13 different metals such as Al, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Si, Sn, Ti, and Zn were analyzed were measured at 18 factories including automobile assembly and manufactures, steel heavy industries and shipyards. Air samples were collected by personal sampler at each worker's worksite(n=339). Blood levels of Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb and Zn were also measured from samples taken from 447 welders by atomic absorption spectrometry and compared with control values obtained from 127 non-exposed workers. The results were as follows ; 1. Among various welding types, $CO_2$ welding 70.2 % were widely used, shielded metal arc welding(SMAW) 22.1 % came next, and rest of them were metal inert gas(MIG) welding, submerged arc welding(SAW), spot welding(SPOT) and tungsten inert gas(TIG) welding. 2. Welding fume concentration was $0.92mg/m^3$($0.02{\sim}15.33mg/m^3$) at automobile assembly and manufactures, $4.10mg/m^3$($0.02{\sim}70.75mg/m^3$) at steel heavy industries and $5.59mg/m^3$($0.30{\sim}91.16mg/m^3$) at shipyards, respectively, showing significant difference among industry types. Workers exposed to high concentration of welding fumes above Korean Permissible Exposure Limit(KPEL) amounted to 7.9 % and 12.5 %, in $CO_2$ welding and in SMAW at automobile assembly and manufactures and 62.7 % in $CO_2$ welding, and 12.5 % in SMAW at shipyards, and 66.2 % in $CO_2$ welding and 70.6 % in SMAW at steel heavy industries. 3. Geometric mean of airborne concentration of each metal released from welding fumes was below one 10th of KPEL in all welding types. Percentage of workers, however, exposed to airborne concentration of metals above KPEL amounted to 16.8 % in Mn and 7.6 % in Fe in $CO_2$ welding; 37.5 % in Cu in SAW, 30 % in Cu in TIG; and 25 % in Pb in SPOT welding. As a whole, 76 Workers(22.4%) were exposed to high concentration of any of the metals above KPEL. 4. There were differences in airborne concentration of metals such as Al, Cd, Cr, Cu. Fe. Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Si, Sn, Ti and Zn by industry types. These concentrations were higher in shipyards and steel heavy industries than in automobile assembly and manufactures. Workers exposed to higher concentration of Pb above KPEI amounted to 7.4 % of workers(7/94) in automobile assembly and manufactures. In shipyards, 19.2 % of workers(19/99) were over-exposed to Mn and 7.1 % (7/99) to Fe above KPEL. In steel heavy industries, 14.4 %(21/146), 7.5 %(11/146) and 13 %(19/146) were over-exposed to Mn, Fe and Cu, respectively. As a whole, 76 out of 339 workers(22.4%) were exposed to any of the metals above KPEL. 5. Blood levels of Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb, and Zn in welders were $0.11{\mu}g/100m{\ell}$, $0.84{\mu}g/m{\ell}$, $424.4{\mu}g/m{\ell}$, $1.26{\mu}g/100m{\ell}$, $5.01{\mu}g/100m{\ell}$ and $5.68{\mu}g/m{\ell}$, respectively, in contrast to $0.09{\mu}g/100m{\ell}$, $0.70{\mu}g/m{\ell}$, $477.2{\mu}g/m{\ell}$, $0.73{\mu}g/100m{\ell}$, $3.14{\mu}g/100m{\ell}$ and $6.15{\mu}g/m{\ell}$ in non-exposed control groups, showing significantly higher values in welders but Fe and Zn.

• Nutritional Sciences
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.88-92
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• 1999

The purpose of this study was to study the intake of heavy metals such af arsenic, lead and cobalt and the relationship of dietary heavy metals with serum iron, topper, and zinc, which play important roles in hematopoiesis, in healthy college women living in Choongnam Korea, where we have detected heavy metals (As, Pb, Co) in some marine products in previous studies. The nutritional status of the subjects (35 women) was evaluated by anthropometric measurements, 24-hr dietary recall for 3 days. And 3-day diets (by weighing method) and blood were collected to analyze As, Pb, Co, Fe, Cu, Zn, Hb, Hct, and MCHC. The mean age, height, weight, and BMI were 20 years, 158 cm, 55 kg and 22.42 kg/$m^2$, respectively. The mean daily energy intake was 85.85% of RDA for Koreans. The ratio of energy from carbohydrate, protein, and fat was 60 : 24 : 16. The mean daily intake of heavy metals (As, Pb, Co) was 1.77 mg/day, 75.21 $\mu$g/day and 21.12 $\mu$g/day. And the mean daily intake of iron, copper, and Zinc concentrations were 97, 68, and 92% of normal values. The mean serum heavy metals (As, Pb, Co) were 16.14 $\mu$g/dl, 4.32 $\mu\textrm{g}$/dl and 0.02 $\mu$g/dr, respectively Mean blood levels of Fe, Cu, Zn, Hb, Hct, and MCHC were at normal levels. Dietary heavy metals except Co were not significantly different from serum Fe, Cu, Zn and Hb, Hct, and MCHC. However, there was a tendency toward lower serum concentration of Fe, Hb, Hct, and MCHC in the subjects with higher heavy metals (As) intake. Among heavy metals, only dietary Co showed a significant negative correlation with Hb (p< 0.001) and Hct (p < 0.001).

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.492-504
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• 2014

Feral pigeon (Columba livia) has been known as a good indicator for accumulations of chemical pollutants in urban areas. However, it is against the animal rights to kill the indicator species in order to monitor pollutants accumulations in wild birds. Eggs and feathers of birds, therefore, have been used as non-invasive monitoring materials. Even though eggs are a good indicator for accumulations of lipophilic pollutants, but unsuitable for some heavy metals such as lead and cadmium because bird's ovary builds a sort of barrier to inhibit higher accumulations of some heavy metals in the eggs. Therefore, feathers instead of eggs have been used as a non-invasive indicator for accumulations of heavy metals. However, there are few studies of heavy metal accumulations of feral pigeon in Korea. In this study, we characterized the characteristics of heavy metal accumulations of feathers in relation to internal organs (bloods, viscera and bones) in feral pigeons between two sites (Hangang Park representing urban area and Hampyeong Park for rural area). The samples from the Hangang Park showed significantly higher lead (Pb) concentrations in the blood, liver and bone than those from Hampyeong Park. The Pb concentration in the feathers was also significantly higher at Hangang Park than at Hampyeong Park. The analytical result for the breast, wing and tail feathers, and the internal organs (blood, lung, liver, kidney and bone) indicated that the Pb concentrations in the feathers were significantly positively correlated with the levels in the kidney and bone. Overall, feathers of feral pigeon may be candidate for bioindicator to monitor for Pb accumulations in urban areas.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.26 no.11
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• pp.1308-1312
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• 2016

Heavy metals such as gallium (Ga) cause serious physiological damage to exposed organisms, mostly of aquatic species. Ga one of the inter-metallic, transition elements increasingly being used in making high-speed semiconductors, such as Ga arsenide. The purposes of this study were to investigate the effects of Ga on acute toxicity, serum biochemical changes, and erythrocyte morphological changes in the blood stream of goldfish (Carassius auratus). Median lethal concentrations were determined in acute tests. The 96 hr $LC_{50}$ value was 9.15 mg/ml. Goldfish were exposed to different Ga concentrations (2.0, 4.0, and 8.0 mg/ml) for 30 days to assess its toxic effects. The results indicate that the measured serum biochemistry parameters (including glucose, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, cholesterol, and triglyceride) of the Ga-exposed fish groups differed significantly from the untreated fish group. In addition, a change in the erythrocytes' morphology at a high concentration (8.0 mg/ml) of Ga exposure shows respiratory problems. Our results suggest that 2.0 mg/ml is proposed as a biologically safe concentration that can be used for establishing tentative water quality criteria concerning the same-size goldfish.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.37 no.11
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• pp.1422-1426
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• 2008

The purpose of this study was to test characteristics between normal and autistic children via comparison of nutrient intakes, hair mineral, blood free radical, and serotonin contents. A total of 50 children aged 3-9 were divided into two main groups of normal control children (n=22) and autistic children (n=28) tested by child psychiatrist. The nutrient intakes by 24-hour recall method were no significantly different between the two groups. The concentrations of toxic mineral, such as cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) in hair of autistic children were significantly higher, while concentration of antioxidant mineral (Cu, Zn, Fe) was lower than that of normal children. The autistic children had significantly higher concentrations of blood free radical than that of normal children. No significant difference was observed in serotonin concentration between the two groups. Our results suggest a possible role of increased toxic mineral and free radical, both of which may be relevant to the pathophysiology of autism in children with developmental delay.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.46 no.11
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• pp.1271-1277
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• 2017

As Kamisipjeondaebotang (KSD) extract is an herbal ingredient, safety is very important due to possible cell poisoning or heavy metal toxicity to organs when administered to humans or animals. Accordingly, this study examined the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of KSD extract to confirm its medicinal safety by using RAW 264.7 cells after heavy metal screening, functional index test of the liver and kidney, and cell survival rate test. Heavy metals were not found in KSD extracts or were less than standard amounts. Liver function indices such as aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase revealed low values and kidney function indices such as creatinine and blood urea nitrogen were not significantly different from the normal group. This proved the safety to the human. RAW 264.7 cells showed no poisoning compared to the control group in terms of survival rate. Regarding the antioxidant effect of KSD extract, 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging activity and 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazo-line-6-sulphonic acid) radical scavenging activity increased at concentrations over $10{\mu}g/mL$. The anti-inflammatory effect of KSD extract significantly decreased based on the amount of nitric oxide at concentrations of 10 and $100{\mu}g/mL$ compared to the control group. Expression of interleukin (IL)-$1{\beta}$ and IL-6 decreased in a concentration-dependent manner. There was no significant difference in tumor necrosis factor-${\alpha}$ level. Based on the results, KSD can be regarded as a safe antioxidant with anti-inflammatory effects for fracture treatment.

• Journal of Environmental Health Sciences
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• v.48 no.6
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• pp.306-314
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• 2022

Background: Due to the rapid aging of the South Korean population, neurological diseases such as dementia are increasing. Many studies have reported that the incidence of dementia is associated with environmental factors along with age. Objectives: This study analyzed the association between cognitive function and ten heavy metals in the body: arsenic, aluminum, chromium, manganese, cobalt, nickel, iron, copper, zinc, and lead. Methods: From 2018 to 2019, a total of 120 participants who suffered from cognitive impairment were recruited for this study. Blood and urine samples were collected and analyzed for heavy metal concentrations using an inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer. Demographic information was obtained through face-to-face questionnaires completed by a trained investigator. Cognitive function was evaluated with the Korean version of the Mini-Mental State Examination and the Korean version of the Boston Name Waiting Test. The associations between cognitive function scores and heavy metal concentrations were analyzed using multiple logistic regression analysis. Results: The average age of the 120 participants was 72.7 years, and 69.2% were female. The mean of the MMSE-K and K-BNT scores were 22.9 and 37.9, respectively. The geometric mean of aluminum (Al) was 8.42 ㎍/L. MMSE-K was associated with iron (Fe), but the significance was removed in the logistic regression based on 24 points. K-BNT was significantly associated with aluminum and the odds ratio for K-BNT above 38 decreased by 45% as the aluminum concentration increased. Conclusions: The association between aluminum and the K-BNT score indicated that aluminum is associated with language-related cognitive decline. Based on this result, further study will be conducted by considering co-exposure effects of heavy metals including aluminum.

• Journal of Environmental Impact Assessment
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• v.24 no.6
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• pp.561-577
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• 2015

The heavy metal accumulations of avian eggshells were studied in order to test a feral pigeon (Columba livia)'s eggshell as an indicator for the environmental monitoring of pollutants. The reviews on the eggs of the different 19 avian species showed that it is the eggshell rather than the egg content that can better reflect the heavy metals in the environment; in most cases the CVs (coefficients of variations) of the heavy metal concentrations in the eggshells were higher than those in the egg contents. This can indicate that the heavy metal accumulations are homeostatically controlled in the egg contents, but the accumulations in the eggshells are varied according to the environmental conditions. To test the reviews, the feral pigeon eggs from the two different sites, one representing urban and the other rural environment, were analyzed for lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd). The result showed that the eggshells of the urban pigeons (Hangang) had the higher metal concentrations than those of the rural pigeons (Hampyeong). The same difference can also be found in the internal organs (liver, bone) and blood. However, the analyses of the egg contents between the two sites did not reveal the differences. In other words, the result suggests that the feral pigeons, like the other avian species, are able to control the heavy metals into the egg contents homeostatically. Therefore, it is more useful to use the feral pigeon eggshell rather than the egg content in case of monitoring heavy metals in different habitats.