Arsenic - Toxicology of Metals - page 370

the increased formation of 8-oxo-2'deoxyguanosine
(8-OHdG) DNA adducts. It is also important to note
the increased presence of 8-OHdG adducts has been
reported in urine samples of persons living in Inner
Mongolia (Fujino et al ., 2005) and Cambodia (Kubota
et al ., 2006) exposed to arsenic in contaminated drink-
ing water, suggesting that these adducts may be
potentially useful biomarkers for long-term risk for
arsenic-induced cancers such as Bowen's disease (Mat-
sui et al ., 1999). It is important to note that the stress
protein response discussed previously may play an
important regulatory role in mediating carcinogenic or
cocarcinogenic effects of arsenic by means of interac-
tions with a number of proto-oncogenes and apoptotic
caspase system (Khalil et al ., 2006; Stanhill et al ., 2006;
Yaglom et al ., 2003).

Beck, 1993). In a population of Andean women exposed
to high concentrations (approximately 200 ppb) of
inorganic arsenic in drinking water, concentrations
of arsenic in breast milk ranged from about 0.0008-
0.008 ppm (Concha et al., 1998a).
It is not known to what extent concentrations in
human organs represent inorganic arsenic or organic
arsenic originating in the diet. Concentrations of
0.014-0.21 mg As/kg wet weight have been observed
in the lungs of smelter workers who had retired 2-19
years before death, whereas unexposed controls had
0.001-0.018 mg/kg, indicating a long retention time of
arsenic in the lungs after inhalation, which may occur
in certain occupations (Brune et al ., 1980).

6.2 Urine
Most arsenic that is absorbed from the lungs of the
gastrointestinal tract is excreted in the urine within 1-2
days. Therefore, measurement of urinary arsenic levels

6 BIOLOGICAL MONITORING

In a review by Mandal and Suzuki (2002), they doc-
ument many cases of human arsenic exposures around
the world, as well as documenting sources of arsenic in
the environment.

TABLE 1 Arsenic Concentrations in Human
Organs and Tissues in Scotland and Japan

Arsenic concentration (mg/kg)

6.1 Organs
Median arsenic concentrations in organs of healthy
people from Scotland who died in accidents ranged
from 0.012 mg/kg in brain to 0.46 mg/kg in hair, all dry
weight (Liebscher and Smith, 1968). Median concentra-
tions in organs of people from Japan, who generally had
consumed relatively high amounts of seafood, ranged
from 0.02 mg/kg wet weight in the pancreas to 0.89 mg/
kg in the nails (Kadowaki, 1960). The two fi rst-men-
tioned authors used NAA on vacuum dried samples,
and the third used polarography. Values for all organs
analyzed in the two studies are given in Table 1.
Tissue analysis of organs taken from an individual
after death from ingestion of 8 g of arsenic trioxide
(approximately 3g of arsenic) showed a much higher
concentration of arsenic in the liver (147

Scotland Japan

(dry wt.) (wet wt.)

Tissue/organ Median Range Median

Adrenal 0.029 0.002-0.293

Aorta 0.031 0.003-0.570

Whole blood 0.038 0.001-0.920

Bone 0.057 0.010-0.240 0.118(femur)

Bone 0.074(rib)

Brain 0.013 0.001-0.036 0.034

Hair 0.460 0.020-8.17 0.174

Heart 0.024 0.002-0.078 0.041

Intestine, large 0.025

Intestine, small 0.022

Kidney 0.033 0.002-0.363 0.041

Liver 0.028 0.005-0.246 0.042

Lung 0.082 0.006-0.514 0.047

µ g/g) than Muscle 0.063 0.012-0.431 0.029

in the kidneys (27 g/g) of muscle, heart, spleen, pan-

creas, lungs, or cerebellum (11-12

µ

Nail 0.300 0.020-2.90 0.892

Ovary 0.037 0.013-0.260

g/g) (Benramdane,
et al . 1999). Small amounts were also found in other
parts of the brain (8

µ

Pancreas 0.045 0.005-0.410 0.020

Prostate 0.046 0.010-0.090

µ g/g), skin (3 µ g/g), and hemo-

Skin 0.090 0.009-0.590 0.064

lyzed blood (0.4 g/g).

Inorganic arsenic can easily pass through the pla-
centa. High levels of arsenic were found in the liver,
kidney, and brain during autopsy of an infant prema-
turely born to a young mother who had ingested inor-
ganic arsenic at week 30 of gestation (Lugo et al ., 1969).
Arsenic was detected in human breast milk at con-
centrations of 0.00013-0.00082 ppm (Somogyi and

µ Spleen 0.020 0.001-0.132 0.021

Stomach 0.037 0.003-0.104 0.022

Teeth 0.050 0.003-0.635 0.078

Thymus 0.015 0.003-0.332

Thyroid 0.042 0.001-0.314

Uterus 0.031 0.010-0.188 0.036

(Compiled from Liebscher and Smith, 1968; and Kadowaki,
1960, respectively).