Assessment of human exposure to cadmium and its nephrotoxicity in the Chinese population.

Haiyan Chu, Zhengdong Zhang, Huanhuan Zhu, Xiying Tang, Chunyan Gu, Riming Chen, Yadong Liu

Journal: The Science of the total environment 2024;918():170488

PMID: 38296064

Full Text on Elsevier Science View on PubMed

Abstract

BACKGROUND

Cadmium (Cd) is a toxic heavy metal that widely detected in environment and accumulated in kidney, posing a great threat to human health. However, there is a lack of systematic investigation of exposure profile and association of Cd exposure with renal function in the Chinese population.

METHODS

Related articles were searched from PubMed, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Internet, and Wanfang to construct an aggregate exposure pathway (AEP) framework for Cd and to explore the correlation between Cd and renal function using random effects models.

RESULTS

A total of 220 articles were included in this study, among which 215 investigated human exposure and 12 investigated the association of Cd with renal outcomes. The AEP framework showed that 96.5 % and 62.5 % of total Cd intake were attributed to dietary intake in nonsmokers and smokers, respectively. And 35.2 % originated from cigarette smoke inhalation in smokers. In human body, Cd was detected in blood, urine, placenta, etc. Although the concentrations of Cd in blood and urine from subjects living in polluted areas showed a sharp downward trend since the early 21st century, higher concentration of Cd in the environment and human body in polluted areas was found. Kidney was the target organ. The level of blood Cd was positively associated with urinary β2-microglobulin [β2-MG, r (95 % CI) = 0.12 (0.05, 0.19)], albumin [0.13 (0.06, 0.20)], and retinol-binding protein [RBP, 0.14 (0.03, 0.24)]. Elevated urinary Cd was correlated with increases in β2-MG [0.22 (0.15, 0.29)], albumin [0.23 (0.16, 0.29)], N-acetyl-β-d-glucosaminidase [NAG, 0.33 (0.22, 0.44)], and RBP [0.22 (0.14, 0.30)].

CONCLUSIONS

Foods and cigarette smoke were two major ways for Cd intake, and Cd induced renal injury in the Chinese population. This study enhanced the understanding of human exposure and nephrotoxicity of Cd, and emphasized the need for controlling Cd level in polluted areas.

Address: Departments of Environmental Genomics and Genetic Toxicology, The Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of Ministry of Education, Center for Global Health, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Personalized Medicine, School of Public Health; Institute of Clinical Research, The Affiliated Taizhou People's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University; Department of Urology, The Yancheng School of Clinical Medicine of Nanjing Medical University (The Third People's Hospital of Yancheng), Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.; Departments of Genetic Toxicology and Environmental Genomics, The Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of Ministry of Education, Center for Global Health, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Personalized Medicine, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China.; Department of Pathology, Affiliated Nantong Hospital 3 of Nantong University (Nantong Third People's Hospital), China.; Department of Urology, The Yancheng School of Clinical Medicine of Nanjing Medical University (The Third People's Hospital of Yancheng), Yancheng, China.; Departments of Genetic Toxicology and Environmental Genomics, The Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of Ministry of Education, Center for Global Health, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Personalized Medicine, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China. Electronic address: [email protected].; Departments of Environmental Genomics and Genetic Toxicology, The Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of Ministry of Education, Center for Global Health, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Cancer Biomarkers, Prevention and Treatment, Collaborative Innovation Center for Cancer Personalized Medicine, School of Public Health; Institute of Clinical Research, The Affiliated Taizhou People's Hospital of Nanjing Medical University; Department of Urology, The Yancheng School of Clinical Medicine of Nanjing Medical University (The Third People's Hospital of Yancheng), Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, China. Electronic address: [email protected].

DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170488

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MeSH Terms: Humans, Cadmium, Environmental Exposure, Kidney, Heavy Metal Poisoning, Albumins, Acetylglucosaminidase, Biomarkers