Bisphenol A and S in the Urine of Newborns: Plastic for Non-Food Use Still without Rules

Effects of Prenatal Exposure to Bisphenol A Substitutes, Bisphenol S and Bisphenol F, on Offspring's Health: Evidence from Epidemiological and Experimental Studies

Pregnancy and lactation are critical periods for human well-being and are sensitive windows for pollutant exposure. Bisphenol A (BPA) is well demonstrated as a toxicant and has been replaced in the plastic industry with other bisphenol analogs that share similarities in structure and characteristics, most commonly Bisphenol S (BPS) and Bisphenol F (BPF). Maternal exposure to BPS or BPF can result in their accumulation in the fetal compartment, leading to chronic exposure and potentially limiting normal fetal growth and development. This review summarizes considerable findings of epidemiological or experimental studies reporting associations between BPS or BPF and impaired fetal growth and development. Briefly, the available findings indicate that exposure to the two bisphenol analogs during pregnancy and lactation can result in multiple disturbances in the offspring, including fetal growth restrictions, neurological dysfunctions, and metabolic disorders with the potential to persist throughout childhood. The occurrence of premature births may also be attributed to exposure to the two bisphenols. The possible mechanisms of actions by which the two bisphenols can induce such effects can be attributed to a complex of interactions between the physiological mechanisms, including impaired placental functioning and development, dysregulation of gene expression, altered hormonal balance, and disturbances in immune responses as well as induced inflammations and oxidative stress. In conclusion, the available evidence suggests that BPS and BPF have a toxic potential in a compartment level to BPA. Future research is needed to provide more intensive information; long-term studies and epidemiological research, including a wide scale of populations with different settings, are recommended. Public awareness regarding the safety of BPA-free products should also be enhanced, with particular emphasis on educating individuals responsible for the well-being of children.

Migration study of phenolic endocrine disruptors from pacifiers to saliva simulant by solid phase microextraction with amino-functionalized microporous organic network coated fiber

Parabens, bisphenols, and triclosan are used in many baby products, including pacifiers. However, the migration through oral saliva will result in a potential health risk. The present study proposes a sensitive and simple method for the analysis of these chemicals in saliva simulants by solid phase microextraction (SPME) with amino-functionalized microporous organic network (MON-NH₂) coated fiber. The MON-NH₂ showed an excellent adsorption ability for phenolic compounds. The adsorption isotherm fitted the Langmuir isotherm model and the adsorption kinetics followed the pseudo second-order model. The developed SPME method exhibited wide linear ranges (0.005-500 µg/L), good linearity, low limits of quantitation (0.005 µg/L), great recoveries (87.0-112.5 %), and excellent precision (RSD < 8.3 % for intra-day and RSD < 13.7 % for inter-day). Mathematical models based on Fick's second law were applied to predict migration from pacifiers into saliva simulants and a good fit between theoretical and experimental migration results was found. The daily exposure assessment results indicated that these chemicals in pacifiers do not pose unacceptable health risks to infants. However, exposure risks still should be monitored and appropriate precautions are still needed to protect infants from exposure to these chemicals.

Tailoring diameters of carbon nanofibers with optimal mesopores to remarkably promote hemin adsorption toward ultrasensitive detection of bisphenol A

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a worldwide used endocrine disrupting chemical that can migration from food containers and packaging, resulting in bioaccumulation of BPA in humans and causing adverse health effects. Porous electrodes have been proved with large surface areas and high sensing abilities in electrochemical detection of BPA. However, how to tailor the pore sizes to further improve the sensing performance is still a great challenge. Here, we delicately tailored the diameters of carbon nanofibers (CNFs) by adjusting electrospinning parameters to have optimal mesopore structure for strong adsorption of hemin that has been demonstrated with high electrocatalytic activity for BPA sensing. Benefiting from the optimal mesopores structure of CNFs and the synergistic effect of hemin and CNFs, this hemin@CNFs based sensor achieves an ultrahigh sensitivity of 40.97 μA cm^-2 μM^-1, a low detection limit of 3.1 nM and satisfactory recoveries from 90.2% to 104.2% in the direct detection of BPA in liquors. This work offers a promising sensing platform for ultrasensitive monitoring of BPA.