Ginji Endo

Diphenylarsinic acid poisoning from chemical weapons in Kamisu, Japan

We noted a new clinical syndrome with prominent cerebellar symptoms in apartment building residents in Kamisu, Japan. The well that provided drinking water contained diphenylarsinic acid, a degradation product of diphenylcyanoarsine or diphenylchloroarsine, which were developed for use as chemical weapons, inducing severe vomiting and sneezing. Characteristics of diphenylarsinic acid poisoning include brainstem–cerebellar and cerebral symptoms. Mental retardation associated with brain atrophy in magnetic resonance images was evident in some infants. We must be vigilant to prevent or minimize the effects of further diphenylarsinic acid poisoning in Japan or elsewhere. Ann Neurol 2004;56:741–745

HPLC-ICP-MS Speciation Analysis of Arsenic in Urine of Japanese Subjects without Occupational Exposure

HPLC‐ICP‐MS Speciation Analysis of Arsenic in Urine of Japanese Subjects without Occupational Exposure: Akihisa Hata, et al. Department of Preventive Medicine and Environmental Health, Graduate School of Medicine, Osaka City University—The toxicity and carcinogenicity of arsenic depend on its species. Individuals living in Japan consume much seafood that contains high levels of organoarsenics. Speciation analysis of urinary arsenic is required to clarify the health risks of arsenic intake. There has been no report of urinary arsenic analysis in Japan using high performance liquid chromatography with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (HPLC‐ICP‐MS). We performed speciation analysis of urinary arsenic for 210 Japanese male subjects without occupational exposure using HPLC‐ICP‐MS. The median values of urinary arsenics were as follows: sodium arsenite (AsIII), 3.5; sodium arsenate (AsV), 0.1; monomethylarsonic acid (MMA), 3.1; dimethylarsinic acid (DMA), 42.6; arsenobetaine (AsBe), 61.3; arsenocholine, trimethylarsine oxide, and unidentified arsenics (others), 5.2; and total arsenic (total As), 141.3 µgAs/l. The median creatinine‐adjusted values were as follows: AsIII, 3.0; AsV, 0.1; MMA, 2.6; DMA, 35.9; AsBe, 52.1; others 3.5; and total As, 114.9 µgAs/g creatinine. Our findings indicate that DMA and AsBe levels in Japan are much higher than those found in Italian and American studies. It appears that the high levels of DMA and AsBe observed in Japan may be due in part to seafood intake. ACGIH and DFG set the BEI and BAT values for occupational arsenic exposure as 35 µgAs/l and 50 µgAs/l, respectively, using the sum of inorganic arsenic (iAs), MMA, and DMA. In the general Japanese population, the sums of these were above 50 µgAs/l in 115 (55%) samples. We therefore recommend excluding DMA concentration in monitoring of iAs exposure.

Walking to Work Is an Independent Predictor of Incidence of Type 2 Diabetes in Japanese Men: The Kansai Healthcare Study

Previous epidemiological studies have shown that vigorous physical activity reduces the development of type 2 diabetes (1–3). A recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that individuals should engage in ≥30 min of moderate-intensity physical activity, such as brisk walking, on most days of the week for health promotion and disease prevention (4); however, it is unclear whether mild physical activity (i.e., walking to walk) reduces the risk for type 2 diabetes. In the present study, we examined the relationship between walking to work and the development of type 2 diabetes during a 4-year observational period.nnThe Kansai Healthcare Study is an ongoing cohort investigation designed to clarify the risk factors for cardiometabolic diseases. Between April 2000 and March 2001, 12,647 male employees of a company in the area of Kansai, Japan, who were aged 40–55 years at entry and considered to be involved in sedentary jobs were enrolled in this study. All employees aged ≥40 years underwent annual detailed medical check-ups. The protocol for this research was reviewed by the Human Subjects Review Committee at Osaka City University.nnFor current analysis, study participants consisted of 11,073 Japanese men aged 40–55 years at entry with a fasting plasma glucose (FPG) <126 mg/dl and not taking oral hypoglycemic medication or insulin. A 4-year follow-up examination after baseline was conducted between April 2004 and March 2005. We excluded 53 men because of death and 2,016 men because of …

Safety assessment of paper and board food packaging: Chemical analysis and genotoxicity of possible contaminants in packaging

In order to identify potential genotoxicant(s) in recycled paperboard, samples were fractionated using multiple liquid/liquid extraction, and gel permeation chromatography, and analysed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry. The rec-assay was used as an indicator of genotoxicity. Genotoxicants in the recycled paperboard were identified as dehydroabietic acid (DHA) and abietic acid (AA). DHA and AA were detected in two out of five virgin products, and in all seven recycled products for food-contact use. Total amounts of DHA and AA were 240 and 990 µg/g in the virgin products and 200-990 µg/g in the recycled products. A good correlation was observed in the total amount of DHA and AA content determined in paper products and DNA-damaging activity. Moreover, genotoxic effects in paper products showed a good match with standard compounds, indicating that the genotoxic effects of these paper products was mostly attributable to DHA and AA.

Relationship between drinking patterns and the risk of type 2 diabetes: the Kansai Healthcare Study

Background Moderate alcohol consumption is associated with a decreased risk of type 2 diabetes. However, the relationship between drinking patterns, such as the weekly frequency of alcohol consumption and the quantity per drinking day, and the incidence of type 2 diabetes has not been sufficiently addressed. Methods Study participants included 10u2008631 Japanese men aged 40–55u2005years without type 2 diabetes at entry. Type 2 diabetes was diagnosed if a fasting plasma glucose level was ≥7.0u2005mmol/l or if participants were taking diabetes medications. Data on alcohol consumption were obtained from questionnaires. Results During the 37u2008172 person-years of follow-up, we confirmed 878 cases of type 2 diabetes. Frequent alcohol consumption was associated with a low risk of type 2 diabetes. Compared to non-drinkers, the multiple-adjusted HR for those who drank 4–7u2005days weekly was 0.76 (95% CI, 0.63 to 0.92). To assess the association between drinking pattern and type 2 diabetes, we examined the joint association of the weekly frequency and the quantity per drinking day with type 2 diabetes. Men who consumed 0.1–2.0 or 2.1–4.0 US standard drinks per drinking day on 4–7u2005days weekly had a lower risk of type 2 diabetes (HR 0.74, 95% CI 0.58 to 0.95; HR 0.74, 95% CI 0.60 to 0.91, respectively) compared to non-drinkers. Conclusions More frequent alcohol consumption lowered the risk of type 2 diabetes. Light to moderate alcohol consumption per drinking day on 4–7u2005days weekly lowered the risk of type 2 diabetes compared to non-drinkers.

Arsenic speciation analysis of urine samples from individuals living in an arsenic-contaminated area in Bangladesh

ObjectivesChronic inorganic arsenic (iAs) exposure currently affects tens of millions of people worldwide. To accurately determine the proportion of urinary arsenic metabolites in residents continuously exposed to iAs, we performed arsenic speciation analysis of the urine of these individuals and determined whether a correlation exists between the concentration of iAs in drinking water and the urinary arsenic species content.MethodsThe subjects were 165 married couples who had lived in the Pabna District in Bangladesh for more than 5xa0years. Arsenic species were measured using high-performance liquid chromatography and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry.ResultsThe median iAs concentration in drinking water was 55xa0μgAs/L (range <0.5–332xa0μgAs/L). Speciation analysis revealed the presence of arsenite, arsenate, monomethylarsonic acid (MMA), and dimethylarsinic acid in urine samples with medians (range) of 16.8 (7.7–32.3), 1.8 (<0.5–3.3), 13.7 (5.6–25.0), and 88.6xa0μgAs/L (47.9–153.4xa0μgAs/L), respectively. No arsenobetaine or arsenocholine was detected. The concentrations of the 4 urinary arsenic species were significantly and linearly related to each other. The urinary concentrations of total arsenic and each species were significantly correlated with the iAs concentration of drinking water.ConclusionsAll urinary arsenic species are well correlated with each other and with iAs in drinking water. The most significant linear relationship existed between the iAs concentration in drinking water and urinary iAsxa0+xa0MMA concentration. From these results, combined with the effects of seafood ingestion, the best biomarker of iAs exposure is urinary iAsxa0+xa0MMA concentration.

Induction of glutathione S-transferase placental form positive foci in liver and epithelial hyperplasia in urinary bladder, but no tumor development in male Fischer 344 rats treated with monomethylarsonic acid for 104 weeks.

The carcinogenicity of monomethylarsonic acid (MMA(V)), a major metabolite of inorganic arsenics in human and experimental animals, was investigated in male Fischer 344 rats. A total of 129 rats at 10 weeks of age were randomly divided into three groups and received drinking water containing MMA(V) at doses of 0 (Control), 50, and 200 ppm ad libitum for 104 weeks. No significant differences were found between the control and the MMA(V)-treated groups regarding clinical signs, mortality, hematological, and serum biochemistry findings. Quantitative analysis of glutathione S-transferase placental form (GST-P) positive foci in liver revealed a significant increase of numbers and areas in the 200 ppm MMA(V)-treated group. In the urinary bladder MMA(V) induced simple hyperplasia and significantly elevated the proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA)-positive index in the urothelium. A variety of tumors developed in rats of all groups, including the controls, but all were histologically similar to those known to occur spontaneously in F344 rats and there were no significant differences among the groups. Thus, it could be concluded that, under the present experimental conditions, MMA(V) induced lesions in the liver and urinary bladder, but did not cause tumor development in male F344 rats even after 2 years exposure.

Rapid and Effective Speciation Analysis of Arsenic Compounds in Human Urine using Anion-Exchange Columns in HPLC-ICP-MS

Received Jan 29, 2009; Accepted May 14, 2009Published online in J-STAGE Jun 18, 2009Correspondence to: Y. Suzuki, Research Center for OccupationalPoisoning, Tokyo Rosai Hospital, Japan Labour Health and WelfareOrganization, 4–13–21 Ohmori-minami, Ohta-ku, Tokyo 143-0013,Japan (e-mail: suzy@tokyoh.rofuku.go.jp)

Acute Arsine Poisoning Confirmed by Speciation Analysis of Arsenic Compounds in the Plasma and Urine by HPLC-ICP-MS

Acute Arsine Poisoning Conirmed by Speciation Analysis of Arsenic Compounds in the Plasma and Urine by HPLC‐ICP‐MS: Yukihiro Yoshimura, et al. Department of Infectious Disease, Yokohama Municipal Citizens Hospital—

Gestational bodyweight gain among underweight Japanese women related to small-for-gestational-age birth

Aim:u2002 The prevalence of underweight women, who have an increased risk for small‐for‐gestational‐age (SGA) birth, is increasing in Japan. We examined the associations of pre‐pregnancy body mass index and gestational weight gain (GWG) with SGA birth among Japanese women.