Urinary levels of bisphenol analogues in residents living near a manufacturing plant in south China

The use of bisphenol A (BPA) has been restricted in many countries because of its potential health effects. As a result of these restrictions, a group of bisphenol analogues that are structurally similar to BPA have been developed as the alternatives for industrial applications. However, latest researches indicated that these chemicals have similar endocrine-disrupting effects as BPA in humans. Moreover, only a limited number of studies have attempted to monitor the exposure level in humans of other bisphenol analogues. In the present study, the concentrations of seven bisphenols, including bisphenol S (BPS), bisphenol F (BPF), bisphenol B (BPB), BPA, bisphenol AF (BPAF), tetrachlorobisphenol A (TCBPA) and tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA), in human urine samples were measured by liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) following the enzymatic hydrolysis of glucuronidase/arylsulfatase and liquid-liquid extraction (LLE). Under the optimised conditions, high recoveries (81.6-116.8%) were obtained for all the analytes, and the relative standard deviations (RSD, %) were less than 16.4% (n=6). The isotopic internal standard calibration curves for each of the target compounds exhibited excellent linearity (r(2)>0.99) and the limit of quantification (LOQ) for the analytes in urine ranged from 0.024 to 0.310 ng mL(-1). The method was applied to investigate the urinary levels of these seven bisphenols in a cohort of residents living near a BPAF manufacturing plant in south China. BPS, BPF, BPA and BPAF were detected in urine samples at concentrations ranging from <LOQ to a few ng mL(-1), whereas BPB, TCBPA and TBBPA were not detected. This is the first study to report the occurrence of BPF and BPAF in human urine samples. The availability of rapid and simple analytical methods may be highly useful for the future biomonitoring of these compounds.