CrVIexposure and biomarkers: Cr in erythrocytes in relation to exposure and polymorphisms of genes encoding anion transport proteins

Abstract

A total of 195 subjects, including 141 exposed workers and 54 farmers, were recruited in China to evaluate the usefulness of chromium (Cr) in erythrocytes as a biomarker of exposure to Cr^VI. The levels of Cr in red blood cells (RBC) were remarkably elevated even in a group of workers routinely exposed to Cr^VI as low as 5–15 µg m⁻³ and showed a significant exposure–response trend over the exposure range from 0.002 to 1152 µg m⁻³ (ppVI exposure were higher in subjects with a wild genotype than in those who had heterozygous or homozygous variant alleles. However, the difference was not statistically significant probably due to the limited number of participating subjects. In addition, 15 of the 141 workers were selected for multiple exposure monitoring and blood sample collections to evaluate the inter- and intraindividual variations of Cr in RBC. Compared with the personal exposure levels, Cr in RBC had small intraindividual variations with a reliability coefficient of 0.88. The study suggests that Cr in RBC may serve as a sensitive and reliable biomarker for long-term exposure to Cr^VI.