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Site-specific bioaccumulation of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDD/PCDFs) in mothers and their infants living in vicinity of Bien Hoa airbase, Southern Vietnam

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Abstract

Bien Hoa airbase is located in Dong Nai Province (Southern Vietnam). Several sites within the airbase are highly contaminated by Agent Orange/Dioxin, and thus, they are also commonly named as an Agent Orange/Dioxin hotpot. In the present study, 36 maternal milk samples were collected from primiparas who have lived at least 5 years in four wards, Buu Long, Quang Vinh, Trung Dung and Tan Phong, which are closed to Bien Hoa airbase in order to investigate the level and distribution of Agent Orange/Dioxin exposure in different local communities. The mean concentrations of PCDD/PCDFs in four investigated wards range from 6.4 to 13.6 pgTEQ/g lipid. The highest mean TEQ of PCDD/PCDFs was observed in Buu Long ward (13.6 pgTEQ/g lipid), followed by Tan Phong ward (12.3 pgTEQ/g lipid), and the lowest value was observed in Trung Dung ward (6.4 pgTEQ/g lipid). The mean concentration of 2,3,7,8-TCDD in Buu Long (7.6 pg/g lipid) was approximately 2–6 times higher than those in Tan Phong (3.9 pg/g lipid), Quang Vinh (2.3 pg/g lipid), or Trung Dung (1.2 pg/g lipid). These results imply site-specific exposure to PCDD/PCDFs in different local communities living around Bien Hoa airbase. The mean values of daily intake of dioxin estimated for the breast fed infants living in Buu Long, Quang Vinh, Trung Dung and Tan Phong were about 80, 37.5, 31.7 and 58 pg TEQ/kg bw/day, respectively.

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Acknowledgements

This research is funded by Vietnam National Foundation for Science and Technology Development (NAFOSTED) under Grant Number 104.04-2014.40. The authors would like to express sincerest thanks to Professor Alexander Scheeline (University of Illinois, USA) for valuable scientific reading and critical comments to this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dioxin Laboratory, Center for Environmental Monitoring (CEM), Vietnam Environment Administration, Nr 556 Nguyen Van Cu Street, Long Bien, Hanoi, Vietnam

    Nguyen Thi Minh Hue, Nguyen Van Thuong & Nguyen Hung Minh

  2. Faculty of Chemistry, Hanoi University of Science, Nr. 19 Le Thanh Tong Street, Hoan Kiem, Hanoi, Vietnam

    Pham Thi Ngoc Mai

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  1. Nguyen Thi Minh Hue
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Hue, N.T.M., Van Thuong, N., Mai, P.T.N. et al. Site-specific bioaccumulation of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDD/PCDFs) in mothers and their infants living in vicinity of Bien Hoa airbase, Southern Vietnam. Environ Geochem Health 40, 2539–2549 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-018-0118-8

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