EXTRACTABLE ORGANIC FLUORINE AND PERFLUORINATED COMPOUNDS IN CHINESE BLOOD SAMPLES

The ubiquitous occurrence of perfluorinate d compounds (PFCs) in environmental samples has drawn much attention. Pefluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) are the dominant PFCs that have been found in environmental samples, but it is also known that these compounds only account for a portion of the PFCs that are present in the environmental and biological matrices. A refined combustion ion chromatography for fluorine (CIC-F) that allows for determination of concentrations of total fluorine (TF) as little as 6 ng/mL in blood samples was developed. In this study, the concentrations of both extractable organic fluorine (EOF), and individual PFCs in human whole blood from four cities (Shenyang, Beijing, Guizhou, and Jintan) in China were determined. Whole blood from individuals living in Shenyang had the greatest total PFC concentration, whereas whole blood from people in Jintan had the least total PFC concentration. However, the samples from Jintan and Shenyang had similar fluorine concentrations, whereas those from Beijing and Guizhou had comparatively lesser fluorine concentrations in the EOF. Although the samples from Jintan had the least total PFC concentrations, approximately 60% of the total EOF was comprised of unknown compounds. Thus, the issue is what those compounds might be and if they pose a risk to humans.