Lead Poisoning and Measurement of Body Burdens of Lead : A Perspective

Eman Daar; D A Bradley

doi:10.14331/ijfps.2015.330089

Authors

Eman Daar Department of Physics, The University of Jordan, Amman 11942, Jordan Author
D A Bradley Department of Physics, University of Surrey, Guildford GU2 7XH, UK Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14331/ijfps.2015.330089

Keywords:

lead poisoning, XRF, Roman Empire, archaeological bone

Abstract

The measurement of lead in archaeological bone forms the basis for providing insight into ancient societies, including disease, lifestyle and eating habits. It is sometimes asserted that in the 5th century AD lead toxicity played a key role in the eventual fall of the western Roman Empire. Others view the effect of lead exposure at that time to be less significant. The debate concerns the idea that clinical lead poisoning mainly affected the aristocratic population and caused a strong reduction in fertility and reproduction .Choosing bone over soft tissues or blood for lead measurement is due to the fact that the bone represents a long-term store of a range of elements, including lead, and can survive over many thousands of years. Different elemental analysis techniques both in-vivo and in-vitro have been developed over the years, including X-ray fluorescence (XRF), the latter being the main technique described within this review. The main advantages of in-vitro techniques are that they have excellent detection limits and data processing times but on the down side they are very expensive. On the other hand, while in-vivo techniques are non-invasive they suffer from relatively poor detection limits, pointing to the need for validation using in-vitro analysis.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Barry, P. S. I. (1975). COMPARISON OF CONCENTRATIONS OF LEAD IN HUMAN TISSUES. British Journal of Industrial Medicine, 32(2), 119-139.

Beauchemin, D. (2010). Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry. Analytical Chemistry, 82(12), 4786-4810. doi: 10.1021/ac101187p

Buchweitz, J., McClure-Brinton, K., Zyskowski, J., Stensen, L., & Lehner, A. (2015). Lead isotope profiling in dairy calves. Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology, 71(2), 174-177. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.yrtph.2014.12.015

Chettle, D. R., Scott, M. C., & Somervaille, L. J. (1991). Lead in bone: sampling and quantitation using K X-rays excited by 109Cd. Environmental Health Perspectives, 91, 49-55.

Grandjean, P. (1978). Widening perspectives of lead toxicity: A review of health effects of lead exposure in adults. Environmental Research, 17(2), 303-321.

Hernberg, S. (2000). Lead poisoning in a historical perspective. American Journal of Industrial Medicine, 38(3), 244-254. doi: 10.1002/1097-0274(200009)38:3<244::aid-ajim3>3.0.co;2-f

Hoon Lee, S., P. Gardner, R., & C. Todd, A. (2001). Preliminary studies on combining the K and L XRF methods for in vivo bone lead measurement. Applied Radiation and Isotopes, 54(6), 893-904. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0969-8043(00)00350-X

Inc, P. E. (2011). The 30-Minute Guide to ICP-MS. 7/3/2015, from http://www.perkinelmer.com/PDFs/Downloads/tch_icpmsthirtyminuteguide.pdf

Kokori, H., Giannakopoulou, C. H., Hatzidaki, E., Athanaselis, S., Tsatsakis, A., & Sbyrakis, S. (1999). An unusual case of lead poisoning in an infant: Nursing-associated plumbism. Journal of Laboratory and Clinical Medicine, 134(5), 522-525. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0022-2143(99)90174-9

Levinson, R. (2001). More Modern Chemical Techniques. London: Royal Society of Chemistry.

Lin, G.-z., Wu, F., Yan, C.-h., Li, K., & Liu, X.-y. (2012). Childhood lead poisoning associated with traditional Chinese medicine: A case report and the subsequent lead source inquiry. Clinica Chimica Acta, 413(13–14), 1156-1159. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cca.2012.03.010

Liu, J. a., Gao, D., Chen, Y., Jing, J., Hu, Q., & Chen, Y. (2014). Lead exposure at each stage of pregnancy and neurobehavioral development of neonates. NeuroToxicology, 44(0), 1-7. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neuro.2014.03.003

Mahmood, Z. A., Azhar, I., & Ahmed, S. W. (2015). Chapter 7 - Kohl Use in Antiquity: Effects on the Eye. In P. Wexler (Ed.), History of Toxicology and Environmental Health (pp. 68-78). Boston: Academic Press.

Meiklejohn, A. (1963). The Successful Prevention of Lead Poisoning in the Glazing of Earthenware in the North Staffordshire Potteries. British Journal of Industrial Medicine, 20(3), 169-180.

Meyer, P. A., Brown, M. J., & Falk, H. (2008). Global approach to reducing lead exposure and poisoning. Mutation Research/Reviews in Mutation Research, 659(1–2), 166-175. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.mrrev.2008.03.003

Rebôcho, J., Carvalho, M. L., Marques, A. F., Ferreira, F. R., & Chettle, D. R. (2006). Lead post-mortem intake in human bones of ancient populations by 109Cd-based X-ray fluorescence and EDXRF. Talanta, 70(5), 957-961. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.talanta.2006.05.062

Retief, F. P., & Cillier, L. ( 2006 ). Lead poisoning in ancient Rome Acta Theologica 26, 147-163.

Riva, M. A., Lafranconi, A., D'Orso, M. I., & Cesana, G. (2012). Lead Poisoning: Historical Aspects of a Paradigmatic "Occupational and Environmental Disease". Safety and Health at Work, 3(1), 11-16. doi: 10.5491/shaw.2012.3.1.11

Roels, H., Konings, J., Green, S., Bradley, D., Chettle, D., & Lauwerys, R. (1995). Time-Integrated Blood Lead Concentration Is a Valid Surrogate for Estimating the Cumulative Lead Dose Assessed by Tibial Lead Measurement. Environmental Research, 69(2), 75-82. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1006/enrs.1995.1027

Roels, H., Lauwerys, R., Konings, J., Buchet, J. P., Bernard, A., Green, S., . . . Chettle, D. (1994). RENAL-FUNCTION AND HYPERFILTRATION CAPACITY IN LEAD SMELTER WORKERS WITH HIGH BONE LEAD. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 51(8), 505-512.

Rollin, L., Carré, N., & Garnier, R. (2008). Follow-up of children suffering from lead poisoning or at risk of lead poisoning in Greater Paris, 1992–2002. Revue d'Épidémiologie et de Santé Publique, 56(6), 391-397. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.respe.2008.08.002

Rozman, K. K., Doull, J., & Hayes Jr, W. J. (2001). Chapter 1 - Dose, Time, and Other Factors Influencing Toxicity. In R. I. K. C. Krieger (Ed.), Handbook of Pesticide Toxicology (Second Edition) (pp. 1-93). San Diego: Academic Press.

Schell, L. M., & Knutsen, K. L. (2002). 8 - Environmental Effects on Growth. In N. Cameron (Ed.), Human Growth and Development (pp. 165-195). San Diego: Academic Press.

Shannon, M. (2003). Severe Lead Poisoning in Pregnancy. Ambulatory Pediatrics, 3(1), 37-39. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1367/1539-4409(2003)003<0037:SLPIP>2.0.CO;2

Todd, A. (2014). Measuring Lead in Bone; A Practical Description. 7/3/2015

Todd, A. C., & Chettle, D. R. (1994). IN-VIVO X-RAY-FLUORESCENCE OF LEAD IN BONE - REVIEW AND CURRENT ISSUES. Environmental Health Perspectives, 102(2), 172-177. doi: 10.2307/3431606

Trzeciakowski, J. P., Gardiner, L., & Parrish, A. R. (2014). Effects of environmental levels of cadmium, lead and mercury on human renal function evaluated by structural equation modeling. Toxicology Letters, 228(1), 34-41. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.toxlet.2014.04.006

Valerio, P., Soares, A. M. M., Araujo, M. F., Silva, R. J. C., Porfirio, E., & Serra, M. (2014). Arsenical copper and bronze in Middle Bronze Age burial sites of southern Portugal: the first bronzes in Southwestern Iberia. Journal of Archaeological Science, 42, 68-80. doi: 10.1016/j.jas.2013.10.039

Woolley, D. E. (1984). A PERSPECTIVE OF LEAD-POISONING IN ANTIQUITY AND THE PRESENT. NeuroToxicology, 5(3): , 353-361.

Wu, M.-L., Deng, J.-F., Lin, K.-P., & Tsai, W.-J. (2013). Lead, Mercury, and Arsenic Poisoning Due to Topical Use of Traditional Chinese Medicines. The American Journal of Medicine, 126(5), 451-454. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2013.01.001

Yabe, J., Nakayama, S. M. M., Ikenaka, Y., Yohannes, Y. B., Bortey-Sam, N., Oroszlany, B., Ishizuka, M. (2015). Lead poisoning in children from townships in the vicinity of a lead–zinc mine in Kabwe, Zambia. Chemosphere, 119(0), 941-947. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2014.09.028

Yu, X.-D., Yan, C.-H., Shen, X.-M., Tian, Y., Cao, L.-L., Yu, X.-G., Liu, J.-X. (2011). Prenatal exposure to multiple toxic heavy metals and neonatal neurobehavioral development in Shanghai, China. Neurotoxicology and Teratology, 33(4), 437-443. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ntt.2011.05.010

Zong, Y. Y, Parsons, P. J. and Slavin, W, (1996). Accurate and precise measurements of lead in bone using electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry with Zeeman-effect background correction Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry, 11, 25-30