Suspect and non-targeted screening of chemicals of emerging concern for human biomonitoring, environmental health studies and support to risk assessment: From promises to challenges and harmonisation issues. (June 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Pourchet, Mariane; Debrauwer, Laurent; Klanova, Jana; Price, Elliott J.; Covaci, Adrian; Caballero-Casero, Noelia; Oberacher, Herbert; Lamoree, Marja; Damont, Annelaure; Fenaille, François; Vlaanderen, Jelle; Meijer, Jeroen; Krauss, Martin; Sarigiannis, Denis; Barouki, Robert; Le Bizec, Bruno; Antignac, Jean-Philippe
• Is Part Of: Environment international. Volume 139(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-06
• Subjects: Chemical of emerging concern -- Metabolites -- Suspect screening -- Non-targeted screening -- High resolution mass spectrometry -- Biomonitoring; Environmental protection -- Periodicals; Environmental health -- Periodicals; Environmental monitoring -- Periodicals; Environmental Monitoring -- Periodicals; Environnement -- Protection -- Périodiques; Hygiène du milieu -- Périodiques; Environnement -- Surveillance -- Périodiques; Environmental health; Environmental monitoring; Environmental protection; Periodicals; 333.705
• DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2020.105545
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0160-4120

Abstract

Graphical abstract: Highlights: Chemicals of Emerging Concern (CECs) are a growing concern in HBM. Suspect and non-targeted screening (NTS) approaches offer new capabilities for capturing CECs in human matrices. These new approaches applied to HBM come with a number of technical and scientific issues to be addressed. Harmonisation is required at international level to reinforce NTS methods comparability and performance assessment. Abstract: Large-scale suspect and non-targeted screening approaches based on high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) are today available for chemical profiling and holistic characterisation of biological samples. These advanced techniques allow the simultaneous detection of a large number of chemical features, including markers of human chemical exposure. Such markers are of interest for biomonitoring, environmental health studies and support to risk assessment. Furthermore, these screening approaches have the promising capability to detect chemicals of emerging concern (CECs), document the extent of human chemical exposure, generate new research hypotheses and provide early warning support to policy. Whilst of growing importance in the environment and food safety areas, respectively, CECs remain poorly addressed in the field of human biomonitoring. This shortfall is due to several scientific and methodological reasons, including a global lack of harmonisation. In this context, the main aim of this paper is to present an overview of the basic principles, promises and challenges of suspect and non-targeted screening approaches applied to human samples as this specific field introduce major specificities compared to other fields. Focused on liquid chromatography coupled to HRMS-based data acquisition methods, this overview addresses all steps of these new analytical workflows. Beyond this general picture, the main activities carried out on this topic within the particular framework of the European Human Biomonitoring initiative (project HBM4EU, 2017–2021) are described, with an emphasis on harmonisation measures.