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Veröffentlichung The European Human Biomonitoring Initiative (HBM4EU): Human biomonitoring guidance values (HBM-GVs) for the aprotic solvents N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) and N-ethyl-2-pyrrolidone (NEP)(2021) Apel, Petra; Gerofke, Antje; David, Madlen; Kolossa-Gehring, Marike; Lange, RosaToxicologically and/or epidemiologically derived guidance values referring to the internal exposure of humans are a prerequisite for an easy to use health-based interpretation of human biomonitoring (HBM) results. The European Joint Programme HBM4EU derives such values, named human biomonitoring guidance values (HBM-GVs), for priority substances which could be of regulatory relevance for policy makers and have been identified by experts of the participating countries, ministries, agencies and stakeholders at EU and national level. NMP and NEP are such substances for which unresolved policy relevant issues should be clarified by targeted research. Since widespread exposure of the general population in Germany to NMP and NEP was shown for the age groups 3-17 years and 20-29 years, further investigations on exposure to NMP and NEP in other European countries are warranted. The HBM-GVs derived for both solvents focus on developmental toxicity as decisive endpoint. They amount for the sum of the two specific urinary NMP metabolites 5-HNMP and 2-HMSI and likewise of the two specific urinary NEP metabolites 5-HNEP and 2-HESI to 10 mg/L for children and 15 mg/L for adolescents/adults. The values were determined following a consultation process on the value proposals within HBM4EU. A health-based risk assessment was performed using the newly derived HBM-GVGenPop and exposure data from two recent studies from Germany. The risk assessment revealed that even when considering the combined exposure to both substances by applying the Hazard Index approach, the measured concentrations are below the HBM-GVGenPop in all cases investigated (i.e., children, adolescents and young adults). © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier GmbH.Veröffentlichung Cumulative risk assessment of five phthalates in European children and adolescents(2022) Kolossa-Gehring, Marike; Lange, Rosa; Gerofke, Antje; Schmidt, Philipp; Vogel, NinaThe European Human Biomonitoring Initiative (HBM4EU) assessed human biomonitoring data on phthalates in children and adolescents, that were sampled between 2014 and 2021, in a harmonised way. These so-called "HBM4EU Aligned Studies" revealed that almost all children and adolescents were exposed to multiple phthalates concurrently. Some phthalates have been shown to act in a dose-additive manner, thus, a mixture risk assessment is warranted. In our study, we determine the risk from combined exposure to five anti-androgenic phthalates, namely DEHP, DiBP, DnBP, BBzP and DiNP by making use of the hazard index (HI) approach. Toxicologically-based human biomonitoring guidance values (HBM-GVs) derived within the framework of HBM4EU served as basis. Our results show that exposures of 17% of children and adolescents from twelve European countries resulted in hazard indices (HI)>1 with an HI of 1.77 at the 95th percentile (geometric mean, GM=0.44). Main drivers for the mixture risk are DnBP and DiBP. Generalized Linear Model (GLM) analysis including four major exposure determinants (age, sex, European region, sampling year) simultaneously reveal differences for the European regions and between sampling years. Children and adolescents living in the Eastern region of Europe have on average, higher HIs (GM=0.58) than in the Southern region (GM=0.36) and Western region (GM=0.42). Moreover, participants from which urine samples were taken in the earlier years (2014-2016) seem to have higher average HI levels than participants from studies with later sampling periods. Strikingly, the majority (63%) of participants with HIs>1 would have gone unnoticed in single substance risk assessments as individual phthalates levels were below corresponding HBM-GVs. Thus, our results underline the importance of mixture risk assessment approaches to adequately address risks from concurrent chemical exposure. © 2022 Published by Elsevier GmbH.Veröffentlichung From science to policy: how European HBM indicators help to answer policy questions related to phthalates and DINCH exposure(2022) Gerofke, Antje; David, Madlen; Kolossa-Gehring, Marike; Schmidt, Phillipp; Vogel, NinaWithin the European Human Biomonitoring (HBM) Initiative HBM4EU we derived HBM indicators that were designed to help answering key policy questions and support chemical policies. The result indicators convey information on chemicals exposure of different age groups, sexes, geographical regions and time points by comparing median exposure values. If differences are observed for one group or the other, policy measures or risk management options can be implemented. Impact indicators support health risk assessment by comparing exposure values with health-based guidance values, such as human biomonitoring guidance values (HBM-GVs). In general, the indicators should be designed to translate complex scientific information into short and clear messages and make it accessible to policy makers but also to a broader audience such as stakeholders (e.g. NGO's), other scientists and the general public. Based on harmonized data from the HBM4EU Aligned Studies (2014-2021), the usefulness of our indicators was demonstrated for the age group children (6-11 years), using two case examples: one phthalate (Diisobutyl phthalate: DiBP) and one non-phthalate substitute (Di-isononyl cyclohexane-1,2- dicarboxylate: DINCH). For the comparison of age groups, these were compared to data for teenagers (12-18 years), and time periods were compared using data from the DEMOCOPHES project (2011-2012). Our result indicators proved to be suitable for demonstrating the effectiveness of policy measures for DiBP and the need of continuous monitoring for DINCH. They showed similar exposure for boys and girls, indicating that there is no need for gender focused interventions and/or no indication of sex-specific exposure patterns. They created a basis for a targeted approach by highlighting relevant geographical differences in internal exposure. An adequate data basis is essential for revealing differences for all indicators. This was particularly evident in our studies on the indicators on age differences. The impact indicator revealed that health risks based on exposure to DiBP cannot be excluded. This is an indication or flag for risk managers and policy makers that exposure to DiBP still is a relevant health issue. HBM indicators derived within HBM4EU are a valuable and important complement to existing indicator lists in the context of environment and health. Their applicability, current shortcomings and solution strategies are outlined. © 2022 The AuthorsVeröffentlichung HBM4EU results support the Chemicals' Strategy for Sustainability and the Zero-Pollution Action Plan(2023) Vicente, Joana Lobo; David, Madlen; Ganzleben, Catherine; Gasol, Roser; Gerofke, Antje; Kolossa-Gehring, MarikeOne of the major goals of the European Human Biomonitoring Initiative (HBM4EU) was to bridge the gap between science and policy by consulting both policy makers and national scientists and generating evidence of the actual exposure of residents to chemicals and whether that exposure would be suggest a potential health risk. Residents' perspectives on chemical exposure and risk were also investigated. HBM4EU's research was designed to answer specific short-term and long-term policy questions at national and European levels, and for its results to directly support regulatory action on chemicals. A strategy was established to prioritise chemicals for analysis in human matrices, with a total of 18 substances/substance groups chosen to be investigated throughout the five-and a -half-year project. HBM4EU produced new evidence of human exposure levels, developed reference values for exposure, investigated determinants of exposure and derived health-based guidance values for those substances. In addition, HBM4EU promoted the use of human biomonitoring data in chemical risk assessment and developed innovative tools and methods linking chemicals to possible health impacts, such as effect biomarkers. Furthermore, HBM4EU advanced understand of effects from combined exposures and methods to identify emerging chemicals. With the aim of supporting policy implementation, science-to-policy workshops were organised, providing opportunities for joint reflection and dialogue on research results. I, and indicators were developed to assess temporal and spatial patterns in the exposure of European population. A sustainable human biomonitoring monitoring framework, producing comparable quality assured data would allow: the evaluation of time trends; the exploration of spatial trends: the evaluation of the influence of socio-economic conditions on chemical exposure. Therefore, such a framework should be included in the European Chemicals' Strategy for Sustainability and the data would support the Zero Pollution Action Plan. © 2023 The AuthorsVeröffentlichung Exposure to phthalates in European children, adolescents and adults since 2005: a harmonized approach based on existing HBM data in the HBM4EU Initiative(2023) Kolossa-Gehring, Marike; Lange, Rosa; Murawski, Aline; Rüther, Maria; Gerofke, Antje; Schmidt, Phillipp; Springer, Andrea; Vogel, Nina; Weber, TillPhthalates are mainly used as plasticizers and are associated inter alia with adverse effects on reproductive functions. While more and more national programs in Europe have started monitoring internal exposure to phthalates and its substitute 1,2-Cyclohexanedicarboxylic acid (DINCH), the comparability of results from such existing human biomonitoring (HBM) studies across Europe is challenging. They differ widely in time periods, study samples, degree of geographical coverage, design, analytical methodology, biomarker selection, and analytical quality assurance level. The HBM4EU initiative has gathered existing HBM data of 29 studies from participating countries, covering all European regions and Israel. The data were prepared and aggregated by a harmonized procedure with the aim to describe - as comparably as possible - the EU-wide general population's internal exposure to phthalates from the years 2005 to 2019. Most data were available from Northern (up to 6 studies and up to 13 time points), Western (11; 19), and Eastern Europe (9; 12), e.g., allowing for the investigation of time patterns. While the bandwidth of exposure was generally similar, we still observed regional differences for Butyl benzyl phthalate (BBzP), Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), Di-isononyl phthalate (DiNP), and Di-isobutyl phthalate (DiBP) with pronounced decreases over time in Northern and Western Europe, and to a lesser degree in Eastern Europe. Differences between age groups were visible for Di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP), where children (3 to 5-year olds and 6 to 11-year olds) had lower urinary concentrations than adolescents (12 to 19-year-olds), who in turn had lower urinary concentrations than adults (20 to 39-year-olds). This study is a step towards making internal exposures to phthalates comparable across countries, although standardized data were not available, targeting European data sets harmonized with respect to data formatting and calculation of aggregated data (such as developed within HBM4EU), and highlights further suggestions for improved harmonization in future studies. © 2023 by the authorsVeröffentlichung How to use human biomonitoring in chemical risk assessment: methodological aspects, recommendations, and lessons learned from HBM4EU(2023) Santonen, Tiina; Mahiout, Selma; Apel, Petra; Alvito, Paula; Kolossa-Gehring, Marike; Gerofke, Antje; Lange, RosaOne of the aims of the European Human Biomonitoring Initiative, HBM4EU, was to provide examples of and good practices for the effective use of human biomonitoring (HBM) data in human health risk assessment (RA). The need for such information is pressing, as previous research has indicated that regulatory risk assessors generally lack knowledge and experience of the use of HBM data in RA. By recognising this gap in expertise, as well as the added value of incorporating HBM data into RA, this paper aims to support the integration of HBM into regulatory RA. Based on the work of the HBM4EU, we provide examples of different approaches to including HBM in RA and in estimations of the environmental burden of disease (EBoD), the benefits and pitfalls involved, information on the important methodological aspects to consider, and recommendations on how to overcome obstacles. The examples are derived from RAs or EBoD estimations made under the HBM4EU for the following HBM4EU priority substances: acrylamide, o-toluidine of the aniline family, aprotic solvents, arsenic, bisphenols, cadmium, diisocyanates, flame retardants, hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)], lead, mercury, mixture of per-/poly-fluorinated compounds, mixture of pesticides, mixture of phthalates, mycotoxins, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and the UV-filter benzophenone-3. Although the RA and EBoD work presented here is not intended to have direct regulatory implications, the results can be useful for raising awareness of possibly needed policy actions, as newly generated HBM data from HBM4EU on the current exposure of the EU population has been used in many RAs and EBoD estimations. © 2023 The Author(s)