A Simultaneous Determination of Benzophenone and Camphor UV-Filters, Together with Metabolites of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons, in Human Urine

Abstract By monitoring biomarkers in urine, personal exposure to selected chemical substances can be assessed. In this paper, we describe the monitoring of 7 benzophenone and 2 camphor UV-filters and 11 metabolites of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (OH-PAHs) in 454 urine samples collected from mothers and new-borns from an industrial (Karvina) and reference area (Ceske Budejovice) over winter and summer seasons. The analytical method consisted of enzymatic hydrolysis, liquid–liquid extraction (ethyl acetate), purification by dispersive solid-phase extraction (Z-Sep sorbent) and ultra-high performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry. Benzophenone-1 (BP-1), naphthalen-2-ol (2-OH-NAP), fluoren-2-ol (2-OH-FLUO) and phenanthren-2-ol (2-OH-PHEN) were determined in all urine samples analysed. Benzophenone-3 (BP-3) and 2-OH-NAP were found at the highest concentrations (medians of 5.95- and 5.77-µg/g creatinine). Analytes 3-(4-methylbenzylidene)camphor (3-MBC), 3-benzylidenecamphor (3-BC), chrysen-6-ol (6-OH-CHRY) and benzo(a)pyrene-3-ol (3-OH-BaP) were not detected in any urine sample. Median concentrations of UV-filters and OH-PAHs were compared across regions in the Czech Republic and between mothers and their new-borns from different countries. The median concentrations of UV-filters measured in urine samples from new-borns in our study were similar to samples collected from Brazilian children and the concentrations of these compounds in mothers’ samples were comparable with the concentrations in Danish mothers. In the case of OH-PAHs, the median concentrations of these substances measured in urine samples from Czech new-borns were comparable to median concentrations of these compounds measured in new-born urine from our previous study, and the concentrations in urine collected from Czech mothers were comparable to those reported in Spanish women.