Human Health Risk Assessment for Aluminium, Aluminium Oxide, and Aluminium Hydroxide
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University of Kentucky UKnowledge Pharmaceutical Sciences Faculty Publications Pharmaceutical Sciences 2007 Human Health Risk Assessment for Aluminium, Aluminium Oxide, and Aluminium Hydroxide Daniel Krewski University of Ottawa, Canada Robert A. Yokel University of Kentucky, [email protected] Evert Nieboer McMaster University, Canada David Borchelt University of Florida See next page for additional authors Right click to open a feedback form in a new tab to let us know how this document benefits ou.y Follow this and additional works at: https://uknowledge.uky.edu/ps_facpub Part of the Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences Commons Authors Daniel Krewski, Robert A. Yokel, Evert Nieboer, David Borchelt, Joshua Cohen, Jean Harry, Sam Kacew, Joan Lindsay, Amal M. Mahfouz, and Virginie Rondeau Human Health Risk Assessment for Aluminium, Aluminium Oxide, and Aluminium Hydroxide Notes/Citation Information Published in the Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B: Critical Reviews, v. 10, supplement 1, p. 1-269. This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B: Critical Reviews on April 7, 2011, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/10937400701597766. Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC The copyright holders have granted the permission for posting the article here. Digital Object Identifier (DOI) http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10937400701597766 This article is available at UKnowledge: https://uknowledge.uky.edu/ps_facpub/57 This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B: Critical Reviews on April 7, 2011, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/10937 400701597766. NIH Public Access Author Manuscript J Toxicol Environ Health B Crit Rev. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2009 November 25. NIH-PA Author ManuscriptPublished NIH-PA Author Manuscript in final edited NIH-PA Author Manuscript form as: J Toxicol Environ Health B Crit Rev. 2007 ; 10(Suppl 1): 1±269. doi:10.1080/10937400701597766. HUMAN HEALTH RISK ASSESSMENT FOR ALUMINIUM, ALUMINIUM OXIDE, AND ALUMINIUM HYDROXIDE Daniel Krewski1,2, Robert A Yokel3, Evert Nieboer4, David Borchelt5, Joshua Cohen6, Jean Harry7, Sam Kacew2,8, Joan Lindsay9, Amal M Mahfouz10, and Virginie Rondeau11 1Department of Epidemiology and Community Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada 2McLaughlin Centre for Population Health Risk Assessment, Institute of Population Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada 3College of Pharmacy and Graduate Center for Toxicology, University of Kentucky Medical Center, Kentucky, USA 4Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada and Institute of Community Medicine, University of Tromsø, Norway 5SantaFe Health Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Department of Neuroscience, McKnight Brain Institute, University of Florida, USA 6Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies, Tufts-New England Medical Center, USA 7National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, NIH, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA 8Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada 9Aging-Related Diseases Section, Surveillance Division, Public Health Agency of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada 10United States Environmental Protection Agency, Washington DC, USA 11INSERM E0338 (Biostatistic), Université Victor Segalen Bordeaux 2, Bordeaux, France Keywords aluminium; aluminium oxide; aluminium hydroxide; speciation; human health; neurotoxicity; exposure; toxicokinetics; toxicology; epidemiology; Alzheimer’s disease; risk assessment Corresponding Author: Daniel Krewski, Professor and Director, McLaughlin Centre for Population Health Risk Assessment, University of Ottawa, Room 320, One Stewart Street, Ottawa, Ontario CANADA K1N 6N5, Tel: 613-562-5381, Fax: 613-562-5380, [email protected]. Guest Editors: Vic Armstrong, Michelle C Turner DISCLAIMER: Although the present report is based primarily on peer-reviewed scientific literature, several abstracts of work in- progress have been cited along with some personal communications that were considered by the authors to be of relevance to their task. The authors included all relevant peer-reviewed scientific literature as of September 1, 2006 in their work. However, the conclusions drawn and the assessment of the health risks of aluminium are restricted to information appearing in the scientific peer-reviewed literature. All doses cited in the report are the doses as the Al form administered according to the original study. No conflict of interest was declared. Publisher's Disclaimer: The manuscript has been reviewed and approved for publication by internal review at the US Environmental Protection Agency. Approval does not signify that the contents necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Agency nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use. Krewski et al. Page 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Identity, Physical and Chemical Properties, Analytical Methods NIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscript A compendium is provided of aluminium compounds used in industrial settings, and as pharmaceuticals, food additives, cosmetics and as other household products. Most aluminium compounds are solids exhibiting high melting points. The solubility of aluminium salts is governed by pH, because the aluminium(III)-cation (Al3+) has a strong affinity for the hydroxide ion, which promotes precipitation. Like Mg2+ and Ca2+ ions, Al3+ in most situations seeks out complexing agents with oxygen-atom donor sites such as carboxylate and phosphate groups, including in biological systems. Aluminium oxides, hydroxides and oxyhydroxides occur in numerous crystallographic forms, which exhibit different surface properties. Few compounds of aluminium are classified in Annex 1 of the European Economic Union Council (EEC) Directive 67/1548, with aluminium powder and sodium aluminium fluoride (cryolite) as examples of exceptions, as well as compounds in which the anion renders them reactive such as aluminium phosphide. And finally, the more recent analytical methods available for the study of chemical speciation in solids and solution, and for quantitative analysis, have been applied to the determination of aluminium and the identification of its various forms. Sources of Human Exposure Aluminium and its compounds comprise about 8% of the Earth’s surface; aluminium occurs naturally in silicates, cryolite, and bauxite rock. Natural processes account for most of the redistribution of aluminium in the environment. Acidic precipitation mobilizes aluminium from natural sources, and direct anthropogenic releases of aluminium compounds associated with industrial processes occur mainly to air. Certain uses lead to the presence of aluminium in drinking water and foodstuffs. Bauxite is the most important raw material used in the production of aluminium. Bauxite is refined to produce alumina from which aluminium metal is recovered by electrolytic reduction; aluminium is also recycled from scrap. Aluminium hydroxide is produced from bauxite. In 2004, primary aluminium was being produced in 41 countries, the largest producers being China, Russia, Canada and the United States. In that year, worldwide production of primary aluminium, alumina and aluminium hydroxide reached about 30, 63, and 5 million tonnes per annum, respectively. More than 7 million tonnes of aluminium is recovered annually from recycled old scrap. The largest markets for aluminium metal and its alloys are in transportation, building and construction, packaging and in electrical equipment. Transportation uses are one of the fastest growing areas for aluminium use. Aluminium powders are used in pigments and paints, fuel additives, explosives and propellants. Aluminium oxides are used as food additives and in the manufacture of, for example, abrasives, refractories, ceramics, electrical insulators, catalysts, paper, spark plugs, light bulbs, artificial gems, alloys, glass and heat resistant fibres. Aluminium hydroxide is used widely in pharmaceutical and personal care products. Food related uses of aluminium compounds include preservatives, fillers, colouring agents, anti- caking agents, emulsifiers and baking powders; soy-based infant formula can contain aluminium. Natural aluminium minerals especially bentonite and zeolite are used in water purification, sugar refining, brewing and paper industries. Aluminium has not been classified with respect to carcinogenicity; however, “aluminium production” has been classified as carcinogenic to humans by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) (for further explanation, please see Effects on Humans, Effects from Occupational Exposure, Cancer). Occupational limits exist in several countries for exposures to aluminium dust and aluminium oxide. For non-occupational environments, limits J Toxicol Environ Health B Crit Rev. Author manuscript; available in PMC 2009 November 25. Krewski et al. Page 3 have been set for intake in foods and drinking water; the latter are based on aesthetic or practical, rather than health, considerations. NIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author Manuscript Environmental Levels and Human Exposure Aluminium may be designated as crustal in origin, and thus surface soils at uncontaminated sites