Academic Journal
pXRF Skeletal Measurements as an Assessment Tool for Environmental Exposure to Lajes Field-Derived Contaminants (Terceira Island, Azores, Portugal).
| Τίτλος: | pXRF Skeletal Measurements as an Assessment Tool for Environmental Exposure to Lajes Field-Derived Contaminants (Terceira Island, Azores, Portugal). |
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| Συγγραφείς: | Rodrigues F; Department of Life Sciences, Laboratory of Forensic Anthropology, Centre for Functional Ecology, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456, Coimbra, Portugal. felixrodrigues523@gmail.com.; Department of Life Sciences, Research Centre for Anthropology and Health, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456, Coimbra, Portugal. felixrodrigues523@gmail.com., Rodrigues AF; Investigation Institute for Agrarian Technologies and Environment, University of the Azores, Rua CapitãO JoãO d'Ávila, São Pedro, 9700-042, Angra do Heroísmo, Portugal., Matos V; Department of Life Sciences, Research Centre for Anthropology and Health, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456, Coimbra, Portugal.; Laboratory of Biological Anthropology, Department of Biology, School of Science and Technology, University of éVora, Évora, Portugal., Mendes A; Centre for Humanistic Studies, University of the Azores, Rua da Mãe de Deus, 9500-321, Ponta Delgada, Portugal., Ferreira MT; Department of Life Sciences, Laboratory of Forensic Anthropology, Centre for Functional Ecology, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456, Coimbra, Portugal. |
| Πηγή: | Biological trace element research [Biol Trace Elem Res] 2025 Nov; Vol. 203 (11), pp. 5515-5526. Date of Electronic Publication: 2025 Mar 20. |
| Τύπος έκδοσης: | Journal Article |
| Γλώσσα: | English |
| Στοιχεία περιοδικού: | Publisher: Humana Press Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 7911509 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1559-0720 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 01634984 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Biol Trace Elem Res Subsets: MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: [London, Clifton, N. J.] Humana Press. |
| Ιατρικοί όροι (MeSH): | Environmental Exposure*/analysis , Environmental Monitoring*/methods , Soil Pollutants*/analysis , Bone and Bones*/chemistry, Spectrometry, X-Ray Emission/methods ; Humans ; Azores ; Male ; Female ; Portugal ; Adult |
| Περίληψη: | Lajes Field is an Atlantic Portuguese military air base that has been used by the USA since the Cold War, primarily for intercontinental refueling. For this purpose, large fuel tanks and an extensive pipeline network were constructed within the municipality of Praia da Vitória, on Terceira Island, Azores. Over the past two decades, fuel leaks were detected and confirmed to have contaminated soils and the aquifers that supply water for public use. For the latter, identified contaminants include TPH, PAH, BTEX, VOCs, and metals. Although risk assessment reports have identified unacceptable risks to human health, and journalistic investigations suggest unusually high cancer rates, no assessment on possible human exposure has been conducted to date. To address this gap, metals, serving as a proxy for overall contamination exposure, were measured using portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) in the First Identified Skeletal Collection of the Azores (CEI/Açores). A total of 64 skeletons with known places of last residence were selected (44 from Angra do Heroísmo, where no exposure risk is present, and 20 from Praia da Vitória, where risk is present). No significant differences in mean ages at death were observed between the groups, and sex distribution was similar. Additionally, soil samples from 46 graves were analyzed to assess potential diagenesis. Greater concentrations of Sb, As, Cd, Cr, Au, Mo, Sr, Sn, U, and Zr were found in individuals from Praia da Vitória (p < 0.05). Soil measurements, Pearson's correlation test, and a principal component analysis suggest that the differences in Zr and As levels can be partially attributed to diagenesis. For the remaining metals, the observed differences likely result from other factors, including potential contamination exposure, particularly for Cd, Cr, and Mo. Although this pioneering study contributes to the ongoing discussion on the subject, further research should be conducted both in the CEI/Açores and the living population to further discuss this issue. (© 2025. The Author(s).) |
| Competing Interests: | Declarations. Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests. |
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| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: CEI/Açores; Environmental contamination; Human skeletal remains; X-ray fluorescence |
| Substance Nomenclature: | 0 (Soil Pollutants) |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20250320 Date Completed: 20251112 Latest Revision: 20251113 |
| Update Code: | 20260130 |
| PubMed Central ID: | PMC12602585 |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s12011-025-04582-5 |
| PMID: | 40111681 |
| Βάση Δεδομένων: | MEDLINE |
| ISSN: | 1559-0720 |
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| DOI: | 10.1007/s12011-025-04582-5 |