Occurrence of Major Perfluorinated Alkylate Substances in Human Blood and Target Organs.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Post-mortem cross-sectional tissue distribution study (case series)
PubMed 38154793 · doi:10.1021/acs.est.3c06499
What was done
Tissue samples (liver, kidneys, lungs, spleen, and brain) and whole blood weighing approximately 0.1 g were collected from 19 forensic autopsies of healthy adults who died suddenly without known elevated exposure to perfluorinated alkylate substances (PFASs). Concentrations of major PFASs—including PFOS, PFNA, PFOA, and PFHxS—were measured using liquid chromatography coupled to triple quadrupole mass spectrometry. Researchers evaluated sub-organ differences (kidney cortex vs. medulla, different lung lobes), calculated relative distributions across organs, assessed correlations with blood and liver concentrations, and compared findings to equilibrium model predictions.
What was found
The abstract reports no specific numerical concentrations or correlation coefficients. Minor variations in PFAS levels were observed between the kidney cortex and medulla and across lung lobes. Organ concentrations of PFOS and PFNA correlated well with blood levels, whereas PFOA and PFHxS exhibited more variable correlations. Liver concentrations correlated well with other organs. Equilibrium model predictions largely accounted for observed tissue distributions across organs, with the exception of the brain.
Why it matters
This study provides human post-mortem empirical data supporting the common toxicokinetic assumption that blood PFAS concentrations reliably reflect internal organ exposure, while highlighting the liver as a primary retention site.
Limits
The sample size was small (n = 19) and derived exclusively from sudden-death forensic autopsies. The abstract provides no numerical data, confidence intervals, or exact correlation statistics. Analyses relied on very small tissue aliquots (~0.1 g) that may be subject to tissue heterogeneity, and equilibrium models failed to explain brain distribution.
Cited by
- supports PFAS chemicals accumulate in human organs including the liver and kidneys.