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Toxicological Evaluations of Rare Earth Elements and Their Health Impacts...
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Toxicological Evaluations of Rare Earth Elements and Their Health Impacts on Workers

A special issue of Toxics (ISSN 2305-6304). This special issue belongs to the section "Exposome Analysis and Risk Assessment".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2024 | Viewed by 6377

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Daochuan Li

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Public Health, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China
Interests: epigenetic regulatory mechanisms of chemical carcinogenesis
Prof. Dr. Lihua Huang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Public Health, Baotou Medical College, Baotou, China
Interests: rare earth elements; heavy metal; cadmium

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Rare earth elements are widely used in industries such as industry, agriculture, and military, especially as important materials in the energy capture and storage industry. The health effects of rare earth element exposure on occupational populations in these industries are currently receiving increasing attention. Therefore, exploring the potential health effects and mechanisms of rare earth element exposure on occupational populations, as well as conducting toxicity testing and occupational health risk assessments, has important significance for the rational use of rare earth elements and the protection of high-risk populations.

In this Special Issue on “Toxicological Evaluations of Rare Earth Elements and Their Health Impacts on Workers”, we mainly focus on the toxic effects, toxicological mechanisms, toxicity testing, potential occupational health hazards and occupational health risk assessment of rare earth elements. Authors are welcome to submit original research articles and reviews in the relative fields.

Dr. Daochuan Li
Prof. Dr. Lihua Huang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Toxics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • rare earth elements
  • toxicity
  • occupational exposure
  • risk assessment

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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15 pages, 1867 KiB  
Article
Ecological and Health Risks Attributed to Rare Earth Elements in Coal Fly Ash
by Latinka Slavković-Beškoski, Ljubiša Ignjatović, Mirjana Ćujić, Jelena Vesković, Katarina Trivunac, Jelena Stojaković, Aleksandra Perić-Grujić and Antonije Onjia
Toxics 2024, 12(1), 71; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics12010071 - 15 Jan 2024
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1745
Abstract
The occurrence and distribution of yttrium and rare earth elements (REYs), along with major elements and heavy metal(loid)s (HMs) in coal fly ash (CFA) from five coal-fired power plants (CFPPs), were analyzed, and the REY-associated ecological and health risks were assessed. The individual [...] Read more.
The occurrence and distribution of yttrium and rare earth elements (REYs), along with major elements and heavy metal(loid)s (HMs) in coal fly ash (CFA) from five coal-fired power plants (CFPPs), were analyzed, and the REY-associated ecological and health risks were assessed. The individual REYs in CFA were abundant in the following order: Ce > La > Nd > Y > Pr > Gd > Sm > Dy > Er > Yb > Eu > Ho > Tb > Tm > Lu. The total REY content ranged from 135 to 362 mg/kg, averaging 302 mg/kg. The mean light-to-heavy REY ratio was 4.1, indicating prevalent light REY enrichment in CFA. Significantly positive correlations between the REYs suggested that they coexist and share similar origins in CFA. REYs were estimated to pose low to moderate ecological risks, with risk index (RI) values ranging from 66 to 245. The hazard index (HI) and target cancer risk (TCR) of REYs from CFA, estimated to be higher for children (HIc = 0.15, TCRc = 8.4 × 10−16) than for adults (HIa = 0.017, TCRa = 3.6 × 10−16), were well below the safety limits (HI = 1, TCR = 1.0 × 10−6). However, the danger to human health posed by HMs in the same CFA samples (HIc = 5.74, TCRc = 2.6 × 10−4, TCRa = 1.1 × 10−4) exceeded the safe thresholds (excl. HIa = 0.63). The mean RI and HI attributed to REYs in CFA were 14% and 2.6%, respectively, of the total risks that include HMs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Toxicological Evaluations of Rare Earth Elements and Their Health Impacts on Workers)
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12 pages, 8651 KiB  
Article
RNA-Seq Analysis of Testes from Mice Exposed to Neodymium Oxide
by Shurui Wang, Ning Bu, Yudan Yun, Xuemin Shi, Suhua Wang and Yanrong Gao
Toxics 2023, 11(12), 952; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics11120952 - 22 Nov 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1515
Abstract
(1) Objective: Rare earth neodymium oxide (Nd2O3) is refined and used extensively around the world, and the occupational and environmental safety of rare piles of the earth has attracted considerable attention. Nd2O3 enters the human body [...] Read more.
(1) Objective: Rare earth neodymium oxide (Nd2O3) is refined and used extensively around the world, and the occupational and environmental safety of rare piles of the earth has attracted considerable attention. Nd2O3 enters the human body through the respiratory system, reaches various organs through blood circulation, and accumulates to produce toxic effects. At present, little is known about the reproductive toxicity of Nd2O3. Non-coding RNAs participate in a variety of physiological activities and are very important for spermatogenesis. However, it is unknown whether they are involved in Nd2O3-induced reproductive toxicity. Therefore, we conducted a pathological analysis, sperm quality testing, and RNA-seq on the testicular tissue of mice exposed to Nd2O3 to find the key genes and regulatory pathways of male reproductive damage and explore the early biomarkers and mechanisms of reproductive damage caused by Nd2O3. (2) Methods: After exposure of mice to Nd2O3, we carried out a pathological analysis and RNA-seq analysis for miRNAs/lncRNAs/circRNAs/mRNAs on the testicular tissue of mice, and the total RNAs were used to investigate miRNA/lncRNA/circRNA/mRNA expression profiles by strand-specific RNA sequencing at the transcriptome level to help uncover RNA-related mechanisms in Nd2O3-induced toxicity. (3) Results: Nd2O3 damaged testis and sperm morphology, significantly decreased the number of sperm, and deformed the sperm head and tail. RNA-seq analysis showed that the expression level of mRNA/miRNA/circRNA/lncRNA in the testicular tissue of mice exposed to Nd2O3 is abnormal. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analysis demonstrated that the functional enrichment of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and their target genes was closely related to the related pathway of spermatogenesis. Furthermore, some miRNAs/lncRNAs/circRNAs that were greatly upregulated or inducibly expressed, implying their potential value as candidate markers for Nd2O3-induced reproductive toxicity, help us to further investigate the mechanisms of key genes, key signaling pathways, and inter-gene regulation for Nd2O3-induced reproductive toxicity. (4) Conclusions: This study provides the first database of a Nd2O3-induced transcriptome. This information is useful for the development of biomarkers of Nd2O3-induced reproductive injury and promotes understanding of the reproductive toxicity mechanism of Nd2O3. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Toxicological Evaluations of Rare Earth Elements and Their Health Impacts on Workers)
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Review

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14 pages, 755 KiB  
Review
Toxic Effects of Rare Earth Elements on Human Health: A Review
by Wenyu Wang, Yanfang Yang, Donglei Wang and Lihua Huang
Toxics 2024, 12(5), 317; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics12050317 - 26 Apr 2024
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2703
Abstract
Rare earth elements (REEs) are a new type of material resource which have attracted significant attention in recent years. REEs have emerged as essential metals in modern-day technology due to their unique functions. The long-term, large-scale mining and utilization of rare earths has [...] Read more.
Rare earth elements (REEs) are a new type of material resource which have attracted significant attention in recent years. REEs have emerged as essential metals in modern-day technology due to their unique functions. The long-term, large-scale mining and utilization of rare earths has caused serious environmental pollution and constitutes a global health issue, which has raised concerns regarding the safety of human health. However, the toxicity profile of suspended particulate matter in REEs in the environment, which interacts with the human body, remains largely unknown. Studies have shown that REEs can enter the human body through a variety of pathways, leading to a variety of organ and system dysfunctions through changes in genetics, epigenetics, and signaling pathways. Through an extensive literature search and critical analysis, we provide a comprehensive overview of the available evidence, identify knowledge gaps, and make recommendations for future research directions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Toxicological Evaluations of Rare Earth Elements and Their Health Impacts on Workers)
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