Biomonitoring Equivalents for benzene

Abstract

Biomonitoring Equivalents (BEs) are defined as the concentration or range of concentrations of a chemical or its metabolite in a biological medium (blood, urine, or other medium) that is consistent with an existing health-based exposure guideline such as a reference dose (RfD) or tolerable daily intake (TDI). BE values can be used as a screening tool for the evaluation of population-based biomonitoring data in the context of existing risk assessments. This study reviews available health based risk assessments and exposure guidance values for benzene from the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA), Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), California's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) to derive BE values for benzene in blood and urine. No BE values were derived for any of the numerous benzene metabolites or hemoglobin and albumin adducts. Using existing physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) models, government risk assessment values were translated into corresponding benzene levels in blood assuming chronic steady-state exposures. BEs for benzene in urine were derived using measured correlations between benzene in urine with benzene in blood. The BE values for benzene in blood range from 0.04 to 1.29 μg/L, depending upon the underlying non-cancer risk assessment used in deriving the BE. Sources of uncertainty relating to both the basis for the BE values and their use in evaluation of biomonitoring data, including the transience of the biomarkers relative to exposure frequency, are discussed. The BE values derived here can be used as screening tools for evaluation of population biomonitoring data for benzene in the context of the existing risk assessment and can assist in prioritization of the potential need for additional risk assessment efforts for benzene relative to other chemicals.