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Akiko Matsumoto,¹ Naoki Kunugita,² Kyoko Kitagawa,^1,* Toyohi Isse,¹ Tsunehiro Oyama,¹ Gary L. Foureman,³ Masatoshi Morita,⁴ and Toshihiro Kawamoto¹

¹Department of Environmental Health and ²School of Health Science, University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Kitakyusyu, Japan; ³Hazardous Pollutant Assessment Group, National Center for Environmental Assessment, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA; ⁴Environmental Health Sciences Division, National Institute for Environmental Studies, Tsukuba, Japan

Abstract

The estrogenic effects of bisphenol A (BPA) have been reported in human cells (E-screen assays) and in in vivo studies of rodents, although the latter reports remain controversial, as do the exposure levels and adverse health effects of BPA in humans. In this study we report on an analytical high-performance liquid chromatography/fluorescence method for BPA and its conjugate in human urine and on the application of this method in two student cohorts. Urine, along with information on smoking, alcohol intake, and coffee/tea consumption, was collected in two different years from two different groups of university students, 50 in 1992 and 56 in 1999. Overall, the urinary BPA levels in the students in 1992 were significantly higher than were those in 1999. The BPA levels were also positively correlated with coffee and tea consumption in the 1992 cohort but not in the 1999 cohort. We speculate that recent changes made in Japan regarding the interior coating of cans used to package these beverages may partly explain these findings. Key words: biologic monitoring, bisphenol A, can coatings, canned food, environmental exposure, glucuronide, HPLC, human, lifestyle, urine. Environ Health Perspect 111:101-104 (2003) . doi:10.1289/ehp.5512 available via http://dx.doi.org/ [Online 31 October 2002]