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Wassana Yantasee,¹ Yuehe Lin,¹ Kitiya Hongsirikarn,² Glen E. Fryxell,¹ Raymond Addleman,¹ and Charles Timchalk¹

¹Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Washington, USA; ²Department of Chemical Engineering, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand

Abstract
To support the development and implementation of biological monitoring programs, we need quantitative technologies for measuring xenobiotic exposure. Microanalytical based sensors that work with complex biomatrices such as blood, urine, or saliva are being developed and validated and will improve our ability to make definitive associations between chemical exposures and disease. Among toxic metals, lead continues to be one of the most problematic. Despite considerable efforts to identify and eliminate Pb exposure sources, this metal remains a significant health concern, particularly for young children. Ongoing research focuses on the development of portable metal analyzers that have many advantages over current available technologies, thus potentially representing the next generation of toxic metal analyzers. In this article, we highlight the development and validation of two classes of metal analyzers for the voltammetric detection of Pb, including: a) an analyzer based on flow injection analysis and anodic stripping voltammetry at a mercury-film electrode, and b) Hg-free metal analyzers employing adsorptive stripping voltammetry and novel nanostructure materials that include the self-assembled monolayers on mesoporous supports and carbon nanotubes. These sensors have been optimized to detect Pb in urine, blood, and saliva as accurately as the state-of-the-art inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry with high reproducibility, and sensitivity allows. These improved and portable analytical sensor platforms will facilitate our ability to conduct biological monitoring programs to understand the relationship between chemical exposure assessment and disease outcomes. Key words: biomonitoring, dosimetry technology, electrochemical sensors, exposure assessment, lead (Pb) . Environ Health Perspect 115:1683–1690 (2007) . doi:10.1289/ehp.10190 available via http://dx.doi.org/ [Online 21 September 2007]

Address correspondence to C. Timchalk, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, MSIN: P7-59, 902 Battelle Blvd., Richland, WA 99352 USA. Telephone: (509) 376-0434. Fax: (509) 376-9064. E-mail: charles.timchalk@pnl.gov

We thank R. Wiacek of PNNL and J. Panpranot and T. Sangvanich of Chulalongkorn University for their contributions.

This work was supported by grant 1R01 ES10976-04 from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) , and grant 1R21 OH008900-01 from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) .

The contents of this article are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of NIEHS or NIOSH. The research was performed in part at the Environmental Molecular Sciences Laboratory (EMSL) , a national scientific user facility sponsored by the Department of Energy Office of Biological and Environmental Research.

The authors declare they have no competing financial interests.

Received 23 February 2007 ; accepted 21 September 2007.