Per- and Polyfluorinated Alkyl Species (PFAS) are a large class of synthetic fluorinated organic compounds that have been widely used for decades. PFAS are used in the production of stain and water-resistant fabrics, including those used for school children, floor coverings, aqueous fire-fighting foams (AFFF), and non-stick coatings. PFAS have a wide variety of chemical structures, interact with multiple receptors and are associated with alterations of biochemical pathways related to metabolic disorders endocrine disruption, immune function, and cancer.
Many studies have found sex differences for PFAS metabolism, excretion, and health effects in humans and other species . Among these are differences in effect for adiposity, body mass, bone density, immune function including circulating antibodies and autoimmune comorbidities, and metabolic disorders. There are many reasons for sex differences in PFAS metabolism and health outcomes. Among these are adaptations to adolescence, pregnancy, lactation, and post-reproductive life that include alterations in renal transporters, serum binding proteins, hormones and endocrine responses. For example, pregnant and lactating women are traditionally considered the most vulnerable populations for risk assessments by reason of increased fluid intake. Identification of vulnerabilities specific to PFAS exposures among women and girls, or that differ between male and female subjects, are important for identification of key events, endpoints and the protection of vulnerable populations.
This Research Topic seeks population health, metabolic, and toxicity papers that contribute to the identification and conceptualization of vulnerabilities posed by PFAS that are specific to women and girls. This includes exposures and effects that occur during pre-conception, prenatal development, neonatal exposures, infancy, childhood, the reproductive period, and the menopausal and post-menopausal years. The editors aim to put differences in effects and exposures among women and girls into the larger context of human exposure, identifying and highlighting specific factors that may increase PFAS exposures among women (dietary habits, use of personal care products, workplace/residential exposures), physiological differences (hormonal changes across life stages, differences in renal transporters, serum binding proteins etc. that differ between men and women and may influence toxicodynamics or kinetics) differences in effect due to differences in excretion and transplacental transfer characteristics, endocrine systems, gene expression or other factors and differences in sex-specific outcomes such as elevated risk of osteoporosis, breast cancer, autoimmunity, menstruation, breastfeeding, and birth outcomes.
Experimental, observational, clinical, epidemiology, computational, review, policy, and opinion papers are welcome.
---
Conflict of interest statement:
Alan Ducatman has been both a volunteer and paid consultant to communities seeking medical monitoring benefits following PFAS pollution of drinking water supplies.
All other Topic Editors declare no conflicts of interest.
Keywords:
PFAS, PFAS metabolism, PFAS health outcomes, PFAS exposure, PFAS in women
Important Note:
All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
Per- and Polyfluorinated Alkyl Species (PFAS) are a large class of synthetic fluorinated organic compounds that have been widely used for decades. PFAS are used in the production of stain and water-resistant fabrics, including those used for school children, floor coverings, aqueous fire-fighting foams (AFFF), and non-stick coatings. PFAS have a wide variety of chemical structures, interact with multiple receptors and are associated with alterations of biochemical pathways related to metabolic disorders endocrine disruption, immune function, and cancer.
Many studies have found sex differences for PFAS metabolism, excretion, and health effects in humans and other species . Among these are differences in effect for adiposity, body mass, bone density, immune function including circulating antibodies and autoimmune comorbidities, and metabolic disorders. There are many reasons for sex differences in PFAS metabolism and health outcomes. Among these are adaptations to adolescence, pregnancy, lactation, and post-reproductive life that include alterations in renal transporters, serum binding proteins, hormones and endocrine responses. For example, pregnant and lactating women are traditionally considered the most vulnerable populations for risk assessments by reason of increased fluid intake. Identification of vulnerabilities specific to PFAS exposures among women and girls, or that differ between male and female subjects, are important for identification of key events, endpoints and the protection of vulnerable populations.
This Research Topic seeks population health, metabolic, and toxicity papers that contribute to the identification and conceptualization of vulnerabilities posed by PFAS that are specific to women and girls. This includes exposures and effects that occur during pre-conception, prenatal development, neonatal exposures, infancy, childhood, the reproductive period, and the menopausal and post-menopausal years. The editors aim to put differences in effects and exposures among women and girls into the larger context of human exposure, identifying and highlighting specific factors that may increase PFAS exposures among women (dietary habits, use of personal care products, workplace/residential exposures), physiological differences (hormonal changes across life stages, differences in renal transporters, serum binding proteins etc. that differ between men and women and may influence toxicodynamics or kinetics) differences in effect due to differences in excretion and transplacental transfer characteristics, endocrine systems, gene expression or other factors and differences in sex-specific outcomes such as elevated risk of osteoporosis, breast cancer, autoimmunity, menstruation, breastfeeding, and birth outcomes.
Experimental, observational, clinical, epidemiology, computational, review, policy, and opinion papers are welcome.
---
Conflict of interest statement:
Alan Ducatman has been both a volunteer and paid consultant to communities seeking medical monitoring benefits following PFAS pollution of drinking water supplies.
All other Topic Editors declare no conflicts of interest.
Keywords:
PFAS, PFAS metabolism, PFAS health outcomes, PFAS exposure, PFAS in women
Important Note:
All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.