Environmental Pollution Exposure and Its Human Health Risks—2nd Edition

A special issue of Environments (ISSN 2076-3298). This special issue belongs to the section "Society, Environment, Health".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2026 | Viewed by 88

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Instituto de Geofísica, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City, Mexico
Interests: environmental geochemistry; environmental pollution; volcano monitoring; volcanic risk; human health risk
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Departamento de Geología, Universidad de Sonora, Hermosillo, Mexico
Interests: environmental geochemistry; medical geology; emerging contaminant; nanoparticles; human health risk
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Departamento de Geología, Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada, Baja California (CICESE), Ensenada, Mexico
Interests: environmental geochemistry; environmental pollution; human health risk; fluid geochemistry; geothermal systems; volcano–hydrothermal systems
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We invite submissions to the Special Issue "Environmental Pollution Exposure and Its Human Health Risks—2nd Edition." This Special Issue will explore the complex relationships between environmental pollutants, such as heavy metals, persistent organic compounds, and emerging contaminants, and their impacts on human health across diverse environmental conditions.

Our objective is to provide a multidisciplinary platform for cutting-edge research that assesses exposure pathways, identifies vulnerable groups, quantifies health risks, and proposes innovative strategies for prevention and mitigation. We particularly welcome studies employing novel analytical methods, risk assessment models, biomonitoring, and community-based approaches. We also welcome contributions focused on the characterization of contaminated sites, including the identification of pollutant sources, temporal variability, and spatial distribution.

The scope of this Special Issue includes, but is not limited to, natural and anthropogenic pollution exposure, occupational health risks, environmental justice, and the influence of socio-economic factors on pollution-related health outcomes. Through this Special Issue, we will foster a deeper understanding of the interplay between environmental contamination and public health, as well as support evidence-based policymaking and sustainable environmental management.

Dr. Benedetto Schiavo
Prof. Dr. Diana Meza-Figueroa
Dr. Claudio Inguaggiato
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 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

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-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Environments 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 1800 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

  • environmental pollution
  • personal exposure
  • emerging vontaminant
  • biomonitoring
  • occupational exposure
  • environmental justice
  • health risk assessment

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

13 pages, 2718 KB  
Article
Urinary Uranium Levels in Cancer Patients and Healthy Residents Living in Uranium Legacy-Affected Areas: A Comparative Study
by Kuralay Ilbekova, Danara Ibrayeva, Yerbol Dogalbayev, Madina Kairullova, Meirat Bakhtin and Polat Kazymbet
Environments 2026, 13(7), 404; https://doi.org/10.3390/environments13070404 (registering DOI) - 17 Jul 2026
Abstract
Uranium is a naturally occurring radioactive heavy metal, and drinking water and food are the primary sources of non-occupational exposure for the general population. The aim of the present study was to evaluate urinary uranium concentrations among cancer patients and healthy residents living [...] Read more.
Uranium is a naturally occurring radioactive heavy metal, and drinking water and food are the primary sources of non-occupational exposure for the general population. The aim of the present study was to evaluate urinary uranium concentrations among cancer patients and healthy residents living in uranium legacy-affected areas and to compare them with those of individuals residing in a region with a more favorable radiological environment, accounting for urinary creatinine levels. An observational human biomonitoring study was conducted among 80 adults divided into four groups (n = 20 each): cancer patients and healthy residents from the exposed area and cancer patients and healthy residents from the comparison area. Twenty-four-hour urine samples were analyzed for uranium using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry, and urinary creatinine was measured using the kinetic Jaffe method. Urinary uranium concentrations ranged from 0.01 to 1.30 µg/L, with the highest values observed in cancer patients from the exposed area. After creatinine adjustment, median uranium concentrations were 0.0974 µg/g creatinine in exposed cancer patients, 0.0888 µg/g creatinine in exposed healthy residents, 0.0515 µg/g creatinine in comparison-area cancer patients, and 0.0607 µg/g creatinine in comparison-area healthy residents. Significant differences were observed between exposed and comparison populations among both cancer patients (p = 0.0066) and healthy residents (p = 0.0499). Residence in the exposed area was positively associated with urinary uranium levels (ρ = 0.292, p = 0.012). These findings suggest higher internal uranium exposure among residents of uranium legacy-affected areas and support the use of urinary uranium as a biomarker of environmental exposure. This study contributes to the assessment of internal uranium exposure in residents of uranium legacy-affected areas, including both cancer patients and healthy residents. However, the findings should be interpreted as differences in exposure biomarkers and do not establish a causal relationship between uranium exposure and cancer. Full article
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