Exposure to environmental toxicants and gout risk in adults: Unveiling the associations and potential targets

Emerging environmental toxicants may jeopardise uric acid metabolism, but the associations between toxicants and gout risk remain unknown. This study aimed to comprehensively assess the associations of toxicants with gout and to investigate the mediated mechanisms. This cross-sectional study include...

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Main Authors: Xinglin Wan, Yapei Sun, Haoyu Mao, Xin Han, Jie Zhou, Weixia Duan, Cong Liu, Tao Li, Min Qian, Qin Yu, Shangcheng Xu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-09-01
Series:Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014765132500925X
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author Xinglin Wan
Yapei Sun
Haoyu Mao
Xin Han
Jie Zhou
Weixia Duan
Cong Liu
Tao Li
Min Qian
Qin Yu
Shangcheng Xu
author_facet Xinglin Wan
Yapei Sun
Haoyu Mao
Xin Han
Jie Zhou
Weixia Duan
Cong Liu
Tao Li
Min Qian
Qin Yu
Shangcheng Xu
author_sort Xinglin Wan
collection DOAJ
description Emerging environmental toxicants may jeopardise uric acid metabolism, but the associations between toxicants and gout risk remain unknown. This study aimed to comprehensively assess the associations of toxicants with gout and to investigate the mediated mechanisms. This cross-sectional study included 22,591 adults diagnosed with gout in the NHANES 2011–2018. Twenty-one toxicants in 5 categories were detected in the blood, including acrylamide, ethylene oxide, metals, nicotine metabolites, and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to assess the associations of toxicant exposures with gout risk. Moreover, this study performed enrichment analysis and protein network analysis to identify potential hub targets of toxicants. Among the 22,591 participants aged 49.8 ± 17.8 years and 1082 (4.8 %) were diagnosed with gout. In the weighted logistic regression, Cu, Pb, Hg, and PFNA were positively associated with gout risk. The E-R curves revealed the linear relationships of Cu, Pb, Hg, and PFNA with gout risk without a safe threshold. Significant mediating effects of liver function, eGFR, and OBS were observed in the relationships of Cu, Pb, and Hg with gout risk. Moreover, network toxicology analyses revealed that TNF and AKT1 are shared hub targets of Cu, Pb, Hg, and PFNA. Our study indicated that elevated oxidative levels and decreased liver and kidney functions posed a crucial mediating effect on the associations between toxicants and gout risk. TNF and PI3K-Akt signalling pathways may be shared mechanisms of the adverse effects of toxicants on gout.
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spelling doaj-art-875fa22c556b406d8e77c5e616ab43cb2025-08-20T03:03:58ZengElsevierEcotoxicology and Environmental Safety0147-65132025-09-0130211858010.1016/j.ecoenv.2025.118580Exposure to environmental toxicants and gout risk in adults: Unveiling the associations and potential targetsXinglin Wan0Yapei Sun1Haoyu Mao2Xin Han3Jie Zhou4Weixia Duan5Cong Liu6Tao Li7Min Qian8Qin Yu9Shangcheng Xu10Chongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR ChinaChongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR China; School of Public Health, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, PR China; Corresponding author at: Chongqing Key Laboratory of Prevention and Treatment for Occupational Diseases and Poisoning, National Emergency Response Team for Sudden Poisoning, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical and Pharmaceutical College, Chongqing 400060, PR China.Emerging environmental toxicants may jeopardise uric acid metabolism, but the associations between toxicants and gout risk remain unknown. This study aimed to comprehensively assess the associations of toxicants with gout and to investigate the mediated mechanisms. This cross-sectional study included 22,591 adults diagnosed with gout in the NHANES 2011–2018. Twenty-one toxicants in 5 categories were detected in the blood, including acrylamide, ethylene oxide, metals, nicotine metabolites, and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Multivariate logistic regression analyses were used to assess the associations of toxicant exposures with gout risk. Moreover, this study performed enrichment analysis and protein network analysis to identify potential hub targets of toxicants. Among the 22,591 participants aged 49.8 ± 17.8 years and 1082 (4.8 %) were diagnosed with gout. In the weighted logistic regression, Cu, Pb, Hg, and PFNA were positively associated with gout risk. The E-R curves revealed the linear relationships of Cu, Pb, Hg, and PFNA with gout risk without a safe threshold. Significant mediating effects of liver function, eGFR, and OBS were observed in the relationships of Cu, Pb, and Hg with gout risk. Moreover, network toxicology analyses revealed that TNF and AKT1 are shared hub targets of Cu, Pb, Hg, and PFNA. Our study indicated that elevated oxidative levels and decreased liver and kidney functions posed a crucial mediating effect on the associations between toxicants and gout risk. TNF and PI3K-Akt signalling pathways may be shared mechanisms of the adverse effects of toxicants on gout.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014765132500925XEnvironmental toxicantsGoutOxidative balanceMediation effectNetwork toxicology
spellingShingle Xinglin Wan
Yapei Sun
Haoyu Mao
Xin Han
Jie Zhou
Weixia Duan
Cong Liu
Tao Li
Min Qian
Qin Yu
Shangcheng Xu
Exposure to environmental toxicants and gout risk in adults: Unveiling the associations and potential targets
Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety
Environmental toxicants
Gout
Oxidative balance
Mediation effect
Network toxicology
title Exposure to environmental toxicants and gout risk in adults: Unveiling the associations and potential targets
title_full Exposure to environmental toxicants and gout risk in adults: Unveiling the associations and potential targets
title_fullStr Exposure to environmental toxicants and gout risk in adults: Unveiling the associations and potential targets
title_full_unstemmed Exposure to environmental toxicants and gout risk in adults: Unveiling the associations and potential targets
title_short Exposure to environmental toxicants and gout risk in adults: Unveiling the associations and potential targets
title_sort exposure to environmental toxicants and gout risk in adults unveiling the associations and potential targets
topic Environmental toxicants
Gout
Oxidative balance
Mediation effect
Network toxicology
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S014765132500925X
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