Relationship between trace elemental composition in Fraxinus pennsylvanica bark and the incidence of some respiratory diseases in Cordoba, Argentina

WANNAZ, EDUARDO; CARRERAS, HEBE; PEREZ, CARLOS; PIGNATA, M.L

International Journal of Environment and Health

InderScience Publishers

Año: 2010 vol. 5 p. 60 - 71

1743-4955

In order to evaluate the use of Fraxinus pennsylvanica as abiomonitor of trace elements and to investigate their relationship with theincidence of some respiratory diseases in children, bark samples of F.pennsylvanica were collected at ten sampling sites near healthcare centres inCórdoba city, Argentina, and analysed by Total Reflection X-ray Fluorescencewith synchrotron radiation. Factor analysis was used to identify elementemission sources. The first factor was associated with industrial activities, thesecond might represent soil sources and the third factor was related to vehiculartraffic emissions. Pearson’s correlation analysis between these factors and theincidence of respiratory diseases showed that factor 1 correlated with allergicrush, factor 2 with allergic rhinitis and factor 3 with respiratory infections. Theresults suggest that bark samples of F. pennsylvanica can be use as an efficientbiomonitor to assess the human exposure to trace elements.