Serum amino acid metabolome alteration associated with urinary metal profiles among solar greenhouse workers: Findings from a cross-sectional study.

Chronic multi-metal exposure in solar greenhouse workers significantly alters serum amino acid profiles, with a notable negative joint effect on six amino acids at high metal levels.

• Why it matters: Understanding how complex metal mixtures impact amino acid metabolism is crucial because such disruptions may serve as early biomarkers of health risks in workers exposed to agrochemical metals, addressing a significant occupational health gap.
• What they did: The study analyzed urinary concentrations of 14 metals and serum levels of ten amino acids in 284 Chinese greenhouse workers using ICP-MS, HPLC, and multivariable regression, complemented by Bayesian Kernel Machine Regression to assess combined effects.
• The result: Findings reveal specific metal-amino acid associations, with high metal co-exposure linked to decreased levels of key amino acids, suggesting that amino acid profiling can serve as a sensitive indicator of metal-induced metabolic disruption and health risk.