Simulated occupational exposure to volatile organic compounds from industrial printing ink alter behavioral, neurological, oxidative, hepatic, and kidney indices in mice

Industrial printing inks are major sources of occupational exposure to volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with potential adverse effects. The behavioral, neurological, oxidative, hepatic, and kidney function effects of simulated occupational exposure to VOCs emitted from an industrial printing ink were investigated in laboratory mice, Mus musculus for 4 weeks. Average TVOCs value of 0.5 mg/m3 measured at 10 printing presses was the exposure level utilized in this study. There were significant duration-dependent and sex-disaggregated differences in the behavioral responses; acetylcholinesterase (neurological biomarker) and MDA (lipid peroxidation biomarker) activities significantly increased while SOD and CAT (antioxidants) activities significantly decreased in the brain; ALT, AST, and ALP (liver) as well as bilirubin, urea, and creatinine (kidney) were significantly elevated in exposed mice correlating with histopathologies compared to control. The results showed that long term inhalation of VOCs emitted from industrial printing inks may pose multiple sub-lethal effects in occupationally exposed persons, especially females.