Gas-chromatographic headspace analysis in human biomonitoring (headspace-gas chromatography)
Biomonitoring Methods, Conceptual Topics – Translation of the German version from 2025
Michael Bader1 (author)Bernd Roßbach2 (author)
Thomas Göen3 (Head of the working group “Analyses in Biological Materials” of the Permanent Senate Commission for the Investigation of Health Hazards of Chemical Compounds in the Work Area, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft)
Elisabeth Eckert4
Anja Schäferhenrich4
Stefanie Nübler4
Wolfgang Gries5
Gabriele Leng5
Jan Van Pul6
Wolfgang Will1
Andrea Hartwig7 (Chair of the Permanent Senate Commission for the Investigation of Health Hazards of Chemical Compounds in the Work Area, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft)
MAK Commission8
1 BASF SE, Corporate Health Management, Carl-Bosch-Straße 38, 67056 Ludwigshafen, Germany
2 Institute of Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz, Obere Zahlbacher Straße 67, 55131 Mainz, Germany
3 Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Institute and Outpatient Clinic of Occupational, Social, and Environmental Medicine, Henkestraße 9–11, 91054 Erlangen, Germany
4 Currenta GmbH & Co. OHG, CUR-SIT-SER-GS-BLM – Institute for Biomonitoring, Chempark, Building Q18, 51368 Leverkusen, Germany
5 BASF Antwerpen N.V., Haven 725, Scheldelaan 600, 2040 Antwerpen, Belgium
6 Institute of Applied Biosciences, Department of Food Chemistry and Toxicology, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Adenauerring 20a, Building 50.41, 76131 Karlsruhe, Germany
7 Permanent Senate Commission for the Investigation of Health Hazards of Chemical Compounds in the Work Area, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Kennedyallee 40, 53175 Bonn, Germany
Abstract
The working group “Analyses in Biological Materials” of the German Senate Commission for the Investigation of Health Hazards of Chemical Compounds in the Work Area (MAK Commission) describes the current status of headspace-gas chromatography with respect to its potential applications in human biomonitoring. Particular focus is given to the review and discussion of newly developed methods for headspace sample collection as well as analyte enrichment. The article gives an overview on internationally published headspace methods for the matrices urine, blood, serum and plasma, existing assessment values for headspace parameters, background exposure levels in the non-occupationally exposed general population as well as half-lives of the most prominent hazardous substances measurable by headspace methods. In addition, critical requirements for and possible pitfalls of the preanalytical phase and of the calibration of headspace analyses are also discussed. The review shows that headspace methods have been continuously improved in recent decades and thus continue to make an important contribution to human biomonitoring of occupational and environmental exposure to volatile hazardous compounds.
