Method for Determining Regional Reference Values of Metal Content in Biological Substrates and Their Intake into the Body via Drinking Water

• Main Authors: Yulia Tunakova, Artur Shagidullin, Vsevolod Valiev, Svetlana Novikova, Rashat Faizullin
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-09-01
• Series: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
• Subjects: metals; drinking water; biosubstrates; reference values; neural network technologies; intake into the body
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/18/9903
• ISSN: 1661-7827; 1660-4601

Natural and manmade flows of matter form complex metal associations in the body of residents living in certain territories, which leads to functional disorders in their bodies and the depletion of adaptive reserves. It is possible to assess the distribution of metals in the body only taking into account its biogeochemical localization. The question arises about the methodological approach to the determination of regional reference values of the concentrations of metals in biosubstrates of residents of different territories, to which this study was devoted. A designed and trained neural network was used, reflecting the relationship between the concentrations of metals in consumed drinking water and biosubstrates of the body, taking into account the physiological characteristics of the tested group of children and adolescents, based on the regional reference values obtained. Neural network regression methods allowed the calculation of nonlinear dependences of indicators of the state of the internal environment of an organism with external factors, and localized reference values determined in such calculations the indicators of the base state, being guided by the intensity of external factors, which should be assessed. The results of this study are intended for patient-oriented diagnosis and the treatment of eco-conditioned microelementosis in individual locations.