ABSTRACT
Perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are ubiquitous in the environment due to their high levels of international production, widespread use in home and food products, and resistance to thermal, chemical, and biological degradation. This chapter discusses the evidence of PFAS toxicity from animal studies and epidemiology data and notes how they complement one another. In May 2016, the US Environmental Protection Agency published advisory levels for perfluoro-octanoate and perfluorooctane sulfonate at 70 parts per trillion in drinking water to account for the chronic effects of these toxicants. The mechanism for PFAS toxicity has not yet been determined, but PFOA is known to be an agonist for peroxisome proliferator–activated receptor alpha and is suspected to partially explain toxicity. Adult rodents exposed to PFAS will exhibit weight loss presumably through increased fat oxidation. The regulatory decisions depend heavily on the weight of evidence for the toxicity of early-life exposure to PFAS.
