For the last 30 years the Joint FAO/WHO Meeting on Pesticide Residues (JMPR) has carried out toxicological evaluations and safety assessments of dithiocarbamate pesticides, continuously adjusting previous appraisals in the light of new data and advances in the understanding of the principles and mechanisms of toxic action of these compounds. The historical narrative of the evaluative process is followed by an account of the present international safety assessment status of the dithiocarbamate pesticides so far examined by the JMPR. They are ferbam, mancozeb, maneb, metiram, nabam, propineb, thiram, zineb, ziram, and the associated substances, ethylenethiourea (ETU) and propylenethiourea (PTU).
OBJECTIVE:To investigate parental smoking patterns and their association with wheezing in children.METHODS:We performed a case-control study that included 105 children between 6 and 23 months of age who were divided into two groups: cases (children with 3 previous episodes of wheezing) and controls (healthy children without wheezing). The children's exposure to cigarette smoking was estimated using a questionnaire completed by the mothers and by the children's urinary cotinine levels.RESULTS:Based on both the questionnaire results and cotinine levels, exposure to cigarette smoking was higher in the households of cases in which the incidence of maternal smoking was significantly higher than that of paternal smoking. Children in this group were more affected by maternal smoking and by the total number of cigarettes smoked inside the house. Additionally, the questionnaire results indicated that the risk of wheezing was dose dependent. The presence of allergic components, such as atopic dermatitis and siblings with allergic rhinitis and asthma, greatly increased the odds ratio when wheezing was associated with cotinine levels.CONCLUSION:Children exposed to tobacco smoke have an increased risk of developing wheezing syndrome. This risk increases in association with the number of cigarettes smoked inside the house and the presence of other allergic components in the family.
An association between high DDT cord blood levels and prematurity was investigated. Pregnant women with good health and nutritional condition, negative history of past occupational exposure to DDT and absence of recent exposure to DDT were investigated as well as their appropriate for gestational age neonates. A total of 54 maternal-infant pairs were studied and divided in two groups: A-term deliveries (30 pairs), B-preterm deliveries (24 pairs). There was no difference in DDT blood levels between pregnant women of both groups. There was, however, a significant difference in DDT cord blood levels between term and preterm infants, as well as between maternal and neonatal blood levels in both groups. DDT cord blood levels correlated negatively with infants' birth weights. We suggest that there is an association between prematurity and high DDT cord blood levels in a non-occupationally exposed population and the amount of fetal adipose tissue is an important factor determining the cord blood level of this pesticide. We cannot rule out a cause-effect association between high DDT cord blood level and prematurity.
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