Assessment of DDT and DDE Levels in Soil, Dust, and Blood Samples From Chihuahua, Mexico

Abstract

The aim of this study was to assess levels of DDT and DDE in two environmental matrices (soil and dust) and to investigate the blood levels of these insecticides in exposed children living in a north Mexican state (Chihuahua) where DDT was sprayed several years ago during (1) health campaigns for the control of malaria and (2) agricultural activities. DDT and DDE were analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. In general, lower levels were found in household outdoor samples. The levels in outdoor samples ranged from 0.001 to 0.788 mg/kg for DDT and from 0.001 to 0.642 mg/kg for DDE. The levels in indoor samples ranged from 0.001 to 15.47 mg/kg for DDT and from 0.001 to 1.063 mg/kg for DDE. Similar results to those found in indoor soil were found in dust, in which the levels ranged from 0.001 to 95.87 mg/kg for DDT and from 0.001 to 0.797 mg/kg for DDE. Moreover, blood levels showed that all of the communities studied had been exposed to DDT and/or DDE, indicating a general past or present exposure to DDT. It is important to note that the quotient DDT/DDE in all matrices was always >1. Whether the people living in our study area are at risk is an issue that deserves further analysis. However, applying precautionary principles, it is important to initiate a risk-reduction program to decrease exposure to DDT and its metabolites in people living in this area.

Acute exposure to environmentally relevant levels of DDT alters muscle mitochondrial function in vivo in rats but not in vitro in L6 myotubes: A pilot study

“…DDTs continue to be detected in food at concentrations reaching 1 μg/kg and plasma concentrations between 0.59 and 6.4 µg/l (1–20 nM) [45] , [46] . In certain parts of the world, soil and dust levels range between 0 and 96 mg/kg for DDT [42] , and serum concentrations of DDT and DDE are 55.3 and 242.2 ng/g of lipids, respectively [41] . Here, we assessed different concentrations in vivo (40 μg/kg) and in vitro (0–10,000 nM) to investigate their effects on skeletal muscle.…”

“…In differentiation medium, myotubes were then exposed for 24 h to DDT or DDE (1, 10, 100, 1000, 10,000, 100,000 nM) or the vehicle (DMSO, 0.1%; Sigma-Aldrich, Canada). These concentrations allowed us to assess the effects of DDT and DDE based on comparable concentrations found in plasma or serum of populations in areas with discontinued use of these pesticides (1–20 nM) (Health Canada, 2010), as well as populations in parts of the world that actively remain exposed to it (700–1000 nM) [41] , [42] .…”

Fitorremediación: Alternativa biotecnológica para recuperar suelos contaminados con DDT. Una revisión

“…Estudios dirigidos por la Organización Panamericana de Salud demuestran que, en las comunidades de Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica, Panamá y México, el rociado de DDT en el interior de los hogares provoca acumulación del compuesto en el suelo interior y exterior de las casas (Pérez-Maldonado et al, 2010). En México, en los estados de Oaxaca (Yáñez, Ortiz-Pérez, Batres, Borja-Aburto & Díaz-Barriga, 2002), Chiapas (Martínez-Salinas, Díaz-Barriga, Batres-Esquivel & Pérez-Maldonado, 2011), Chihuahua (Díaz-Barriga et al, 2012), Sinaloa (García-de la Parra et al, 2012), Tabasco (Torres-Dosal et al, 2012), San Luis Potosí (Velasco et al, 2014) y Yucatán (Giácoman-Vallejos et al, 2018) el DDT se ha encontrado en concentraciones que exceden los límites permisibles en suelos, sedimentos, mantos acuíferos, organismos marinos e incluso mujeres y niños de diversas edades (hasta 26,980 µg/kg de DDT en suelo agrícola y 58,270 µg de DDT/L de suero humano). Además, existen indicadores del uso ilegal del DDT como agroquímico en África, China y México (Gyalpo et al, 2012;Mochungong & Zhu, 2015;Mahugija, Nambela & Mmochi, 2017;Ponce-Vélez & Botello, 2018;Giácoman-Vallejos et al, 2018;Peng et al, 2020;Sun et al, 2020); en Europa el DDT, DDE y DDD, son de los insecticidas de mayor presencia en los suelos agrícolas (Silva et al, 2019), a pesar de haberse dejado de utilizar desde hace varias décadas.…”

Wolbachia limits pathogen infections through induction of host innate immune responses

“…Chemical control has been the main method in mosquito control programs. However, continuous and large-scale insecticide usage has led to the emergence and development of resistance in mosquito vectors [3], and the negative effects of insecticides on human health and the environment should not be ignored [4,5]. Recently, several biological approaches were called upon for the control of mosquito populations, including the introduction of Wolbachia [6][7][8].…”