Organochlorine pesticide exposure in rural and urban areas in Mexico

Abstract

The objective of this study was to determine the level of organochlorine pesticides in maternal milk of women living in urban and rural areas in central Mexico. High levels of the DDT ( 1,1,1 -trichloro -2,2 -bis ( p -chlorophenyl ) ethane ) and metabolites, p,p H -DDT ( 1.83, 0.66 and 3.13 mg / kg ) and p,p H -DDE ( 2.49, 4.28 and 13.32 mg / kg ) , were encountered for Mexico City, Cuernavaca and rural Morelos, respectively. As was expected, the highest levels of exposure to these pesticides were found in the rural areas of the State of Morelos.

Serum DDT and DDE Levels in Pregnant Women of Chiapas, Mexico

“…17,23,35 In fact, the p,p'-DDT and p,p'-DDE levels reported for the women in this study exceed levels reported for women from Mexico City collected in 1989 to 1990, prior to the restriction of DDT use. 4 The levels reported for participants in this study are in the range of those reported during the same period (1997)(1998) in pregnant women in other coastal areas of Mexico, [25][26][27] such as Veracruz, where direct exposure to DDT was more likely to occur than in more urban areas. In contrast, as evidence of the decreasing amount of DDT used in Mexico, the levels of p,p'-DDT and p,p'-DDE reported here are lower than those reported from rural Morelos in 1989 to 1990, before DDT use was severely restricted.…”

“…In contrast, as evidence of the decreasing amount of DDT used in Mexico, the levels of p,p'-DDT and p,p'-DDE reported here are lower than those reported from rural Morelos in 1989 to 1990, before DDT use was severely restricted. 4 Moreover, the levels reported here are roughly twice those reported from samples collected in 2003 from the same area (p,p'-DDT, median ϭ 241 ng/g; p,p'-DDE, median ϭ 2,695 ng/g) (Hernandez-Avila, personal communication). The serum p,p'-DDT and p,p'-DDE levels reported in this study 36 are on the order of those reported more than 40 yr ago in the United States (p,p'-DDT, median ϭ 1,362 ng/g; p,p'-DDE, median ϭ 5,119 ng/g) and are higher than those reported for Mexican-American women in the United States today (median ϭ p,p'-DDT Ͻ10 ng/g, median ϭ p,p'-DDE 623 ng/g).…”

“…20 Despite the strict regulations for use of DDT in Mexico today, a number of studies of Mexican women of reproductive age indicate that they are still receiving relatively high levels of exposure to DDT based on biological measures of p,p'-DDT and p,p'-DDE levels. 4,17,[21][22][23][24][25] These studies suggest that, in addition to direct DDT exposure in rural areas where in-home spraying may still occur on occasion, low level indirect exposure continues throughout Mexico, most likely due to consumption of contaminated foodstuffs. 4,17,[21][22][23][24][25] To date, only one study has examined exposure levels in pregnant or lactating women after restrictions on DDT use were implemented, and that study was in Veracruz.…”

“…4,17,[21][22][23][24][25] These studies suggest that, in addition to direct DDT exposure in rural areas where in-home spraying may still occur on occasion, low level indirect exposure continues throughout Mexico, most likely due to consumption of contaminated foodstuffs. 4,17,[21][22][23][24][25] To date, only one study has examined exposure levels in pregnant or lactating women after restrictions on DDT use were implemented, and that study was in Veracruz. 26,27 The purpose of this study was to determine the extent of DDT exposure among pregnant women residing in or near the town of Tapachula in Soconusco, an agricultural region located within the State of Chiapas, Mexico.…”

Activation of α- and β-estrogen receptors by persistent pesticides in reporter cell lines

“…The concentrations found (DDT: 15.6-28.8 ppb in blood, 162-4840 ppb in breast milk, 10-9030 ppb in adipose tissue; o, p′-DDT: b0.7-4.7 ppb in blood; 138 ppb in breast milk) (Elvia et al, 2000;Minelli and Ribeiro, 1996;Torres-Arreola et al, 1999;Waliszewski et al, 2001) in the human body are lower than the EC 50 determined in this study for DDT, and o,p′-DDT, but considering the pharmacological effect of these two compounds on estrogen receptors, they can induce, albeit partially, the conformational change required for the transcriptional activation to occur in the ligand-binding domain. In addition, we are exposed to a multitude of agents with estrogen-like activity, which are capable of accumulating in adipose tissue and are present in blood serum.…”