-
International Journal of Environmental... Oct 2010Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) are capable of persisting in the environment, transporting between phase media and accumulating to high levels, implying that they could... (Review)
Review
Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) are capable of persisting in the environment, transporting between phase media and accumulating to high levels, implying that they could pose a risk of causing adverse effects to human health and the environment. Consequently, most OCPs are designated as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and even as endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs). The objective of this paper was to review the current status of pesticide POPs in Taiwan, including aldrin, chlordane, chlordecone, DDT, dieldrin, endrin, heptachlor, hexachlorobenzene, α/β-hexachlorocyclohexanes, lindane, mirex, pentachloro-benzene, and toxaphene. The information about their environmental properties, banned use, carcinogenic toxicity and environmental levels, can be connected with the regulatory infrastructure, which has been established by the joint-venture of the central competent authorities (i.e., Environmental Protection Administration, Department of Health, Council of Agriculture, and Council of Labor Affairs). The significant progress to be reported is that the residual levels of these pesticide-POPs, ranging from trace amounts to a few ppb, have declined notably in recent years.
Topics: Environmental Pollutants; Humans; Pesticides; Taiwan
PubMed: 21139852
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph7103615 -
Environment International Mar 2023The extensive usage of pesticides has led to a ubiquitous exposure in the Chinese general population. Previous studies have demonstrated developmental neurotoxicity...
BACKGROUND
The extensive usage of pesticides has led to a ubiquitous exposure in the Chinese general population. Previous studies have demonstrated developmental neurotoxicity associated with prenatal exposure to pesticides.
OBJECTIVES
We aimed to delineate the landscape of internal pesticides exposure levels from pregnant women's blood serum samples, and to identify the specific pesticides associated with the domain-specific neuropsychological development.
METHODS
Participants included 710 mother-child pairs in a prospective cohort study initiated and maintained in Nanjing Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital. Maternal spot blood samples were collected at enrollment. Leveraging on an accurate, sensitive and reproducible analysis method for 88 pesticides, a total of 49 pesticides were measured simultaneously using gas chromatography-triple quadrupole tandem mass spectrometry (GC-MS/MS). After implementing a strict quality control (QC) management, 29 pesticides were reported. We assessed neuropsychological development in 12-month-old (n = 172) and 18-month-old (n = 138) children using the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ), Third Edition. Negative binomial regression models were used to investigate the associations between prenatal exposure to pesticides and ASQ domain-specific scores at age 12 and 18 months. Restricted cubic spline (RCS) analysis and generalized additive models (GAMs) were fitted to evaluate non-linear patterns. Longitudinal models with generalized estimating equations (GEE) were conducted to account for correlations among repeated observations. Weighted quantile sum (WQS) regression and Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) were applied to examining the joint effect of the mixture of pesticides. Several sensitivity analyses were performed to assess the robustness of the results.
RESULTS
We observed that prenatal exposure to chlorpyrifos was significantly associated with a 4 % decrease in the ASQ communication scores both at age 12 months (RR, 0.96; 95 % CI, 0.94-0.98; P < 0.001) and 18 months (RR, 0.96; 95 % CI, 0.93-0.99; P < 0.01). In the ASQ gross motor domain, higher concentrations of mirex (RR, 0.96; 95 % CI, 0.94-0.99, P < 0.01 for 12-month-old children; RR, 0.98; 95 % CI, 0.97-1.00, P = 0.01 for 18-month-old children), and atrazine (RR, 0.97; 95 % CI, 0.95-0.99, P < 0.01 for 12-month-old children; RR, 0.99; 95 % CI, 0.97-1.00, P = 0.03 for 18-month-old children) were associated with decreased scores. In the ASQ fine motor domain, higher concentrations of mirex (RR, 0.98; 95 % CI, 0.96-1.00, P = 0.04 for 12-month-old children; RR, 0.98; 95 % CI, 0.96-0.99, P < 0.01 for 18-month-old children), atrazine (RR, 0.97; 95 % CI, 0.95-0.99, P < 0.001 for 12-month-old children; RR, 0.98; 95 % CI, 0.97-1.00, P = 0.01 for 18-month-old children), and dimethipin (RR, 0.94; 95 % CI, 0.89-1.00, P = 0.04 for 12-month-old children; RR, 0.93; 95 % CI, 0.88-0.98, P < 0.01 for 18-month-old children) were associated with decreased scores. The associations were not modified by child sex. There was no evidence of statistically significant nonlinear relationships between pesticides exposure and RRs of delayed neurodevelopment (P > 0.05). Longitudinal analyses implicated the consistent findings.
CONCLUSION
This study gave an integrated picture of pesticides exposure in Chinese pregnant women. We found significant inverse associations between prenatal exposure to chlorpyrifos, mirex, atrazine, dimethipin and the domain-specific neuropsychological development (i.e., communication, gross motor and fine motor) of children at 12 and 18 months of age. These findings identified specific pesticides with high risk of neurotoxicity, and highlighted the need for priority regulation of them.
Topics: Humans; Female; Pregnancy; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Pesticides; Chlorpyrifos; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; Prospective Studies; Mirex; Tandem Mass Spectrometry; Bayes Theorem; Atrazine; China; Neurotoxicity Syndromes; Maternal Exposure
PubMed: 36809709
DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2023.107814 -
Chemosphere Sep 2014In utero exposure to organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) is thought to be potentially harmful to fetal development. We aimed to investigate the associations of maternal and...
In utero exposure to organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) is thought to be potentially harmful to fetal development. We aimed to investigate the associations of maternal and cord serum OCPs levels with infant birth weight in China. In this study, we measured serum levels of 18 OCPs in 81 mother-infant pairs, including DDT, hexachlorocyclohexanes (BHC), hexachlorobenzene (HCB), heptachlors, chlordanes, endosulfan-I, and mirex using a high-resolution-gas-chromatography with high-resolution-mass-spectrometry method. We found that p,p'-DDE and β-BHC had the highest detection rate in both maternal and cord blood serum (97.2% and 96.7%, respectively), followed by HCB (93.0%, 51.7%), p,p'-DDT (88.7%, 36.7%), and p,p'-DDD (83.1%, 60.0%). Among all OCPs, the concentration of p,p'-DDE was the highest (mothers geometric mean (GM): 203.54ngg(-1), newborns GM: 116.14ngg(-1)), followed by HCB (70.62ngg(-1), 65.16ngg(-1)), and β-BHC (67.67ngg(-1), 33.39ngg(-1)). Multiple linear regression analyses showed that each 1ngg(-1) increment of cord serum p,p'-DDE, total DDT, and β-BHC was associated with a 0.10g, 0.10g, and 0.92g decrease in infant birth weight, respectively, and as the cord serum concentrations of p,p'-DDT, p,p'-DDD, HCB and mirex increased, the infant birth weight was also decreased, although the associations were not statistically significant due to the relatively small sample size. These results suggest that p,p'-DDE, β-BHC, and HCB were the predominant OCPs in the serum of Chinese pregnant women and cord blood of their newborns. Prenatal exposure to DDT, β-BHC, HCB, and mirex were associated with a decrease in birth weight, but these results need validation in larger sample-sized studies.
Topics: Adolescent; Adult; Birth Weight; China; DDT; Dichlorodiphenyl Dichloroethylene; Endosulfan; Female; Fetal Blood; Hexachlorobenzene; Hexachlorocyclohexane; Humans; Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated; Infant, Newborn; Male; Maternal Exposure; Maternal-Fetal Exchange; Mirex; Pesticides; Pregnancy; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; Young Adult
PubMed: 24880592
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2014.02.017 -
Physiology & Behavior Feb 2010Endocrine disruption has become a significant human health concern, but is difficult to study outside of the laboratory for several reasons including the multiplicity of... (Review)
Review
Endocrine disruption has become a significant human health concern, but is difficult to study outside of the laboratory for several reasons including the multiplicity of exposures, the difficulty in assessing each exposure, and the variety of possible outcomes among human populations. This review summarizes our studies of the relationships of measured persistent organic pollutants (PCBs, p,p'-DDE, HCB and mirex), and heavy metals (lead and mercury), to outcomes directly related to thyroid function and sexual maturation. These studies were conducted in a sample of Native American youth from the Akwesasne Mohawk community. The participants were first studied during puberty (10-16.9 years of age) and then at approximately 18 years of age. Results from these studies show that PCB levels are positively related to TSH and negatively to free T4. Further, these effects are conditioned by breastfeeding history. Anti-thyroid peroxidase antibody levels also are related to PCB levels suggesting elevated risk of autoimmune disease among the exposed. Earlier age at menarche is associated with higher PCB levels while risk of delay is associated with higher lead levels. Some evidence that the timing of exposure produces different effects is presented, and the level of exposure in the participants suggests that effects observed may be relevant to a considerable proportion of the US population. Further investigations are warranted to determine effect thresholds and mechanisms.
Topics: Adolescent; Adolescent Development; Child; Dichlorodiphenyl Dichloroethylene; Endocrine Disruptors; Female; Hexachlorobenzene; Humans; Indians, North American; Iodide Peroxidase; Male; Menarche; Metals, Heavy; Mirex; Polychlorinated Biphenyls; Predictive Value of Tests; Retrospective Studies; Sexual Maturation; Thyroid Gland
PubMed: 19800354
DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2009.09.015 -
Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Jul 2023A subcritical water degradation and extraction method was developed to remediate environmental soils contaminated by highly recalcitrant organochlorine pollutants....
A subcritical water degradation and extraction method was developed to remediate environmental soils contaminated by highly recalcitrant organochlorine pollutants. Hydrogen peroxide was used to effectively decompose organochlorine pollutants under subcritical water conditions. As a method optimization study, the static wet oxidation of chlorophenols was first performed in subcritical water with and without added hydrogen peroxide. Complete oxidation was achieved using an added oxidant, and thus, the oxidation and extraction of chlorophenols from a sand matrix was then attempted. Complete oxidation and extraction with added oxidant were achieved within 30 min at 100 °C. We then investigated the subcritical water degradation and extraction of dieldrin, mirex, and p,p'-DDD. These organochlorine pesticides were not as easily oxidized as the chlorophenols, and the benefit of adding hydrogen peroxide was only clearly observed at 200 °C. Approximately a 20% increase in degradation was noted for each pesticide and insecticide at this temperature. Unfortunately, this difference was not observed with an increase in temperature to 250 °C, except in some cases, where the amount of degradation byproducts was reduced. Dieldrin and p,p'-DDD were essentially destroyed at 250 °C, while all the pesticides and the insecticides were completely removed from the sand at this temperature. The proposed method was then used to remediate a soil sample highly contaminated with DDT. The soil was obtained from the grounds of an old DDT mixing facility in Virginia and has been aging for several decades. Not only was 100% removal of DDT from this soil achieved using the proposed method at 250 °C, but also, the extracted DDT was completely destroyed during the process. The proposed remediation method, therefore, demonstrates a high potential as an efficient and environmentally sound technique for the detoxification of soils.
PubMed: 37513317
DOI: 10.3390/molecules28145445 -
Environmental Research Jan 2022The 32-mile Detroit River and surrounding tributaries have been designated as a Great Lakes Area of Concern due to pollution from decades of municipal and industrial...
The 32-mile Detroit River and surrounding tributaries have been designated as a Great Lakes Area of Concern due to pollution from decades of municipal and industrial discharges, sewer overflows and urban development. The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services conducted a biomonitoring study to assess exposures to persistent toxic substances in Detroit urban shoreline anglers who may be at high exposure risk due to consumption of locally caught fish. Using a modified venue-based sampling approach, 287 adult shoreline anglers along the Detroit River were recruited and participated in the program. Study participants provided blood and urine specimens and completed a questionnaire interview. In this report, we examine percentile estimates for blood lead, blood manganese, urine arsenic, urine mercury, urine cadmium, organochlorine pesticides in serum (mirex, hexachlorobenzene, chlordane), and serum polybrominated biphenyl 153 (PBB 153) concentrations among study participants. Multiple linear regression was used to identify predictors of contaminant concentrations. The Detroit urban anglers' blood lead concentrations were 2 times higher than the general adult U.S. population (median (95% CI): 2.9 μg/dL (1.8-2.3) vs. 0.94 μg/dL (0.90-0.98)). PBB 153 levels were 1.8 times higher than the general adult U.S. population at the 95th percentile (95th percentile, 95% CI: 62.7 ng/g of lipid, 53.2-75.2 vs. 34.6 ng/g of lipid, 12.8-66.8). Percentile estimates of the other study pollutants were similar to background levels found in the general U.S. population. Eating more locally caught fish was not associated with increased body burdens for any of the contaminants examined in this report. Higher blood lead was associated with increased age, male sex, current smoking, residing in a home built before 1960, an annual income less than $25,000, and a work history of lead paint removal. Evidence of PBB exposure in our study cohort likely reflects the continued effect of a widespread contamination of livestock feed in 1973 among Michigan's lower peninsula population. These study results help determine if the pollutants examined warrant further consideration in subsequent population-based biomonitoring of frequent consumers of fish from the Detroit River and surrounding waterways. The biomonitoring data from this study also served to inform public health officials regarding the potential need for environmental public health actions to reduce harmful exposures.
Topics: Adult; Animals; Biological Monitoring; Fishes; Humans; Male; Mercury; Michigan; Pesticides; Polybrominated Biphenyls
PubMed: 34384752
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.111851 -
International Journal of Environmental... Jan 2023The Mohawks at Akwesasne have been highly exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), via releases from three aluminum foundries located near the reserve. They are also...
The Mohawks at Akwesasne have been highly exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), via releases from three aluminum foundries located near the reserve. They are also exposed to organochlorine pesticides, namely hexachlorobenzene (HCB), dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE), and mirex. Previous studies have demonstrated reduced cognition in relation to total PCBs, but the effects of the mixtures of different PCB congener groups, HCB, DDE, and mirex on cognitive function have not been studied. Therefore, cognitive performance for executive function, scored via the digit symbol substitution test (DSST), in Mohawk adults aged 17-79 years ( = 301), was assessed in relation to serum concentrations of low-chlorinated PCBs, high-chlorinated PCBs, total PCBs, HCB, DDE, and mirex. We used mixture models employing the quantile-based g-computation method. The mixture effects of low-chlorinated PCBs, high-chlorinated PCBs, HCB, DDE, and mirex were significantly associated with 4.01 DSST scores decrements in the oldest age group, 47-79 years old. There were important contributions to mixture effects from low-chlorinated PCBs, high-chlorinated PCBs, and total PCBs, with smaller contributions of HCB and DDE. Our findings indicate that exposures to both low- and high-chlorinated PCBs increase the risk of cognitive decline in older adults, while DDE and HCB have less effect.
Topics: Aged; Humans; Middle Aged; Cognition; Environmental Exposure; Environmental Pollutants; Hexachlorobenzene; Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated; Indians, North American; Mirex; Pesticides; Polychlorinated Biphenyls
PubMed: 36673903
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20021148 -
Environmental Health Perspectives Mar 1996Pesticides are high-volume, widely used, environmental chemicals and there is continuous debate concerning their possible role in many chronic human health effects.... (Comparative Study)
Comparative Study Review
Pesticides are high-volume, widely used, environmental chemicals and there is continuous debate concerning their possible role in many chronic human health effects. Because of their known structures, known rates of application, and the presence of a large occupationally exposed population, they are not only important in their own right but are ideal models for the effects of environmental chemicals on the population in general. For reasons that are not always clear, this potential has not been realized. These exposed populations represent an underused asset in the study of the human health effects of environmental contaminants. Chronic effects thought to involve pesticides include carcinogenesis, neurotoxicity, and reproductive and development effects. In this paper we attempt to summarize this concern and, relying to a large extent on studies in our own laboratory, to indicate the importance and present status of studies of the mammalian metabolism of pesticides and indicate the need for further use of this model. Aspects considered include the role of pesticides as substrates for xenobiotic-metabolizing enzymes such as cytochrome P450 and the flavin-containing monooxygenase and their role as inducers or inhibitors of metabolic enzymes. The interaction of pesticides with complex multienzyme pathways, the role of biological characteristics, particularly gender, in pesticide metabolism, and the special role of pesticides at portals of entry and in target tissues are also considered.
Topics: Abnormalities, Drug-Induced; Animals; Chlordecone; Cytochrome P-450 Enzyme System; DDT; Environmental Health; Environmental Pollutants; Humans; Mirex; Neoplasms; Pesticides
PubMed: 8722114
DOI: 10.1289/ehp.96104s197 -
Environmental Research Oct 2020Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) are environmental contaminants with potentially adverse effects on neurodevelopment. Previous findings on the association between...
Associations between prenatal exposure to organochlorine pesticides and thyroid hormone levels in mothers and infants: The Hokkaido study on environment and children's health.
Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) are environmental contaminants with potentially adverse effects on neurodevelopment. Previous findings on the association between prenatal exposure to OCPs and the maternal or infant thyroid hormone system are inconsistent. Moreover, the influence of exposure to multiple OCPs and other chemical compounds is not clearly understood. Our study therefore aimed to examine the association between OCP exposure and both maternal and infant thyroid hormone systems. We also explored multiple exposure effects of OCPs and the influence of each compound using weighted quantile sum (WQS) methods. The study population included 514 participants in the Hokkaido study, recruited from 2002 to 2005 at one hospital in Sapporo, Japan. To quantify 29 OCPs, maternal blood samples were analyzed using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry. Blood samples for measuring thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) and free thyroxine (FT4) levels were obtained from mothers during the early gestational stage (mean 11.4 weeks), and from infants between 7 and 43 days of age. The data of 333 mother child pairs with OCP and thyroid hormone measurements were included in the final analyses. Multivariate regression models showed a negative association between maternal FT4 and levels of o,p'-dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE), o,p'-dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), and dieldrin. The WQS analysis showed that o,p'-DDT (48.6%), cis-heptachlorepoxide (22.8%), dieldrin (15.4%) were the primary contributors to the significant multiple exposure effect of OCPs on maternal FT4. For infants, we found a positive association between FT4 and cis-nonachlor and mirex. The most contributory compounds in the multiple exposure effect were trans-nonachlor (27.1%) and cis-nonachlor (13.8%), while several compounds contributed to the WQS via small weights (0.4-9.1%). These results indicate that OCPs, even at very low levels, may influence maternal and child thyroid hormone levels, which could modulate child development.
Topics: Child; Child Health; Female; Humans; Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated; Infant; Japan; Maternal Exposure; Mothers; Pesticides; Pregnancy; Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; Thyroid Hormones
PubMed: 32979988
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2020.109840 -
Nihon Eiseigaku Zasshi. Japanese... Sep 2009Dioxins, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and organochlorine pesticides are bioaccumulative chemicals that are considered to be toxic contaminants. These chemicals are... (Review)
Review
Dioxins, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and organochlorine pesticides are bioaccumulative chemicals that are considered to be toxic contaminants. These chemicals are classified as persistent organic pollutants (POPs). We have started a prospective cohort study to examine the effects of perinatal exposure to these chemicals as well as methylmercury on neurobehavioral development in Japanese children. In this article, the method and the consequence of exposure assessment were described. The concentrations of POPs in maternal blood, cord blood, and breast milk were determined by high-resolution gas chromatography-high-resolution mass spectrometry. In breast milk samples, p,p'-DDE was the predominant pollutant, total PCB and beta-HCH being the other major constituents. Mirex and major toxaphenes were also detected in all samples even though these chemicals have never been used in Japan. Simple correlation analysis showed high correlations among the three sample materials, indicating that there was a high degree of consistency of chemicals in the body. Major chemicals were also intercorrelated with other chemicals in either of the three sample materials. These findings indicate the presence of coexposure to multiple POPs. Multiple regression analysis indicated that the concentrations of PCBs were affected by the age of mother, parity, and maternal fish intake. These results are informative in terms of considering the strategy to reduce the body burden of POPs in females. The chemical analysis were performed by two different institutes. Multiple regression analysis also showed that the result of chamical analysis was affected significantly by the difference in analyzing institute. This finding suggest the importance of consistency in chemical analysis and the necessity for quality and accuracy control using reference materials.
Topics: Body Burden; Cohort Studies; Dioxins; Environmental Pollutants; Female; Fetal Blood; Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; Humans; Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated; Infant, Newborn; Japan; Methylmercury Compounds; Milk, Human; Polychlorinated Biphenyls; Pregnancy; Prospective Studies
PubMed: 19797842
DOI: 10.1265/jjh.64.749