Environmental exposure to current use pesticides in pregnant women

RODRIGUEZ, PIUQUE MIGUEL; VERA BERTA; MUNTANER, CELESTE; LOSILLA, VANESA; ONDARZA PAOLA; GUIÑAZU ALANIZ, NATALIA LORENA

Mar del Plata

Congreso; LXIV Reunión Anual de la Sociedad Argentina de Investigacion Clínica (SAIC) - Reunión Anual de Sociedades de Biociencias 2019; 2019

Sociedad Argentina de Investigacion Clinica

Among modern non-persistent pesticides, the organophosphates (OPs) are the most commonly used worldwide. In Argentina, pesticides as the OP chlorpyrifos (CP), the fungicide chlorothalonil (CT) and the herbicide trifluralin (TF) are utilized. Previous studies have reported that women and children living close to agricultural areas at the Alto Valle of Rio Negro and Neuquén region are at risk of pesticide exposure. The aim of the present work was to determine with an interdisciplinary approach, levels of current use pesticides and carboxylesterase (CES) activity in human placenta. Moreover, the association between pesticide exposure and biomarker responses was also considered. Healthy pregnant women were invited to participate in this study (n=36). Placenta samples from women residing in Neuquén city (control group-CG, n=21) and in rural areas (rural group-RG, n=15), were collected during 2018-2019. Demographic characteristics of the studied groups and morphometric parameters of newborns and placenta were collected. Written informed consent was obtained and the study was approved by the local ethical committee (CAIBSH).The levels of CP, TF, and CT were determined by gas chromatography. The biomarker of OP exposure, CES activity was determined by the Morgan method. Preliminary results indicated non-significant differences in the women socio-demographic characteristics and the morphometric parameters of newborns and placenta among groups. A significant CES activity reduction was observed in RG samples collected during spring-summer respect to CG (29%, p = 0.022), coincident with the highest pesticide rate for agricultural use. Among pesticides, CP presented the highest concentrations followed in decrease order by CT > TF. These results clearly indicate that women are environmentally in contact with different pesticides. Further work is needed in order to increase the number of participants and the significance of CES activity modifications as well as pesticide levels.