title: Association between organochlorine pesticide exposure and thyroid hormones in floriculture workers.
abstract: Several studies have suggested that exposure to DDT may be related to changes in thyroid hormone levels in animals and humans, even though results across studies are inconsistent. The aim of this study was to assess the association between exposure to p,p'-DDE (a stable metabolite of DDT) and serum levels of thyroid hormones in floriculture workers. A longitudinal study was conducted on 136 male subjects from the States of Mexico and Morelos, Mexico, who were occupationally exposed to pesticides, during agricultural periods of high (rainy season) and low (dry season) levels of pesticide application. Using a structured questionnaire, a survey was carried out on socio-demographic characteristics, anthropometry, clinical history, alcohol and tobacco consumption, residential chemical exposure, and occupational history. Blood and urine samples were collected to determine serum levels of TSH, total T3, total T4, and p,p'-DDE, and metabolites of organophosphate pesticides (OP), respectively. The analysis of the associations between p,p'-DDE levels and thyroid hormone profile adjusting by potential confounding variables including urinary OP metabolites was carried out using multivariate generalized estimating equation (GEE) models. Our results showed that the geometric means of p,p'-DDE levels were 6.17 ng/ml and 4.71 ng/ml in the rainy and dry seasons, respectively. We observed positive associations between the serum levels of p,p'-DDE and those of total T3 (β=0.01, 95% CI: -0.009, 0.03), and total T4 (β=0.08, 95% CI:0.03, 0.14) and negative but no significant changes in TSH in male floricultural workers, supporting the hypothesis that acts as thyroid disruptor in humans.
authors.affiliation: Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública (National Institute of Public Health), Cuernavaca, Mexico.
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Blanco-Muñoz
authors.affiliation: Escuela Andaluza de Salud Pública (Andalusian School of Public Health), Granada, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada (ibs.GRANADA), Granada, Spain; CIBER of Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: marina.lacasana.easp@juntadeandalucia.es.
authors.forename: Marina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lacasaña
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada (ibs.GRANADA), Granada, Spain; Departamento de Genética. Universidad de Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: Inmaculada
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: López-Flores
authors.affiliation: Escuela Andaluza de Salud Pública (Andalusian School of Public Health), Granada, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada (ibs.GRANADA), Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rodríguez-Barranco
authors.affiliation: Escuela Andaluza de Salud Pública (Andalusian School of Public Health), Granada, Spain; Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria de Granada (ibs.GRANADA), Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: Beatriz
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: González-Alzaga
authors.affiliation: Universidad Autónoma de Coahuila, Torreón, Coahuila, Mexico.
authors.forename: Susana
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bassol
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Toxicología. Centro de Investigación y Estudios Avanzados (CINVESTAV), Instituto Politécnico Nacional, México D.F., Mexico.
authors.forename: Mariano E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Cebrian
authors.affiliation: Instituto Nacional de Salud Pública (National Institute of Public Health), Cuernavaca, Mexico.
authors.forename: Lizbeth
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: López-Carrillo
authors.affiliation: Center for Public Health Research (CSISP-FISABIO), Valencia, Spain.
authors.forename: Clemente
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Aguilar-Garduño
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000383:Agriculture; D052244:Endocrine Disruptors / Q000097:blood*; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000097:blood* / Q000652:urine; D035264:Flowers; D006801:Humans; D006843:Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated / Q000097:blood* / Q000652:urine; D008297:Male; D008800:Mexico; D008875:Middle Aged; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D010755:Organophosphates; D010575:Pesticides / Q000097:blood* / Q000652:urine; D013963:Thyroid Hormones / Q000097:blood*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D052244:Endocrine Disruptors; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D006843:Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated; D010755:Organophosphates; D010575:Pesticides; D013963:Thyroid Hormones
keywords: Organochlorine; Pesticides; Thyroid hormones; p,p'‐DDE