Assessment of potential dermal and inhalation exposure of workers to the insecticide imidacloprid using whole-body dosimetry in China

In China, although improvements to the pesticide registration process have beenmade in last thirty years, no occupational exposure data are required to obtain a commercial license for a pesticide product. Consequently, notably little research has been conducted to establish an exposure assessment procedure in China. The present study monitored the potential dermal operator exposure from knapsack electric sprayer wheat field application of imidacloprid in Liaocheng City, Shandong Province and in Xinxiang City, Henan Province, China, using whole-body dosimetry. The potential inhalation exposure was determined using a personal air pump and XAD-2 sample tubes. The analytical method was developed and validated, including such performance parameters as limits of detection and quantification, linear range, recovery and precision. The total potential dermal and inhalation exposures were 14.20, 16.80, 15.39 and 20.78 mL/hr, respectively, for the four operators in Liaocheng and Xinxiang, corresponding to 0.02% to 0.03% of the applied volume of spray solution. In all trials, the lower part (thigh, lower leg) of the body was the most contaminated, accounting for approximately 76% to 88% of the total exposure. The inhalation exposure was less than 1% of the total exposure. Such factors as the application pattern, crop type, spray equipment, operator experience and climatic conditions have been used to explain the exposure distribution over the different parts of the body. As indicated by the calculated Margin of Exposure, the typical wheat treatment scenarios when a backpack sprayer was used are considered to be safe in terms of imidacloprid exposure.     

卤代海因的危险特性实验研究

为评价卤代海因的危险特性,通过克南实验、时间压力实验以及固体氧化性实验分别对二氯海因、溴氯海因以及二溴海因的爆炸性和氧化性进行了测试,通过家兔皮肤刺激性/腐蚀性实验对三种卤代海因的刺激性进行了研究,并分别对三种卤代海因的危险性进行了对比分析。结果表明：二氯海因、溴氯海因以及二溴海因都具有氧化性、对家兔皮肤具有严重刺激性、在正常商业包件中可能达到的压力下点火会导致具有爆炸猛烈性的爆燃;溴氯海因以及二溴海因克南实验极限直径均小于1.0mm,在封闭条件下加热不显示效应,二氯海因的克南实验极限直径为2.0mm,在封闭空间加热显示某种效应。三种卤代海因的氧化性和对家兔皮肤的刺激性没有显著区别,但二氯海因较溴氯海因以及二溴海因在封闭空间加热显示的效应更强。     

An overview of the latest development of microencapsulation for agricultural products

Abstract

For the production of controlled‐release agricultural formulations microencapsulation technologies are now the most used. Over the past two decades enormous progress has been made in order to develop the technologies which allow us to produce formulations tailor made to reach the target and fitting our toxicological requirements. This lecture is devoted to the definition of the criteria for selection of an active ingredient for microencapsulation and to a detailed review of the various techniques used today in commerçai microencapsulated formulations.

Resources are increasingly allocated into microencapsulation research & development by many agrochemical companies. Therefore the next 20 years should continue to yield innovative ideas including significant improvement of the physico‐chemical and toxicological properties of the actual formulations on the market. Some of this new ideas are applied by our company in order to modify or improve those properties playing the key role in the intent for targeted activity:

√ Recombination during production or upon storage.

New protective colloides

Dermal toxicity (LD 50) ‐ secondary protective colloides.

√ Release rate parameters.

Modification by the change of mobility of the active ingredient from the core (solvent or fluid type) affecting transit time and therefore LD 50 values.

√ Oral toxicity (LD 50).

Graft copolymers irreversibly adsorbed to the capsule surface.     

Measurements of surface contamination of spray equipment with pesticides after various methods of application

Abstract

A traditional method to determine operator dermal exposure is to quantify the amount of pesticide coming into contact with specific body regions and then to integrate the deposition density values with the total body surface. It is known that extremely high deposition values may occur in the hand region; however, the source of contamination is generally assumed to be direct splash or contact with the pesticide container. One of the parameters affecting operator/pilot exposure could be the transfer of pesticide residue, particularly in the case of pesticides with a longer half‐life, from contaminated surfaces of spray equipment by direct contact over extended periods. If the rate of skin absorption of pesticide is readily known, the expected values of daily dose for an operator or pilot may significantly rise due to the extended contact period. This study produced field data on the surface contamination of spray equipment used for ground and aerial applications. If field data on precise work practice (time‐motion) observations are incorporated, it may be possible to estimate the potential exposure of operator/pilot due to hand contact with contaminated surfaces.     

日常衣物中的邻苯二甲酸酯污染及其人体暴露风险

邻苯二甲酸酯(PAEs)作为一类内分泌干扰物,被广泛应用于工业生产。为了查明日常衣物中PAEs的污染状况,并评估其通过衣物的皮肤接触可能造成的人体暴露风险,本研究检测了日常生活中的新、旧衣服中7种典型PAEs的浓度,并通过实验模拟研究了衣料中PAEs向汗液的析出行为。结果表明,邻苯二甲酸二丁酯(DBP)和邻苯二甲酸二异辛酯(DEHP)分别是旧衣服和新衣服中的代表性PAE。旧衣服中DEHP的浓度显著高于新衣服;婴儿衣服中DEHP的浓度高于成人衣服。穿着和清洗过程中的二次污染可能对衣服中的PAEs有显著影响,衣服材质可能是影响旧衣服中PAEs浓度的重要因素。汗液会导致衣物中的PAEs析出,从而明显增加PAEs的人体暴露风险。     

Pesticide risk assessment: A study on inhalation and dermal exposure to 2,4-D and paraquat among Malaysian paddy farmers

A cross-section analytical study was conducted to evaluate the risk of pesticide exposure to those applying the Class II pesticides 2,4-D and paraquat in the paddy-growing areas of Kerian, Perak, Malaysia. It investigated the influence of weather on exposure as well as documented health problems commonly related to pesticide exposure. Potential inhalation and dermal exposure for 140 paddy farmers (handlers of pesticides) were assessed. Results showed that while temperature and humidity affected exposure, windspeed had the strongest impact on pesticide exposure via inhalation. However, the degree of exposure to both herbicides via inhalation was below the permissible exposure limits set by United States National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Dermal Exposure Assessment Method (DREAM) readings showed that dermal exposure with manual spraying ranged from moderate to high. With motorized sprayers, however, the level of dermal exposure ranged from low to moderate. Dermal exposure was significantly negatively correlated with the usage of protective clothing. Various types of deleterious health effects were detected among users of manual knapsack sprayers. Long-term spraying activities were positively correlated with increasing levels of the gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (GGT) liver enzyme. The type of spraying equipment, usage of proper protective clothing and adherence to correct spraying practices were found to be the most important factors influencing the degree of pesticide exposure among those applying pesticides.     

Operator dermal exposure and protection provided by personal protective equipment and working coveralls during mixing/loading,application and sprayer cleaning in vineyards

The efficiency of a working coverall combined with personal protective equipment to protect operators against dermal exposure to plant protection products under field conditions was studied. Operators wore a non-certified water-repellent finish polyester/cotton coverall plus a certified gown during the mixing/loading and the cleaning phases. Insecticide foliar application to a vineyard was selected as the exposure scenario. The overall dermal residue levels measured in this study were in the range of data recently collected in Europe. The water-repellent finish working coverall reduced body exposure by a factor of approximately 95%. Wearing a Category III Type 3 partial body gown during mixing/loading and cleaning of the application equipment led to a further protective effect of 98.7%. The combination of a water-repellent finish working coverall and partial body protection during specific tasks provided satisfactory levels of protection and can be considered as suitable protection for the conditions of use studied.     

基于参数实测的水中重金属暴露的健康风险研究

以位于长江和淮河流域交界处河南泌阳县为研究区,利用ICP/MS分析城镇和农村居民饮用水中14种重金属含量,抽样选取2 500名城镇和农村不同性别和年龄的受试者作为研究对象,详细记录受试者3 d内的饮水和皮肤接触水的活动频率,并对有关饮水和皮肤暴露参数进行了测量.用暴露和健康风险模型计算了城镇和农村居民对14种重金属的经...     

邻苯二甲酸二异壬酯皮肤暴露致Balb/c小鼠肝肾组织氧化损伤的研究

作为"绿色换代产品",邻苯二甲酸二异壬酯(DINP)在全球范围逐渐取代邻苯二甲酸二(2-乙基己)酯(DEHP)成为聚氯乙烯制品的主要增塑剂.但人体DINP暴露也可能存在健康隐患,故近年来受到越来越多环境科学领域专家的关注.为了探讨DINP皮肤暴露是否对机体有氧化损伤的作用,本研究以Balb/c小鼠为模式生物进行实验,42只雄性Balb/c小鼠随机被分为5个DINP染毒组(0.02、0.2、2、20、200 mg·kg-1)和1个溶剂对照组,每组7只.皮肤染毒28 d后,用所获得的肝和肾组织匀浆测定活性氧自由基(ROS)、丙二醛(MDA)、还原型谷胱甘肽(GSH),用所获得的肝和肾细胞测定DNA-蛋白质交联(DPC)系数,同时观察小鼠背部皮肤的形态变化情况.实验结果表明,随着DINP染毒剂量的升高,脏器系数、ROS和MDA含量及DPC系数逐渐上升,GSH含量逐渐降低,各指标均呈现出一定的剂量-反应关系(p0.05,p0.01).研究表明,较高剂量的DINP(≥20 mg·kg-1)亦可通过皮肤暴露的方式造成小鼠肝脏和肾脏组织细胞的氧化损伤.     

Dermal exposure to pesticides in greenhouses workers: discrimination and selection of variables for the design of monitoring programs

Dermal exposure to pesticides is one of the main sanitaryproblems which greenhouses workers face. With the dual aimsof establishing both the body part that receives the greatestexposure and the variable that has greatest influence on this exposure level, 22 pesticide application trials were performed. Trials were carried out in different greenhouse vegetable crops,using different pesticides and different spray diameters from the spray gun. In order to determine dermal exposure, the wholebody method was used. Pieces of the applicator suit were subject to an extraction procedure and their pesticide contentdetermined using GC-NPD analysis. Multivariate analysis were applied to the data obtained. Principal component analysis showed that all trials produced a high exposure level on lowerleft leg and lower right leg. Cluster analysis distinguished between three sample groups. The most and the least affectedparts were clearly distinguished. Discriminant analysis indicated that the thin drop size of the spray gun is responsible for both the differences between groups and the minimum or maximum exposure level measured on the applicatorsuit. Therefore, selecting the variables, lower legs and thindrop size, is considered fundamental in designing programs formonitoring pesticide exposure.