The Impact of Pesticides - Academy Publish

picture, chemical contamination of environment and food by organochlorinepesticides, should also be taken into account in any study regarding exogenousdeterminants of GH/IGF system.HUMAN EXPOSURE TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINANTS:THE CASE OF ORGANOCHLORINE PESTICIDESHuman body burden of organochlorine pesticides (OCs) resulting from the universalpresence of these contaminants in the environment is an issue of public health concernbecause they have been linked with the pathogenesis of cancer, asthma, diabetes, andgrowth disorders in children (Snedeker et al., 2001; López-Cervantes et al., 2004;Sunyer et al., 2005; McGlynn et al., 2006; Lee et al., 2006). OCs include insecticidesDDT-derivatives (OC-DDTs), such as DDT and its metabolites (DDE, DDD), othercyclodiene-derivative pesticides (OC-cyclodienes), such as aldrin, dieldrin, and endrin,and hexachlorocyclohexanes, such as lindane. Although in western countries mostOCs were banned in the late 1970’s, persistent OC residues can be measured inenvironmental and biological samples as a result of their bioaccumulation (Snedeker,2001; Jaga and Dharmani, 2003). Most OCs are considered endocrine disrupters andcarcinogens (Soto et al., 1995; Snedeker, 2001).Exposure of human beings to OCs largely derives from ingestion of contaminated food(Snedeker, 2001; Jaga and Dharmani, 2003) although environmental, occupational andother domiciliary exposures should not be excluded. In any case, it is well known thatfoods are the main source of human exposure to environmentally persistent pesticides,and that the group of DDT derivatives (OCs-DDTs) is one of the groups of pollutantsthat are usually detected in foods all over the world (Jaga and Dharmani, 2003;Zumbado et al., 2005). Dietary exposure to OCs results in the bioaccumulation ofthese chemicals in the human body (Jaga and Dharmani, 2003), and this circumstanceshould be borne in mind in any study regarding exogenous and dietary factors relatedto the IGF system.POTENTIAL CONSEQUENCES OF ORGANOCHLORINEPESTICIDES EXPOSURE ON GH-IGF SYSTEMIt has been suggested by others the possibility that exposure to environmentalpollutants, such as organochlorine compounds, could be an exogenous factor capableof modulating the IGF system (Tomei et al., 2004; Ceccatelli et al., 2006; Boada et al.,2007; Davis et al., 2009).There are relatively few reports on disruption of the GH–IGF axis by pesticides andother environmental pollutants, compared with the number of studies looking at theireffects on reproductive endocrinology. Although most papers explore the effects ofpesticides on GH/IGF system as a consequence of their estrogenic/antiandrogenicaction, the possibility exists that pesticides could also influence GH-IGF systemdirectly. Thus, environmental pollutants could alter the normal synthesis and/orAcademyPublish.org - The Impact of Pesticides145