Article

Heterocyclic aromatic amine pesticide use and human cancer risk: results from the U.S. Agricultural Health Study.

Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Rockville, MD 20852, USA.
International Journal of Cancer (impact factor: 5.44). 10/2008; 124(5):1206-12. DOI:10.1002/ijc.24020 pp.1206-12
Source: PubMed

ABSTRACT Imazethapyr, a heterocyclic aromatic amine, is a widely used crop herbicide first registered for use in the United States in 1989. We evaluated cancer incidence among imazethapyr-exposed pesticide applicators enrolled in the Agricultural Health Study (AHS). The AHS is a prospective cohort of 57,311 licensed pesticide applicators in the U.S., enrolled from 1993-1997. Among the 49,398 licensed pesticide applicators eligible for analysis, 20,646 applicators reported use of imazethapyr and 2,907 incident cancers developed through 2004. Imazethapyr exposure was classified by intensity-weighted lifetime exposure days calculated as [years of use x days per year x intensity level]. Poisson regression analysis was used to evaluate the relationship between imazethapyr exposure and cancer incidence. We found significant trends in risk with increasing lifetime exposure for bladder cancer (p for trend 0.01) and colon cancer (p for trend 0.02). Rate ratios (RRs) were increased by 137% for bladder cancer and 78% for colon cancer when the highest exposed were compared to the nonexposed. The excess risk for colon cancer was limited to proximal cancers, (RR = 2.73, 95% confidence intervals 1.42, 5.25, p for trend 0.001). No association was observed for prostate, lung, rectum, kidney, oral, pancreas, lymphohematopoietic cancers or melanoma. These findings provide new evidence that exposure to aromatic amine pesticides may be an overlooked exposure in the etiology of bladder and colon cancer. The use of imazethapyr and other imidazolinone compounds should continue to be evaluated for potential risk to humans.

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    Article: Stochastic, compartmental, and dynamic modeling of cross-contamination during mechanical smearing of cheeses.
    Fanny Aziza, Eric Mettler, Jean-Jacques Daudin, Moez Sanaa
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    ABSTRACT: Cheese smearing is a complex process and the potential for cross-contamination with pathogenic or undesirable microorganisms is critical. During ripening, cheeses are salted and washed with brine to develop flavor and remove molds that could develop on the surfaces. Considering the potential for cross-contamination of this process in quantitative risk assessments could contribute to a better understanding of this phenomenon and, eventually, improve its control. The purpose of this article is to model the cross-contamination of smear-ripened cheeses due to the smearing operation under industrial conditions. A compartmental, dynamic, and stochastic model is proposed for mechanical brush smearing. This model has been developed to describe the exchange of microorganisms between compartments. Based on the analytical solution of the model equations and on experimental data collected with an industrial smearing machine, we assessed the values of the transfer parameters of the model. Monte Carlo simulations, using the distributions of transfer parameters, provide the final number of contaminated products in a batch and their final level of contamination for a given scenario taking into account the initial number of contaminated cheeses of the batch and their contaminant load. Based on analytical results, the model provides indicators for smearing efficiency and propensity of the process for cross-contamination. Unlike traditional approaches in mechanistic models, our approach captures the variability and uncertainty inherent in the process and the experimental data. More generally, this model could represent a generic base to use in modeling similar processes prone to cross-contamination.
    Risk Analysis 07/2006; 26(3):731-45. · 2.37 Impact Factor
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Keywords

2,907 incident cancers
 
Agricultural Health Study
 
aromatic amine pesticides
 
bladder cancer
 
cancer incidence
 
colon cancer
 
excess risk
 
heterocyclic aromatic amine
 
imazethapyr exposure
 
imazethapyr-exposed pesticide applicators
 
intensity-weighted lifetime exposure days
 
lifetime exposure
 
lymphohematopoietic cancers
 
overlooked exposure
 
pesticide applicators
 
pesticide applicators eligible
 
Poisson regression analysis
 
potential risk
 
proximal cancers
 
year x intensity level]