Noemi Sandra Tirado Bustillos

• Professor (Emeritus)
• Head of Genetic Toxicology Unit at Higher University of San Andrés

Numerous studies have shown that pesticide exposure is linked to adverse health outcomes. Nevertheless, in Bolivia, where there is an increasing use of pesticides, the literature is sparse. To address knowledge gaps and guide future research in Bolivia, we conducted a scoping review spanning 22 years (January 2000 to December 2022). Our search iden...

Numerous studies have shown that pesticide exposure is linked to adverse health outcomes. Nevertheless, in Bolivia, where there is an increasing use of pesticides, the literature is sparse. To address knowledge gaps and guide future research in Bolivia, we conducted a scoping review spanning 22 years (January 2000 to December 2022). Our search iden...

Elevated concentrations of arsenic, lithium and boron in drinking water have already been reported in Bolivia. Arsenic is known to cause genotoxicity but that caused by lithium and boron is less well known. The aim of the present cross‐sectional study was to evaluate potential genotoxic effects of exposure to arsenic, while considering exposure to...

Numerous studies have shown that pesticide exposure is linked to adverse health outcomes. Nevertheless, in Bolivia, where there is an increasing use of pesticides, including those restricted or banned in industrialized nations, the literature is spare. To address knowledge gaps and guide future research in Bolivia, we conducted a scoping review cro...

Elevated concentrations of arsenic, lithium and boron in drinking water have already been reported in the Bolivian Andes. Arsenic causes genotoxicity but that caused by lithium and boron is less well known. The aim of the present study was to evaluate associations between arsenic, lithium and boron exposure and genotoxicity, while taking genetic su...

Background: Multiple epidemiological studies have shown that exposure to pesticides is associated with adverse health outcomes. However, the literature on pesticide-related health effects in the Latin American and the Caribbean (LAC) region, an area of intensive agricultural and residential pesticide use, is sparse. We conducted a scoping review t...

Humans living in the Andes Mountains have been historically exposed to arsenic from natural sources, including drinking water. Enzymatic methylation of arsenic allows it to be excreted more efficiently by the human body. Adaptation to high-arsenic environments via enhanced methylation and excretion of arsenic was first reported in indigenous women...

Background Women living in the Bolivian Andes are environmentally exposed to arsenic, yet there is scarce information about arsenic-related effects in this region. Several biomarkers for telomere length and oxidative stress (mitochondrial DNA copy number, mtDNAcn; 8-Oxo-2′-deoxyguanosine, 8-oxo-dG; and 4-hydroxy nonenal mercapturic acid, 4-HNE-MA)...

We previously showed that farmers in Bolivia are exposed to many pesticides, some at elevated levels, and that this was associated with increased risk of genetic damage. To improve the understanding of possible mixture effects, the cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of pesticides were studied in vitro using human liver HepG2 cells. The studied pesticide...

Indigenous people living in the Bolivian Andes are exposed through their drinking water to inorganic arsenic, a potent carcinogen. However, the health consequences of arsenic exposure in this region are unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate associations between arsenic exposure and changes in cancer-related proteins in indigenous women (n...

The use of pesticides has increased during the past decades, also increasing the risk of exposure to toxic pesticides that can cause detrimental health effects in the future. This is of special concern among farmers in low-to-middle-income countries that may lack proper training in the safe use of these chemicals. To assess the situation in Bolivia...

An amendment to this paper has been published and can be accessed via a link at the top of the paper. In the original Article, co-author Ulla Stenius’ surname was misspelled as Ulla Steinus. This has been corrected in the PDF, HTML and XML versions of this Article.

In South America, the second highest plateau on Earth referred to as the “Altiplano-Puna”, which encompasses areas of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Perú, exhibits high arsenic (As) concentrations in water that could be affecting 3 million inhabitants.

During the past decades, farmers in low to middle-income countries have increased their use of pesticides, and thereby the risk of being exposed to potentially genotoxic chemicals that can cause adverse health effects. Here, the aim was to investigate the correlation between exposure to pesticides and genotoxic damage in a Bolivian agricultural pop...

Elevated concentrations of arsenic in water supplies represent a worldwide health concern. In at least 14 countries of South America, high levels have been detected relative to international standards and guidelines. Within these countries, the high plateau referred to as the “Altiplano-Puna”, encompassing areas of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Pe...

Elevated concentrations of inorganic arsenic, one of the most potent environmental toxicants and carcinogens, have been detected in well water around Lake Poopó Bolivia. This study aimed to assess human exposure to arsenic in villages around Lake Poopó and also to elucidate whether the metabolism and detoxification of arsenic in this population is...

La región del Altiplano-Puna es una superficie de 5•10 5 km 2 localizada en el NW de Argentina, SW de Bolivia, NE de Chile y SE de Perú. Este plateau se extiende por 1800 km NS y 350-400 km EW a 3800 m s.n.m. (Allmendinger, 1986). El Altiplano corresponde a una superficie plana al norte de los 22°S; la Puna se localiza al sur de esa latitud y tiene...

Pyrethroid pesticides have been suggested to be a cause of Parkinson disease and other neurodegenerative diseases. To investigate this, a cross-sectional study was conducted among 120 Bolivian public health vector program spray men, primarily exposed to pyrethroids. Pesticide exposure and central nervous system (CNS) symptoms were determined by a s...

Objective: To asses the genotoxic risk in shoeshine boys who are constantly exposed to shoe polish and its components. Material and methods: The study was cross-sectional (exposed and controls) and of cross over trials. It was studied 53 shoe shiners (exposed group) and 24 controls. The buccal cytome technique was applied on children for determinin...

Los plaguicidas son compuestos químicos, biológicamente activos, que provocan efectos adversos sobre el medio ambiente y la salud, estos efectos pueden tardar años en manifestarse, los agricultores constituyen el grupo de mayor riesgo. Se realizó un estudio empleando biomarcadores de efecto para medir el daño en el DNA y biomarcadores de susceptibi...

Pesticides are one of the toxic chemicals most frequently found in the environment. Farmers who are exposed to pesticides suffer from constant and chronic exposure and thus constitute a risk group. The present study investigated the frequency and the influence of GSTM1 and GSTT1 polymorphisms in the exposure (cholinesterase) and effect (sister chro...

The objective was to assess the frequency of micronucleus in epithelial cells of the oral mucosa, to determine DNA damage as an indication of chromosome breakage or mitotic interference in 200 college students from the Faculty of Medicine of theUniversidad Mayor de San Andres in La Paz city (3600 metersa bove sea level) and Alto (4100 m.a.s.l.), ex...

Background Pesticides are of concern in Bolivia because of increasing use. Frequent intoxications have been demonstrated due to use of very toxic pesticides, insufficient control of distribution and sale and little knowledge among farmers of protective measures and hygienic procedures. Method Questionnaires were applied and blood tests taken from...

Pesticides are of concern in Bolivia because of increasing use. Frequent intoxications have been demonstrated due to use of very toxic pesticides, insufficient control of distribution and sale and little knowledge among farmers of protective measures and hygienic procedures. Questionnaires were applied and blood tests taken from 81 volunteers from...