Developmental neurotoxicity of pesticides

Beskrivelse

Developmental Neurotoxicity of Pesticides

Helle Raun Andersen

Abstract

Pesticides are designed to protect crops against unwanted species, such as weeds, insects, and fungus. Many compounds target the nervous system of insects. Because of the similarity in brain biochemistry, such pesticides may also be neurotoxic to humans and the developing brain is particularly vulnerable. Current requirements for safety testing of pesticides do not include developmental neurotoxicity and therefore no systematic data exist for most pesticides currently used in Europe. 

Experimental studies using model compounds for different groups of pesticides suggest that many can cause developmental neurotoxicity. A growing number of epidemiological studies confirm that exposure to pesticides prenatally and /or during infancy can cause adverse effects on brain development and these effects can be severe and irreversible. A recent study of Ecuadorian school-children, whose mothers had worked in greenhouses during pregnancy, strongly indicates that prenatal exposure to pesticides - at levels without clinical manifestations in the mother - can cause lasting effects on brain development corresponding to a delay of almost two years. In addition to neurotoxicity as such, endocrine disruption may also affect brain development. Results from school-age children whose mother worked with fungicides in Danish greenhouses, indicate than short-term prenatal exposures might cause effects, especially in genetically susceptible children.