Situación y perspectivas de la economía mexicana, nueva época, año 7, núm. 23, enero-abril 2017

Hoy más que nunca es evidente el agotamiento del modelo de desarrollo vigente tanto a nivel nacional como mundial. A nivel global existen señales de estancamiento productivo, mayor inflación, y una gran incertidumbre sobre el futuro del orden económico y político prevaleciente. La reciente elección presidencial de Estados Unidos y el resurgimiento de gobiernos que promueven el proteccionismo, la xenofobia, y la intolerancia son el reflejo de las fallas estructurales del modelo globalizador no solo a nivel económico, sino también a nivel social y político. No se puede negar que el modelo globalizador ha sido muy exitoso en la generación de riqueza durante tres décadas, sin embargo ha generado una excesiva concentración de la misma y una profunda desigualdad. De hecho, podemos identificar claramente la existencia de numerosos sectores que se han visto más beneficiados que otros con el proceso de globalización y expansión del libre comercio. Hoy día, los grupos más afectados han mostrado que empujaran cambios por vías tanto políticas como violentas, lo cual supone un gran riesgo a la estabilidad mundial. Hay que recordar que los ganadores en el modelo globalizador han sido los sectores exportadores y financieros más competitivos y no se incluyó a los sectores menos productivos y marginados, que con seguridad votaran contra el “establishment” cada vez que puedan. En este contexto, el proteccionismo económico ha resurgido como una posible alternativa a las fallas del modelo basado en el liberalismo económico

Biomonitoring with Micronuclei Test in Buccal Cells of Female Farmers and Children Exposed to Pesticides of Maneadero Agricultural Valley, Baja California, Mexico

Feminization of the agricultural labor is common in Mexico; these women and their families are vulnerable to several health risks including genotoxicity. Previous papers have presented contradictory information with respect to indirect exposure to pesticides and DNA damage. We aimed to evaluate the genotoxic effect in buccal mucosa from female farmers and children, working in the agricultural valley of Maneadero, Baja California. Frequencies of micronucleated cells (MNc) and nuclear abnormalities (NA) in 2000 cells were obtained from the buccal mucosa of the study population (n=144), divided in four groups: (1) farmers (n=37), (2) unexposed (n=35), (3) farmers’ children (n=34), and (4) unexposed children (n=38). We compared frequencies of MNc and NA and fitted generalized linear models to investigate the interaction between these variables and exposition to pesticides. Differences were found between farmers and unexposed women in MNc (p<0.0001), CC (p=0.3376), and PN (p<0.0001). With respect to exposed children, we found higher significant frequencies in MNc (p<0.0001), LN (p<0.0001), CC (p<0.0001), and PN (p<0.004) when compared to unexposed children. Therefore working as a farmer is a risk for genotoxic damage; more importantly indirectly exposed children were found to have genotoxic damage, which is of concern, since it could aid in future disturbances of their health

Biomonitoring with Micronuclei Test in Buccal Cells of Female Farmers and Children Exposed to Pesticides of Maneadero Agricultural Valley, Baja California, Mexico

Feminization of the agricultural labor is common in Mexico; these women and their families are vulnerable to several health risks including genotoxicity. Previous papers have presented contradictory information with respect to indirect exposure to pesticides and DNA damage. We aimed to evaluate the genotoxic effect in buccal mucosa from female farmers and children, working in the agricultural valley of Maneadero, Baja California. Frequencies of micronucleated cells (MNc) and nuclear abnormalities (NA) in 2000 cells were obtained from the buccal mucosa of the study population ( = 144), divided in four groups: (1) farmers ( = 37), (2) unexposed ( = 35), (3) farmers&apos; children ( = 34), and (4) unexposed children ( = 38). We compared frequencies of MNc and NA and fitted generalized linear models to investigate the interaction between these variables and exposition to pesticides. Differences were found between farmers and unexposed women in MNc ( &lt; 0.0001), CC ( = 0.3376), and PN ( &lt; 0.0001). With respect to exposed children, we found higher significant frequencies in MNc ( &lt; 0.0001), LN ( &lt; 0.0001), CC ( &lt; 0.0001), and PN ( &lt; 0.004) when compared to unexposed children. Therefore working as a farmer is a risk for genotoxic damage; more importantly indirectly exposed children were found to have genotoxic damage, which is of concern, since it could aid in future disturbances of their health

Argovit™ Silver Nanoparticles Effects on Allium cepa: Plant Growth Promotion without Cyto Genotoxic Damage

Due to their antibacterial and antiviral effects, silver nanoparticles (AgNP) are one of the most widely used nanomaterials worldwide in various industries, e.g., in textiles, cosmetics and biomedical-related products. Unfortunately, the lack of complete physicochemical characterization and the variety of models used to evaluate its cytotoxic/genotoxic effect make comparison and decision-making regarding their safe use difficult. In this work, we present a systematic study of the cytotoxic and genotoxic activity of the commercially available AgNPs formulation Argovit&trade; in Allium cepa. The evaluated concentration range, 5&ndash;100 &micro;g/mL of metallic silver content (85&ndash;1666 &micro;g/mL of complete formulation), is 10&ndash;17 times higher than the used for other previously reported polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-AgNP formulations and showed no cytotoxic or genotoxic damage in Allium cepa. Conversely, low concentrations (5 and 10 &micro;g/mL) promote growth without damage to roots or bulbs. Until this work, all the formulations of PVP-AgNP evaluated in Allium cepa regardless of their size, concentration, or the exposure time had shown phytotoxicity. The biological response observed in Allium cepa exposed to Argovit&trade; is caused by nanoparticles and not by silver ions. The metal/coating agent ratio plays a fundamental role in this response and must be considered within the key physicochemical parameters for the design and manufacture of safer nanomaterials