RESUMO
We previously reported that asthma prevalence was higher in the United States (US) compared to Mexico (MX) (25.8% vs. 8.4%). This investigation assessed differences in microbial dust composition in relation to demographic and housing characteristics on both sides of the US-MX Border. Forty homes were recruited in the US and MX. Home visits collected floor dust and documented occupants' demographics, asthma prevalence, housing structure, and use characteristics. US households were more likely to have inhabitants who reported asthma when compared with MX households (30% vs. 5%) and had significantly different flooring types. The percentage of households on paved roads, with flushing toilets, with piped water and with air conditioning was higher in the US, while dust load was higher in MX. Significant differences exist between countries in the microbial composition of the floor dust. Dust from Mexican homes was enriched with Alishewanella, Paracoccus, Rheinheimera genera and Intrasporangiaceae family. A predictive metagenomics analysis identified 68 significantly differentially abundant functional pathways between US and MX. This study documented multiple structural, environmental, and demographic differences between homes in the US and MX that may contribute to significantly different microbial composition of dust observed in these two countries.
Assuntos
Poeira , Habitação , Poeira/análise , Arizona , Humanos , México , Asma/epidemiologia , Asma/microbiologia , Bactérias/genética , Bactérias/classificação , Bactérias/isolamento & purificação , Feminino , Características da Família , Masculino , Metagenômica/métodosRESUMO
While the US-Mexico border region has had increasing restrictions due to coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19), the economically and socially integrated region continues to facilitate necessary movement between the two countries. Binational partners representing universities, government, and health delivery worked together to develop a COVID-19 Virtual Seminar for the US-Mexico Border Region, which consisted of weekly sessions in Spanish designed to better facilitate communication and collaborative systems between border states. In total 835 participants registered for the virtual seminar with attendance ranging from 394 in Session 1 to 269 in Session 6. From evaluation surveys (n = 297), organizers observed a large plurality of healthcare professionals, followed by students, researchers, and government employees. The seminar's contribution to increasing collaborative and communication systems identified major needs in the region surrounding surveillance and monitoring; increased resources for migrant shelters to control outbreaks; an increase in personal protective equipment; tracking binational cases.
Assuntos
COVID-19 , Comunicação , Congressos como Assunto , COVID-19/epidemiologia , COVID-19/prevenção & controle , Humanos , México , Pandemias , SARS-CoV-2RESUMO
Expanding agribusiness in Northern Mexico has increased demand for workers from Southern Mexico, with hundreds of thousands migrating for work annually. Extreme temperatures, physical labor, and low fluid consumption place workers at risk for heat strain and dehydration, commonly underreported hazards in the agricultural industry. The objectives of this pilot study were to assess heat exposure and hydration status of a population of migratory agricultural workers in Northern Mexico throughout the grape harvest season. In addition to demographic information, environmental conditions, hydration status, and core body temperatures were collected. The majority listed Chiapas as their home state, nearly half spoke an Indigenous language, and none had completed high school. The wet-bulb globe temperature was significantly higher during the harvest and post-harvest seasons compared to the pre-harvest season. Across the different seasons, the majority were dehydrated post-shift, and mean core body temperature of workers was not significantly different. This project highlights the need for targeted interventions to improve hydration and prevent heat stress in this region. As the number of warm days is expected to rise each year worldwide, it will be increasingly important to engage in practices to protect vulnerable populations, such as migratory agriculture workers.
Assuntos
Desidratação , Fazendeiros , Transtornos de Estresse por Calor , Exposição Ocupacional , Adulto , Resposta ao Choque Térmico , Temperatura Alta , Humanos , México , Projetos Piloto , Adulto JovemRESUMO
Expanding agribusiness in Sonora, a state in Northern Mexico, has increased the demand for temporary migrant agricultural workers. Sonora is one of the top states in Mexico for pesticide utilization. We conducted an exploratory study to evaluate exposure to organophosphate (OP) and pyrethroid pesticides among migrant farmworkers. A sample of 20 migrant farmworkers was recruited from a large commercial grape farm during the harvest season. We administered a questionnaire on work activities, exposure characteristics, and socio-demographics. We collected urine samples to quantify pesticide metabolite concentrations. Most participants were originally from the state of Chiapas, Mexico, none had completed high school, and about half spoke an indigenous language as well as Spanish. The majority of participants had detectable concentrations of pyrethroid and organophosphate biomarkers. Geometric mean creatinine-adjusted concentrations for 3-phenoxybenzoic acid (1.83 µg/g), trans-3-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane carboxylic acid (0.88 µg/g), 4-fluoro-3-phenoxybenzoic acid (0.94 µg/g), 3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinol (3.56 µg/g), and para-nitrophenol (0.63 µg/g) were significantly higher than in the general United States' population and Mexican Americans. Our results also suggest that migrant farmworkers in this region are exposed to pesticides at higher levels than other farmworkers' studies. Farmworkers' age, language, training on personal protective equipment, time at the farm, and season, were significant exposure determinants.