Cristais líquidos são sistemas que se apresentam em um estado intermediário entre o estado sólido e líquido. A monoleína é um lipídio polar com capacidade de formar diferentes tipos de cristais líquidos liotrópicos na presença de água, caracterizados como fase lamelar, cúbica e hexagonal. Devido à capacidade de controlar a liberação dos fármacos incorporados e às propriedades mucoadesivas, estes sistemas são considerados potenciais veículos para a liberação controlada de fármacos na mucosa bucal. Sabendo que o desenvolvimento da cárie e doença periodontal está relacionado com a formação do biofilme, é necessário seu controle e prevenção para manutenção da saúde bucal. Dentre os agentes químicos disponíveis para prevenir e/ou diminuir a formação do biofilme, cloreto de cetilpiridínio (CCP), polihexametileno biguanida (PHMB) e Triclosan® têm sido amplamente utilizados. Em vista disso, o objetivo deste estudo foi desenvolver e caracterizar sistemas líquido-cristalinos de fase lamelar e cúbica formados por monoleína e água contendo antimicrobianos com aplicabilidade bucal. Os sistemas foram desenvolvidos usando monoleína e água e os antimicrobianos avaliados foram o CCP, o PHMB e o Triclosan®. A formação das fases líquido-cristalinas com e sem a presença de cada fármaco estudado foi identificada por microscopia de luz polarizada. Além disso, foi avaliado o intumescimento dos sistemas contendo os fármacos estudados após contato com saliva artificial; a atividade antimicrobiana e o perfil de liberação in vitro, bem como o tempo de permanência e a força de mucoadesão ex vivo em mucosa de bochecha de porco. Foi possível obter os sistemas líquido-cristalinos para os fármacos avaliados, e o intumescimento de todos os sistemas foi caracterizado como cinética de segunda ordem. Os resultados do perfil de liberação e da atividade antimicrobiana in vitro para PHMB e Triclosan® foram favoráveis para aplicação bucal, no entanto, o CCP não é adequado para veiculação neste sistema. O perfil de liberação dos fármacos à partir desses sistemas foi influenciado pelas propriedades físico-químicas e concentração dos fármacos, bem como pelo intumescimento. Ainda, a fase lamelar apresentou maior tempo de permanência que a fase cúbica e a força de mucoadesão média da fase lamelar foi de 1,02 ± 0,50 N e da fase cúbica foi de 0,45 ± 0,10 N. Logo, os sistemas líquido-cristalinos de monoleína e água são um interessante veículo com potencial para liberação controlada dos antimicrobianos PHMB e Triclosan® na mucosa bucal com o objetivo de otimizar a eficácia destes fármacos. / Liquid crystals are systems which are in an intermediate state between solids and liquids. Monoolein is a polar lipid capable of forming different types of lyotropic liquid crystals in aqueous environment, which can be classified into lamellar, cubic and hexagonal mesophases. Due to its ability to control drug release and its mucoadhesive properties, these systems have been considerated as potential vehicle to control drug release on buccal mucosa. Based on the knowledge that the development of caries and periodontal disease is related to the biofilm formation, it is necessary their control and prevention to maintain the buccal health. Among the available chemical agents to prevent and/or reduce biofilm formation, cetylpyridinium chloride (CPC), polyhexamethylene biguanide (PHMB) and Triclosan® have been widely used. Based on these facts, the objective of this study was to develop and characterize liquid-crystalline systems formed by monoolein and water, containing antimicrobial agents with buccal applicability. The systems were developed using monoolein and water, and the antimicrobial agents evaluated were CCP, PHMB and Triclosan®. The liquid-crystalline phases with and without the presence of each drug was identified by polarized light microscopy. Furthermore, it was evaluated the swelling of the systems containing the drugs studied after contact with artificial saliva; the in vitro antimicrobial activity and its release profile, as well as the residence time and ex vivo mucoadhesion strength on pig cheek mucosa. It was possible to obtain liquid-crystalline phases for all drugs, and the swelling of all systems was characterized according to second-order kinetics. The results of release profile and antimicrobial activity in vitro to PHMB and Triclosan® were favorable for buccal application, however CCP is not suitable to be released from these systems. The drug release profile from these systems was influenced by the physicochemical properties and loading of the drugs, as well as by swelling. Furthermore, the lamellar phase showed greater residence time that the cubic phase and the mucoadhesion strength average of lamellar phase was 1.02 ± 0.50 N and for cubic phase was 0.45 ± 0.10 N. Thus, the liquid crystalline systems forming by monoolein and water are an interesting vehicle with potential to control release of the PHMB and Triclosan® on the buccal mucosa in order to optimize the drug effectiveness.

L'objectif de cette thèse a été de développer une forme galénique pour l'administration locale d'antiseptiques dans le traitement de lésions buccales. De par la présence de la salive et des mécanismes de déglutition et de mastication, le temps de séjour des principes actifs dans la cavité buccale est court ce qui conduit à une faible efficacité thérapeutique locale. Ainsi, l'encapsulation de principes actifs dans des microparticules mucoadhésives à base de pectine a été envisagée. Deux antiseptiques couramment utilisés dans le traitement des lésions buccales ont été retenus : la chlorhexidine (CX) et l'hexétidine (HX). Le procédé utilisé pour l'encapsulation de l'HX consiste en la gélification ionique de pectine contenue dans la phase aqueuse d'une émulsion double L/H/L par l'ajout de Ca2+. L'influence des paramètres de procédé et de formulation sur l'efficacité d'encapsulation de l'actif a été étudiée à l'aide d'un plan d'expériences. Dans le cas de la CX, les essais préliminaires ont mis en évidence des interactions entre l'actif et la pectine conduisant à la gélification du polymère sans utilisation d'ions Ca2+. Des études physicochimiques ont donc été réalisées afin d'investiguer ces interactions et de comparer le mécanisme de gélification observé à celui de la gélification ionique de la pectine par les ions Ca2+. Des mécanismes de gélification similaires ont été observés pour ces deux cations divalents avec de plus fortes interactions entre la pectine et la CX. Puis des microparticules de pectine et CX ont été développées par prilling sans ajout d'ions. L'influence de l'ajout de Zn2+ dans la formulation sur les propriétés des microparticules a finalement été étudiée / The aim of this project was to develop a dosage form for antiseptics local administration in order to treat buccal injuries. Due to the presence of saliva in association with swallowing and chewing, actives substances have a short retention time in the buccal cavity and thus a low therapeutic efficacy. To resolve this problem, the encapsulation of active agents in pectin mucoadhesive microparticles was studied. For this purpose, two widely used antiseptics have been selected: chlorhexidine and hexetidine. Hexetidine encapsulation was obtained by performing calcium-induced ionic gelation of the pectin aqueous solution involved in a double emulsion L/H/L. The influence of both process and formulation parameters on encapsulation efficiency were studied by using an experimental design. In the case of chlorhexidine, preliminary experiments highlighted interactions between the active substance and pectin leading to polymer gelation without the use of additional Ca2+ dications. Hence, pectin/chlorhexidine interactions were investigated by several physico-chemical studies and the corresponding gelation mechanism was compared to that of the well-known pectin ionic gelation induced by Ca2+ ions. Similar binding processes were observed for both divalent ions, though stronger interactions were observed with chlorhexidine. Pectin/chlorhexidine microparticles were then developed by prilling (vibrational jet technique) without additional Ca2+ ions. Finally, the influence of zinc dications addition in the formulation on the microparticle properties (size, encapsulation efficiency, drug release kinetics) was evaluated

Magister Chirurgiae Dentium (MChD) / The South African population is made up of Blacks, Whites, Coloureds and Asians. Since each population group is distinct in its culture and habits and have widely differing life styles and socioeconomic levels an ideal oppurtunity exists for the study of environmental influences on the aetiology of particular cancers. In addition accurate epidemiological data is essential in order to assess changing .patterns of the disease and the efficacy of the prevention programmes. The aim of this study was to etermine age standardised incidence rates and age specific morbidity rates of intra-oral squamous cell carcinoma for Blacks on the Witwatersrand. All new cases of intra-oral cancer during the period (1971-1980) were traced. The population at risk was determined from the National Population Censuses of 1970 and 1980. According to the method used in the International Union Against Cancers (U.I.C.C.) publication (Waterhouse et al 1976 and 1982) age standardised incidence rates and age specific morbidity rates were calculated for tongue, floor of mouth, buccal mucosa, hard and soft palates and gingivae and alveolar ridge using standard World, European and African populations. These results indicate that in the population group studied intra-oral cancer is much more common in males and than females (5,55:1 standardised rates) most commonly affects the tongue followed by the floor of mouth, palate, buccal mucosa and gingivae and alveolar ridge and is a disease of the elderly occurring most commonly in the seventh decade in males and in the sixth decade in females. When compared with standardised rates reported, either for Blacks in other geographic locations in South Africa, or for other population groups in this country, or for selected countries elsewhere in the World, important differences have emerged which probably reflect differences in exposure to specific aetiological agents amongst the various population groups compared.

We have studied the effect of interferon α (IFN-α) on MHC class II expression by human buccal epithelial cells (BEC), and mRNA expression by BEC and mucosal-associated mononuclear cells (MAMC). In 6 experiments, freshly collected BEC were suspended at a concentration of 1.0 x 105/ml in RPMI 1640 and incubated in the presence of 0-10000 IU/ml of human lymphoblastoid IFN-α (HuIFN-α). Zero and six hour samples were analyzed by single color flow cytometry using FITC-labeled murine IgG1 monoclonal antibody to HLA-DR. Preparations were also analyzed for expression of cytokine transcripts (IL-2 IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-8, IFN-γ, GM-CSF) by reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Increasing concentrations of IFN-α resulted in proportionate increases in the percentage of HLA-DR + BEC (r = 0.7897, p = 0.0627) and in the percentage of HLA-DR + staining at higher intensities (101 to 102 log fluorescence intensity) (LFI) (r = 0.40l0, p = 0.0424). The percentage of HLA-DR + BEC rose from a mean of 1.5% with no IFN-α to 7% with 10000 IU/ml IFN-α (p < 0.05). The percentage of HLA-DR + BEC staining at 101 to 102 LFI rose from a mean of 8.3% with no added IFN-α to 19.2% with 10000 IU/ml IFN-α (p <0.05). Unstimulated BEC constitutively expressed IL-8 and GM-CSF. IFN-α stimulated preparations also expressed IFN-γ, possibly due to the presence of MAMC, which comprised 2-9% of the total cell population. These data indicated that HuIFN-α upregulates MHC class II expression by human BEC, possibly by enhancing IFN-γ production by MAMC present in the culture preparations.

Based on the biochemical composition and structure of the buccal mucosa, drugs can permeate by the lipoidal and/or aqueous pathways. In this regard, the buccal mucosa is similar to skin. As the unionized drug form is the major permeant across skin, flux depends predominantly on the thermodynamic activity of this species. In contrast, ionized drug has been demonstrated to contribute significantly to the permeability across the buccal mucosa due to the presence of large amounts of polar lipids. The contributions of the individual activities of these species is however, not known. Therefore, the first objective of this study was to delineate the thermodynamic activities of ionized and unionized species and to determine their role in governing the total flux across buccal membrane. The flux of model acidic (nimesulide) and basic (bupivacaine) drugs across buccal mucosa either increased (nimesulide) or decreased (bupivacaine) with pH under saturated conditions depending on an increase (nimesulide) or decrease (bupivacaine) in the degree of saturation of ionized species (DS ionized ). At sub-saturated drug concentrations, a decrease in nimesulide flux and an increase in bupivacaine flux were observed with pH due to corresponding changes in DS unionized . For nimesulide and bupivacaine, the contributions of the ionized and unionized species to total flux are equal when 90% of the drug is in the ionized form. In conclusion, the contribution of the ionized form activity to flux was significant. A lack of a specific model for predicting buccal permeability has led to the use of transdermal models such as the Potts-Guy model. However, it is hypothesized that based on the above conclusion, this model might lead to erroneous permeability predictions. In the second part of this dissertation, a specific model was developed and validated by performing permeation studies of 15 small molecules across porcine buccal mucosa. Molecular volume, lipophilicity, number of hydrogen bond donors and number of rotatable bonds were found to be the most significant descriptors governing buccal permeability (logK p ) based on stepwise regression analysis. An excellent fit with an adjusted R 2 of 0.946 and a Q 2 of 0.882 were obtained. A good correlation was observed between the observed and predicted logK p values for an external data set.

No description available.

No description available.

Background: Dogs with acquired chronic liver disease often have hemostatic derangements. It is currently unknown whether dogs with acquired chronic liver disease have decreased platelet function and alterations in von Willebrand factor (vWF) that may contribute to hemostatic abnormalities. Hypothesis: Dogs with chronic liver disease have prolonged platelet closure time (CT), assessed with the PFA-100®, and buccal mucosal bleeding time (BMBT), and increased vWF concentration compared to healthy dogs. Animals: Eighteen dogs with chronic acquired liver disease undergoing ultrasound-guided needle biopsy of the liver or laparoscopic liver biopsy and eighteen healthy age-matched control dogs. Methods: Prospective study. BMBT, CT using the PFA-100®, and vWF antigen were measured in dogs with chronic liver enzyme elevation undergoing ultrasound-guided needle biopsy of the liver or laparoscopic liver biopsy. After undergoing ultrasound-guided needle biopsy, dogs were monitored for hemorrhage with serial packed cell volume measurements and focused assessment with sonography. An unpaired t-test was used for normally distributed data and the Mann-Whitney test was used when non-Gaussian distribution was present. The level of significance was set at P <0.05. Results: The CT was not different between the two groups (P = 0.27). The BMBT was significantly longer in the liver disease group compared to the control group (P = 0.019). There was no difference in the mean vWF antigen of the two groups (P = 0.077). Conclusions and clinical relevance: These results demonstrate mild impairment of primary hemostasis in dogs with chronic liver disease based on prolongation of BMBT. / Master of Science / Background: Dogs with chronic liver disease often have abnormal blood clotting activity. It is currently unknown whether dogs with chronic liver disease have decreased platelet function and alterations in von Willebrand factor (vWF) that may contribute to blood clotting abnormalities. Platelet function can be assessed using the PFA-100®, which measures platelet closure time (CT), and buccal mucosal bleeding time (BMBT). The PFA-100 simulates blood in circulation to assess platelet function. BMBT is a crude but readily available test to assess platelet function in practices without sophisticated methods of assessing platelet function. Hypothesis: Dogs with chronic liver disease have prolonged CT and BMBT, which both suggest platelet dysfunction. Additionally, dogs with chronic liver disease have increased vWF concentration compared to healthy dogs. Animals: Eighteen dogs with chronic acquired liver disease undergoing ultrasound-guided needle biopsy of the liver or laparoscopic liver biopsy and eighteen healthy age-matched control dogs. Methods: Prospective study. BMBT, CT, and vWF antigen were measured in dogs with chronic liver disease undergoing ultrasound-guided needle biopsy of the liver or laparoscopic liver biopsy. After undergoing ultrasound-guided needle biopsy, dogs were monitored for hemorrhage. Results: The CT was not different between the two groups but the BMBT was significantly longer in the liver disease group compared to healthy dogs. There was no difference in the mean vWF antigen between the two groups. Conclusions and clinical relevance: These results demonstrate mild impairment of blood clotting activity in dogs with chronic liver disease based on prolongation of BMBT compared to healthy dogs. Prolongation of BMBT compared to healthy dogs is suggestive of endothelial dysfunction and/or platelet dysfunction in dogs with chronic liver disease.

Made available in DSpace on 2011-05-04T12:36:25Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2009 / O serviço de Saúde Bucal no município de São Paulo é realizado pela rede de Unidades Básicas de Saúde, englobando unidades com e sem Estratégia Saúde da Família. O trabalho em equipe é uma prioridade na saúde bucal e busca uma maior qualidade no atendimento e uma mudança do modelo de atenção. A Escola Técnica do SUS do Município de São Paulo oferece cursos de formação profissional com vistas a capacitar trabalhadores mais comprometidos com o SUS, onde os alunos aprendem praticando e, ao praticar, se apropriam dos princípios científicos que estão na base da organização do trabalho em saúde. Alunos e profissionais de Saúde Bucal que atuam como docentes buscam modificar o próprio processo de trabalho, promovendo uma nova prática com vistas à mudança do perfil epidemiológico e do modelo de atenção. A Qualificação do Auxiliar em Saúde Bucal é uma das etapas (itinerário) da formação do Técnico em Saúde Bucal. O Currículo do Técnico em Saúde Bucal tem como pressuposto contribuir para a melhoria da qualidade da atenção em saúde bucal prestada à população,rompendo com as barreiras de uma visão fragmentada e parcial da atenção. O objetivo principal deste estudo é analisar mudanças ocorridas na prática dos serviços de saúde bucal e na vida pessoal dos egressos e dos docentes/ odontólogos, que participaram docurso de formação profissional em Saúde Bucal, realizado na ETSUS-SP, na região Leste do Município de São Paulo, entre dezembro de 2003 e agosto de 2005. A pesquisa é de natureza qualitativa. O método escolhido é a entrevista de Grupo Focal dirigida aos egressos do curso e aos odontólogos que atu aram como docentes deste curso. A A técnica do grupo focal oferece oportunidade para o desenvolvimento de teorizações em campo, a partir do ocorrido e do falado e é muito utilizada na área da saúde. Para definir o perfil dos participantes aplicou-se aos mesmos um questionário antes da realização dos grupos focais. O material obtido foi digitado, interpretado e analisado em seu conteúdo temático. Os resultados apontam que a formação profissional oferece aos egressos a oportunidade de retomarem os estudos formais, pela exigência de certificado de ensino fundamental, a possibilidade de ascensão profissional e o reconhecimento de um trabalho mais qualificado por parte de gestores, colegas de trabalho, usuários das unidades de saúde, familiares e comunidade. O aprendizado traz uma consciência mais crítica aos egressos, que se mostram capazes de atuar como formadores de opiniões e promover mudanças de hábitos e atitudes em sua vida pessoal e profissional. Eles sepercebem portadores de direitos por meio do incentivo de uma política pública. Aos odontólogos/docentes, a participação neste processo de formação trouxe a possibilidade de se atualizarem, reverem a própria prática e retomarem os estudos. Conclui-se que a metodologia da problematização, usada pela ETSUS-SP propicia momentos de reflexões aos atores envolvidos e faz com que se sintam sujeitos participativos de ações transformadoras em um contexto mais amplo do ponto de vista social, econômico e político. / The Buccal Health service in the city of São Paulo is performed by the net of the Health Basic Units which comprehends units with or without Family Health Strategy. Team work is a priority in mouth/buccal/oral health and aims at better quality service and a change in the attention pattern. The SUS Technical School in the City of São Paulo offers courses for professional capacitation with the intent to qualify professionals who are more committed to the SUS, where students learn through practice, and by doing so, get hold of the scientific principles that are on the basis of health work organization. BH students and professionals who perform as professors aim at changing the work process itself, promoting a new practice with a view to changing the epidemiological profile and the attention pattern. The Capacitation of the Dentist’s Office’s Assistant is one of the steps (itinerary) in the capacitation of the Buccal Health Technician. The Buccal Health Technician’s curriculum should contribute to the improvement in the attention quality in the buccal health supplied to the population, breaking the barriers of a partial and fragmented vision of attention. This study’s main objective is to analyze changes that took place in the practice of buccal health service and in the personal lives of the graduates and the professors/odontologists who took part in the course for the professional capacitation of Dentist’s Office’s Assistants that took place at ETSUS-SP in the eastern region of the city of São Paulo, between December 2003 and August 2005. The research has a qualitative nature. The method chosen is the Focal Group interview directed to graduates and the odontologists who are professors there. The focal group technique provides the opportunity for the development of field theories based on what happened and what is told, and is often used in the health area. In order to define the profile of respondents, they were given a questionnaire before focal groups took place. The material obtained was typed, interpreted and analyzed in its thematic content. The results show that professional capacitation offers graduates the opportunity to go back to formal studies because of the demands of a secondary education certificate and the possibility of professional development and the acknowledgment of more qualified work on the part of managers, workmates, users of health units, members of the family and the community. The apprenticeship promotes a more critical awareness in the graduates who have shown their ability to perform as opinion makers and to promote the change of habits and attitude in their personal and professional lives. They understand they have rights through the incentive of a public policy. For odontologists/professors, taking part in this capacitation process makes it possible for them to update their knowledge, to reexamine their own practice and resume their studies. We conclude that the problematization methodology used by ETSUS-SP favors moments of reflex ion for those involved, and makes them feel they are individuals taking part in transformative actions in a wider context from the social, economical and political point of view.

DA CASTANHA DE CAJU Apesar da importância social e econômica do beneficiamento da castanha de caju para o Rio Grande do Norte, a produção ainda é realizada de forma artesanal. Para a coleta da amêndoa da castanha é necessário assá-la. A fumaça gerada durante a queima da castanha possui altas concentrações de Material Particulado (MP) e esse MP produzido é inalado diariamente por grupos familiares por um período que pode exceder a 10 horas diárias. Em geral, os poluentes atmosféricos oriundos da queima de biomassa são potencialmente nocivos a saúde, relacionando-se com eventos de genotoxicidade, aumento no número de internações hospitalares e ambulatoriais, e mortalidade por doenças cardiovasculares e respiratórias. O presente trabalho teve três objetivos principais: 1° Realizar medições na concentração de O3, NO2, MP, Black Carbon (BC) e composição elementar do MP 2,5 provenientes da queima da castanha. 2° Identificar o potencial mutagênico associado ao beneficiamento artesanal da castanha de caju durante a estação seca, chuvosa e intermediária no RN (Brasil) com o auxílio do teste de micronúcleo (MN) em Tradescantia pallida. 3° Verificar o efeito mutagênico da atividade em MN de células esfoliadas de mucosa oral de trabalhadores envolvidos no beneficiamento. Para isso, três locais distintos foram definidos como pontos testes: Ponto 1. Comunidade do Amarelão, situada no perímetro rural do município de João Câmara-RN (local onde ocorre a queima da castanha de caju); Ponto 2. Fazenda Santa Luzia, situada próxima à região de queima da castanha de caju (local com as mesma condições ambientais do Ponto 1, porém sem a influência da atividade); Ponto 3. Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), zona urbana de Natal-RN. Os resultados obtidos para o O3 e NO2 não excederam os limites estabelecidos pela legislação brasileira. No entanto, os resultados da medição de MP obtidos com o medidor portátil \"DUSTTRAK (TM)Aerossol Monitor \" indicou que entre as 8 medições de MP realizadas no Ponto 1, 7 excederam o nível de exposição definido como \"estado de emergência \"descrito na legislação brasileira (500µg/m 3 ), diferindo significativamente dos resultados obtidos nos Pontos 2 e 3 (6µg/m 3 ). As avaliações realizadas nos meses de Janeiro, Maio e Setembro de 2009, com o Mini-sampler confirmaram os resultados previamente obtidos com o \"DUSTTRAK (TM)Aerossol Monitor \".O valor médio de MP 2,5 (Jan - 548,412 µg/m 3 ; Mai - 1022,232 µg/m 3 ; Set - 1291,946 µg/m 3 ) e BC (Jan - 46,798 µg/m 3 ; Mai 70,068- µg/m 3 ; Set - 69,432 µg/m 3 ) obtido nas três campanhas para o Ponto 1 foram significativamente maiores que o Ponto 2 e 3. Para o Ponto 1 os elementos Si, S, Cl, K, Ni, Cu e Zn quando presentes estiveram em concentrações superiores aos Pontos 2 e 3. Os testes de genotoxicidade com T. pallida indicou aumento significativo no número de MN em todas as campanhas. Os resultados com células de mucosa oral humana corroboraram com o biomonitor vegetal, sendo verificado aumento significativo na freqüência de MN. Os resultados obtidos caracterizaram um dos piores níveis de exposição humana ao MP já relatado na literatura, excedendo amplamente os limites da legislação brasileira assim como os da OMS. Os resultados obtidos apresentaram um problema ocupacional grave, sendo necessária intervenção imediata dos gestores públicos na tentativa de minimizar os efeitos lesivos da atividade. / x Despite the social and economic importance of the processing of cashew nuts to Rio Grande do Norte, the production is still carried out artisanally. To collect the almond nut is necessary to roasting. The smoke generated during the burning of the nut has high concentrations of particulate matter (PM) and the PM produced is inhaled daily by families for a period which can exceed 10 hours a day. In general, air pollutants come from burning biomass are potentially harmful to health, relating to genotoxicity events, increase in the number of hospitalizations and outpatient, and mortality from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. This project had three main objectives: 1 Make measurements in the concentration of O3, NO2, MP, Black Carbon (BC) and elemental composition of the PM 2.5 from the combustion of the cashew nut. 2 Identify the mutagenic potential associated with artisanally processing of cashew nut during the dry season, wet and intermediate in RN (Brazil) by using a micronucleus (MN) bioassay of T. pallida tetrads. 3 To investigate the effect of mutagenic activity in exfoliated cells of oral mucosa of workers involved in processing. For this, three test sites were chosen for this purpose: Site 1. the Amarelão community - where the roasting occurs, Site 2. the Santa Luzia farm - an area near the roasting site, though without direct influence on the process and Site 3. the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) - an urban area of Natal, Brazil. The results obtained for the O3 and NO2 do not exceed the limits established by Brazilian legislation. However, the results of the measurement of PM obtained with the portable meter \"DUSTTRAK (TM) Aerosol Monitor\" has indicated that between 8 PM measurements made at Site 1, 7 exceeded the level of exposure defined as \"emergency rule\" described in the Brazilian legislation (500 ? g/m 3 ), differing significantly from the results obtained in Sites 2 and 3 (6 ? g/m 3 ). Evaluations in January, May and September 2009, with the Mini-sampler confirmed the results previously obtained with the \"DUSTTRAK (TM)Aerosol Monitor.The average value of 2.5 MP (Jan - 548.412 mg/m 3 ; May - 1022.232 mg/m 3 ; Set - 1291.946 mg/m 3 ) and BC (Jan - 46.798 mg/m 3 ; May 70.068 - mg/m 3 ; Set - 69.432 mg/m 3 ) obtained in the three campaigns for Site 1 were significantly higher than the Site 2 and 3. To the Site 1 the elements Si, S, Cl, K, Ni, Cu and Zn when present were at concentrations higher than the Sites 2 and 3. Genotoxicity tests with T. pallida showed a significant increase in the number of MN in all campaigns. The results with cells of human oral mucosa have confirmed the biomonitoring, and found significant increase in the frequency of MN. The results marked one of the worst levels of human exposure to PM has been reported in the literature and greatly exceeded the limits of the Brazilian legislation as well as the WHO. The results showed a serious occupational problem, requiring immediate intervention of public officials in an attempt to minimize the harmful effects of the activity.