Using strawberry as a test plant, captan has been shown to inhibit pollen germination when included in or sprayed on the germination medium, or when sprayed on anthers after pollen dehiscence. Toxic effects did not disappear during prolonged germination. However, pollen germination was slightly affected by captan sprayed on the undehisced anthers. When open flowers were sprayed before anther dehiscence, berry set was reduced in the variety Siletz but not in the variety Northwest. When sprayed after anther dehiscence, achene set, and berry development were decreased. The proportion of mishappen fruits increased with captan concentration. Pollination from sprayed anthers was not as effective in fruit setting as control pollination of sprayed pistils. Sprays applied to pistils either just before or just after pollination decreased fruit set. Fruit set was not affected by sprays one day after pollination. Captan therefore seemed to act directly upon pollen germination and not upon the receptivity of the stigma or upon pollen tube growth in the style or upon fertilization. / Land and Food Systems, Faculty of / Graduate

The widespread use of chemicals for the control of diseases, insects, and weeds in the production of alfalfa seed has caused concern with regards to what effect these materials may have on the inherent reproductive potential of the plants. It has been reported that captan (N- (trichloromethylthio)-4-cyclohexene-1,2-dicarboximide) has both a morphological and physiological effect on some plants. The action of this chemical with regards to alfalfa reproduction has not been reported. Demeton (0,0- diethyl O(and S)-2-(ethylthio) ethylphosphorodithioate) is another chemical used in alfalfa seed production for which the direct effects on reproduction have not been studied. Adverse effects have been reported on a number of plant species with the use of organic phosphate insecticides. A selective herbicide, 4(2,4-DB), (2,4-dichlorophenoxybatyric acid) shows promise of being satisfactory for the control of broad-leaf weeds in alfalfa. Work reported on studies of forage and seed yields is quite varied as to the effect of 4(2,4-DB) on alfalfa.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2000. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 250-284).

Os objetivos deste trabalho foram efetuar o levantamento de fungos presentes nas sementes de pau-brasil coletadas em dois locais, no momento da coleta e após o armazenamento; verificar o efeito desses fungos na germinação das sementes antes e durante o período de armazenamento; avaliar a transmissão de fungos encontrados em maior incidência nas sementes e comparar o tratamento de sementes com fungicidas como forma de controle de fungos. Para tanto, o trabalho foi dividido em quatro partes: (1) utilização de sementes do campus da ESALQ/USP, em Piracicaba (SP), coletadas diretamente das árvores e após queda ao solo, armazenadas por 15 dias em ambiente de laboratório e câmara fria; (2) utilizar sementes coletadas diretamente das árvores e após queda ao solo, no campus da ESALQ/USP, em Piracicaba (SP), e coletadas do solo na Reserva Biológica e Estação Experimental de Moji-Guaçu, em Mogi-Guaçu (SP), armazenadas em ambiente e em câmara fria e seca, por 15 e 30 dias; (3) comparar o tratamento de sementes com carboxim+tiram, benomil e captam, a fim de determinar a eficiência no controle dos fungos incidentes; (4) verificar a transmissão de fungos por sementes transplantando plântulas para vasos, avaliando diariamente os sintomas e identificando os patógenos associados. Os resultados mostraram que os fungos incidentes foram Pestalotiopsis sp., Cladosporium cladosporioides, Penicillium sp., Aspergillus sp., Phoma sp., Epicoccum sp. e Alternaria spp. Não houve diferença na incidência de fungos e na porcentagem de plântulas normais entre as sementes coletadas em Piracicaba e em Mogi-Guaçu. A melhor coleta de sementes de pau-brasil no campus da ESALQ/USP foi diretamente das árvores, quando estas tinham aproximadamente 65 dias pós-antese, e foram capazes de originar maior porcentagem de plântulas normais. Em relação ao armazenamento, as sementes mantiveram a germinação até 15 dias de armazenamento em laboratório e os fungos de armazenamento incidentes foram Aspergillus sp. e Penicillium sp. No tratamento com fungicidas, captam foi o fungicida que mais reduziu a incidência dos fungos e preservou a qualidade fisiológica das sementes de pau-brasil, embora seja necessário acertar a dose do fungicida, diminuindo a porcentagem de plântulas anormais e sementes mortas, colaborando para o aumento de plântulas normais capazes de originar mudas sadias. Foi evidenciada a patogenicidade e transmissão de Pestalotiopsis sp. e Cladosporium cladosporioides, causando lesões em cotilédones e hipocótilos de plântulas anormais. / The objectives of this work were carry out the survey of fungi associated with brazilian-wood seeds collected in two places, in the collected moment and during the storage; verify the effect of these fungi in seed germination before and during the storage period; realize the transmission test for the fungi found in higher incidence in seeds and utilize the seed chemical treatment like a way of fungi control. For this, the work had been divided in four parts: (1) utilization of seeds from ESALQ/USP, in Piracicaba (SP), recently collected, collected directly from trees and after drop to soil, stored for 15 days in laboratory environmental and cold chamber; (2) seeds collected directly from trees and after drop to soil, in ESALQ/USP, in Piracicaba (SP), and collected from soil in Biological Forest and Experimental Station of Moji-Guaçu, in Mogi-Guaçu (SP), stored in laboratory and cold chamber, for 15 and 30 days; (3) carry out the seeds treatment with carboxin+thiram, benomyl and captan, to determine the control efficiency in incident fungi; (4) effectuate the fungi transmission test by brazilian-wood seeds, transplanting seedlings to pots and evaluating the symptoms daily, identifying the pathogens associated with them. The results showed that the associated fungi were Pestalotiopsis sp., Cladosporium cladosporioides, Penicillium sp., Aspergillus sp., Phoma sp., Epicoccum sp. e Alternaria spp. There was no difference in fungi incidence and in the normal seedlings percentage between seeds collected in Piracicaba and in Mogi-Guaçu The best collect brazilian-wood seeds in ESALQ/USP was directly from trees, when this had approximately 65 days after anthesis and, originating a higher percentage of normal seedlings. In relation to storage, the seeds kept the germination till 15 days in laboratory and storage fungi associated with seeds was Aspergillus sp. And Penicillium sp. In fungicide treatment, captan was the fungicide that showed a higher reduction in the fungi incidence and preserved the physiological quality of brazilian-wood seeds, however it is necessary adjust the fungicide dose, decreasing the percentage of abnormal seedlings and dead seeds, collaborating for the increase of normal seedlings capable of originate healthy seedlings. The pathogenicity and transmission of Pestalotiopsis sp. and Cladosporium cladosporioides, causing lesions in cotyledons and hypocotylous of abnormal seedlings were evident

Os objetivos deste trabalho foram efetuar o levantamento de fungos presentes nas sementes de pau-brasil coletadas em dois locais, no momento da coleta e após o armazenamento; verificar o efeito desses fungos na germinação das sementes antes e durante o período de armazenamento; avaliar a transmissão de fungos encontrados em maior incidência nas sementes e comparar o tratamento de sementes com fungicidas como forma de controle de fungos. Para tanto, o trabalho foi dividido em quatro partes: (1) utilização de sementes do campus da ESALQ/USP, em Piracicaba (SP), coletadas diretamente das árvores e após queda ao solo, armazenadas por 15 dias em ambiente de laboratório e câmara fria; (2) utilizar sementes coletadas diretamente das árvores e após queda ao solo, no campus da ESALQ/USP, em Piracicaba (SP), e coletadas do solo na Reserva Biológica e Estação Experimental de Moji-Guaçu, em Mogi-Guaçu (SP), armazenadas em ambiente e em câmara fria e seca, por 15 e 30 dias; (3) comparar o tratamento de sementes com carboxim+tiram, benomil e captam, a fim de determinar a eficiência no controle dos fungos incidentes; (4) verificar a transmissão de fungos por sementes transplantando plântulas para vasos, avaliando diariamente os sintomas e identificando os patógenos associados. Os resultados mostraram que os fungos incidentes foram Pestalotiopsis sp., Cladosporium cladosporioides, Penicillium sp., Aspergillus sp., Phoma sp., Epicoccum sp. e Alternaria spp. Não houve diferença na incidência de fungos e na porcentagem de plântulas normais entre as sementes coletadas em Piracicaba e em Mogi-Guaçu. A melhor coleta de sementes de pau-brasil no campus da ESALQ/USP foi diretamente das árvores, quando estas tinham aproximadamente 65 dias pós-antese, e foram capazes de originar maior porcentagem de plântulas normais. Em relação ao armazenamento, as sementes mantiveram a germinação até 15 dias de armazenamento em laboratório e os fungos de armazenamento incidentes foram Aspergillus sp. e Penicillium sp. No tratamento com fungicidas, captam foi o fungicida que mais reduziu a incidência dos fungos e preservou a qualidade fisiológica das sementes de pau-brasil, embora seja necessário acertar a dose do fungicida, diminuindo a porcentagem de plântulas anormais e sementes mortas, colaborando para o aumento de plântulas normais capazes de originar mudas sadias. Foi evidenciada a patogenicidade e transmissão de Pestalotiopsis sp. e Cladosporium cladosporioides, causando lesões em cotilédones e hipocótilos de plântulas anormais. / The objectives of this work were carry out the survey of fungi associated with brazilian-wood seeds collected in two places, in the collected moment and during the storage; verify the effect of these fungi in seed germination before and during the storage period; realize the transmission test for the fungi found in higher incidence in seeds and utilize the seed chemical treatment like a way of fungi control. For this, the work had been divided in four parts: (1) utilization of seeds from ESALQ/USP, in Piracicaba (SP), recently collected, collected directly from trees and after drop to soil, stored for 15 days in laboratory environmental and cold chamber; (2) seeds collected directly from trees and after drop to soil, in ESALQ/USP, in Piracicaba (SP), and collected from soil in Biological Forest and Experimental Station of Moji-Guaçu, in Mogi-Guaçu (SP), stored in laboratory and cold chamber, for 15 and 30 days; (3) carry out the seeds treatment with carboxin+thiram, benomyl and captan, to determine the control efficiency in incident fungi; (4) effectuate the fungi transmission test by brazilian-wood seeds, transplanting seedlings to pots and evaluating the symptoms daily, identifying the pathogens associated with them. The results showed that the associated fungi were Pestalotiopsis sp., Cladosporium cladosporioides, Penicillium sp., Aspergillus sp., Phoma sp., Epicoccum sp. e Alternaria spp. There was no difference in fungi incidence and in the normal seedlings percentage between seeds collected in Piracicaba and in Mogi-Guaçu The best collect brazilian-wood seeds in ESALQ/USP was directly from trees, when this had approximately 65 days after anthesis and, originating a higher percentage of normal seedlings. In relation to storage, the seeds kept the germination till 15 days in laboratory and storage fungi associated with seeds was Aspergillus sp. And Penicillium sp. In fungicide treatment, captan was the fungicide that showed a higher reduction in the fungi incidence and preserved the physiological quality of brazilian-wood seeds, however it is necessary adjust the fungicide dose, decreasing the percentage of abnormal seedlings and dead seeds, collaborating for the increase of normal seedlings capable of originate healthy seedlings. The pathogenicity and transmission of Pestalotiopsis sp. and Cladosporium cladosporioides, causing lesions in cotyledons and hypocotylous of abnormal seedlings were evident

De nombreux travailleurs utilisent le captan et le folpet comme fongicides en agriculture, mais leur exposition n’est pas toujours mesurée de manière spécifique et précise. La surveillance biologique est un excellent outil à cet effet puisqu’elle permet de quantifier l’exposition réelle. Toutefois, la majorité des connaissances toxicologiques pour ces fongicides proviennent d’études sur les animaux, et les données chez l’humain sont limitées. Le but du présent projet est donc de développer des outils de surveillance biologique pour évaluer l’exposition de travailleurs au captan et au folpet. Dans cette perspective, le projet a été subdivisé en trois parties complémentaires, soit i) de développer des méthodes analytiques spécifiques pour quantifier les biomarqueurs d’intérêt du captan, à savoir le tétrahydrophtalimide (THPI), et du folpet, à savoir le phtalimide (PI) et l’acide phtalique, dans le plasma et l’urine; ii) de déterminer la toxicocinétique des deux fongicides en exposant des volontaires de façon aigüe à de faibles doses de captan ou de folpet par voie orale et cutanée dans des conditions semi-contrôlées et en quantifiant les biomarqueurs dans chacune des deux matrices, excepté l’acide phtalique qui a été mesuré seulement dans l’urine; iii) de valider les biomarqueurs d’exposition sélectionnés et d’évaluer l’exposition réelle des travailleurs et les voies prédominantes d’exposition au captan et au folpet en collectant des données biologiques chez des travailleurs en arboriculture et en viticulture lors d’activités de traitement et d’effeuillage pendant sept jours consécutifs. Selon ces travaux, le THPI et le PI sont deux biomarqueurs valides et spécifiques pour quantifier l’exposition au captan et au folpet, respectivement, chez l’humain. En effet, les méthodes développées pour ces deux métabolites sont robustes avec des limites de détection plus sensibles que celles rapportées dans la littérature, un taux de recouvrement de 90% pour le THPI et de 75% pour le PI, une très bonne linéarité (R2>0,99) et une bonne stabilité avec des variations intra- et inter-journalières faibles (RSD<15%). Elles ont permis de déterminer les profils cinétiques des deux métabolites chez les volontaires et chez les travailleurs. Ces derniers indiquent d’ailleurs une élimination rapide, avec une demi-vie d’élimination dans l’urine de 11,7 h et 18,7 h pour le THPI et de 27,3 h et 28,8 h pour le PI, respectivement après une absorption par voie orale et cutanée, ainsi qu’une faible absorption cutanée lorsque les valeurs sont comparées pour les deux voies d’exposition. Des profils parallèles sont aussi observés entre le PI et l’acide phtalique pour les volontaires et les agriculteurs, mais le folpet se retrouve davantage métabolisé sous forme d’acide phtalique que de PI. Quant à l’étude des agriculteurs, elle montre que la voie principale d’exposition de ces travailleurs est la voie cutanée. Il est aussi souligné qu’il est important 1) de favoriser les collectes d’urines complètes sur 24 h au urines ponctuelles, 2) de mesurer plusieurs métabolites, et 3) d’associer les données de surveillance biologique à la toxicocinétique. Ainsi, les connaissances acquises par cette étude peuvent s’appliquer à d’autres fongicides, voire d’autres substances. / Several workers use captan and folpet as fungicides in agriculture, but their exposure has yet to be measured specifically and precisely. Biomonitoring is an excellent tool for this purpose since it allows to quantify internal exposure. However, the majority of toxicological data on these fungicides come from animal studies and data in humans are limited. The aim of this project was thus to develop biological monitoring tools in order to assess exposure to captan and folpet in humans. In this perspective, the project was divided into three complementary parts: i) to develop specific and accurate analytical methods in order to quantify captan and folpet metabolites in urine and blood, namely tetrahydrophthalimide (THPI) for captan and phthalimide (PI) and phthalic acid for folpet; ii) to determine the toxicokinetics of the two fungicides in humans by exposing volunteers acutely to low-doses of captan or folpet by oral and dermal routes under semi-controlled conditions and by quantifying the biomarkers in plasma and urine, except phthalic acid which was only measured in urine; iii) to validate the use of the selected biomarkers of exposure to captan and folpet and estimate actual exposures of workers and main exposure routes to these fungicide in the context of a field biomonitoring study in farmers during treatment and harvest activities over seven consecutive days. This study showed that THPI and PI are both valid and specific biomarkers of exposure to captan and folpet, respectively, in humans. Indeed, the developed methods for these two metabolites are accurate showing more sensitive detection limits than those reported in the literature, good recovery rate (90% for THPI and 75% for PI), linearity (R2>0.99) and stability (RSD<15% for intra-and inter-day precision and accuracy). They allowed determining the kinetic profiles of the two metabolites in healthy volunteers and in workers. These profiles indicate a rapid elimination of both metabolites, since the urinary elimination half-life of THPI was 11.7 h and 18.7 h following an oral and dermal absorption, respectively, and 27.3 h and 28.8 h for PI. They also evidence a low dermal absorption for both fungicides when oral and dermal route are compared. In addition, parallel profiles were observed between PI and phthalic acid, but the administrated dose of folpet was mostly recovered as phthalic acid rather than PI. As for the study of farmers, it showed that the dermal route was the main route of exposure. It also pointed out that it is important 1) to perform 24-h complete urine collections rather than collect spot urines, 2) to measure several metabolites to better assess actual exposure, and 3) to rely on the toxicokinetics to help interpret biomonitoring data. Overall, knowledge acquired from this study may be applied to other fungicides or even to other substances.

De nombreux travailleurs utilisent le captan et le folpet comme fongicides en agriculture, mais leur exposition n’est pas toujours mesurée de manière spécifique et précise. La surveillance biologique est un excellent outil à cet effet puisqu’elle permet de quantifier l’exposition réelle. Toutefois, la majorité des connaissances toxicologiques pour ces fongicides proviennent d’études sur les animaux, et les données chez l’humain sont limitées. Le but du présent projet est donc de développer des outils de surveillance biologique pour évaluer l’exposition de travailleurs au captan et au folpet. Dans cette perspective, le projet a été subdivisé en trois parties complémentaires, soit i) de développer des méthodes analytiques spécifiques pour quantifier les biomarqueurs d’intérêt du captan, à savoir le tétrahydrophtalimide (THPI), et du folpet, à savoir le phtalimide (PI) et l’acide phtalique, dans le plasma et l’urine; ii) de déterminer la toxicocinétique des deux fongicides en exposant des volontaires de façon aigüe à de faibles doses de captan ou de folpet par voie orale et cutanée dans des conditions semi-contrôlées et en quantifiant les biomarqueurs dans chacune des deux matrices, excepté l’acide phtalique qui a été mesuré seulement dans l’urine; iii) de valider les biomarqueurs d’exposition sélectionnés et d’évaluer l’exposition réelle des travailleurs et les voies prédominantes d’exposition au captan et au folpet en collectant des données biologiques chez des travailleurs en arboriculture et en viticulture lors d’activités de traitement et d’effeuillage pendant sept jours consécutifs. Selon ces travaux, le THPI et le PI sont deux biomarqueurs valides et spécifiques pour quantifier l’exposition au captan et au folpet, respectivement, chez l’humain. En effet, les méthodes développées pour ces deux métabolites sont robustes avec des limites de détection plus sensibles que celles rapportées dans la littérature, un taux de recouvrement de 90% pour le THPI et de 75% pour le PI, une très bonne linéarité (R2>0,99) et une bonne stabilité avec des variations intra- et inter-journalières faibles (RSD<15%). Elles ont permis de déterminer les profils cinétiques des deux métabolites chez les volontaires et chez les travailleurs. Ces derniers indiquent d’ailleurs une élimination rapide, avec une demi-vie d’élimination dans l’urine de 11,7 h et 18,7 h pour le THPI et de 27,3 h et 28,8 h pour le PI, respectivement après une absorption par voie orale et cutanée, ainsi qu’une faible absorption cutanée lorsque les valeurs sont comparées pour les deux voies d’exposition. Des profils parallèles sont aussi observés entre le PI et l’acide phtalique pour les volontaires et les agriculteurs, mais le folpet se retrouve davantage métabolisé sous forme d’acide phtalique que de PI. Quant à l’étude des agriculteurs, elle montre que la voie principale d’exposition de ces travailleurs est la voie cutanée. Il est aussi souligné qu’il est important 1) de favoriser les collectes d’urines complètes sur 24 h au urines ponctuelles, 2) de mesurer plusieurs métabolites, et 3) d’associer les données de surveillance biologique à la toxicocinétique. Ainsi, les connaissances acquises par cette étude peuvent s’appliquer à d’autres fongicides, voire d’autres substances. / Several workers use captan and folpet as fungicides in agriculture, but their exposure has yet to be measured specifically and precisely. Biomonitoring is an excellent tool for this purpose since it allows to quantify internal exposure. However, the majority of toxicological data on these fungicides come from animal studies and data in humans are limited. The aim of this project was thus to develop biological monitoring tools in order to assess exposure to captan and folpet in humans. In this perspective, the project was divided into three complementary parts: i) to develop specific and accurate analytical methods in order to quantify captan and folpet metabolites in urine and blood, namely tetrahydrophthalimide (THPI) for captan and phthalimide (PI) and phthalic acid for folpet; ii) to determine the toxicokinetics of the two fungicides in humans by exposing volunteers acutely to low-doses of captan or folpet by oral and dermal routes under semi-controlled conditions and by quantifying the biomarkers in plasma and urine, except phthalic acid which was only measured in urine; iii) to validate the use of the selected biomarkers of exposure to captan and folpet and estimate actual exposures of workers and main exposure routes to these fungicide in the context of a field biomonitoring study in farmers during treatment and harvest activities over seven consecutive days. This study showed that THPI and PI are both valid and specific biomarkers of exposure to captan and folpet, respectively, in humans. Indeed, the developed methods for these two metabolites are accurate showing more sensitive detection limits than those reported in the literature, good recovery rate (90% for THPI and 75% for PI), linearity (R2>0.99) and stability (RSD<15% for intra-and inter-day precision and accuracy). They allowed determining the kinetic profiles of the two metabolites in healthy volunteers and in workers. These profiles indicate a rapid elimination of both metabolites, since the urinary elimination half-life of THPI was 11.7 h and 18.7 h following an oral and dermal absorption, respectively, and 27.3 h and 28.8 h for PI. They also evidence a low dermal absorption for both fungicides when oral and dermal route are compared. In addition, parallel profiles were observed between PI and phthalic acid, but the administrated dose of folpet was mostly recovered as phthalic acid rather than PI. As for the study of farmers, it showed that the dermal route was the main route of exposure. It also pointed out that it is important 1) to perform 24-h complete urine collections rather than collect spot urines, 2) to measure several metabolites to better assess actual exposure, and 3) to rely on the toxicokinetics to help interpret biomonitoring data. Overall, knowledge acquired from this study may be applied to other fungicides or even to other substances.

Le captane est un fongicide utilisé pour prévenir l’apparition de champignons notamment dans la culture de petits fruits. Les travailleurs agricoles québécois cultivant les petits fruits sont susceptibles d’être exposés au captane dans leur milieu professionnel. La biosurveillance de l’exposition au captane couplée à la modélisation toxicocinétique permet une évaluation du risque de ces travailleurs agricoles. Ainsi, cette étude avait pour objectif de documenter la pertinence de l’utilisation des profils temporels de biomarqueurs d’exposition au captane dans l’urine pour évaluer l’exposition individuelle de travailleurs agricoles. À partir des profils d’excrétion urinaire de l’acide 2-thioxothiazolidine-4-carboxylique (TTCA), des informations auto-rapportées durant la période de suivi et d’un modèle toxicocinétique, les doses absorbées de captane pour chaque travailleur ont été estimées et les principales voies d’exposition ont été déterminées. Parmi les six travailleurs ayant appliqué du captane, le TTCA a été détecté dans leurs urines majoritairement après 20 heures post-exposition (moyenne de 30,0 ± 36,1 μmol/mol de créatinine entre 0 - 24 heures). La détection de TTCA semble donc être due à une exposition secondaire à l’application provenant de tâches telles que le nettoyage de l’équipement ou un travail dans les champs traités dans la journée suivant l’application. La simulation des profils temporels des travailleurs à l’aide de la modélisation toxicocinétique suggère une absorption majoritairement par voie orale du captane. Ceci serait compatible avec un comportement main-bouche suite à un contact avec des surfaces contaminées. Selon la modélisation des doses absorbées estimées de captane, la probabilité de dépassement de la dose journalière admissible (DJA) ou Acceptable daily intake (ADI en anglais) est inférieure à 1 (DJA fixée à 0,1 mg/kg pc/jour). L’utilisation de ce fongicide à court terme ne semble pas poser de risque appréciable pour la santé chez la majorité de ces travailleurs, sur la base de la comparaison avec la DJA (ADI). / Captan is a fungicide used to prevent the appearance of fungi especially in the cultivation of small fruit. Agricultural workers in Quebec who grow small fruit are likely to be occupationally exposed to captan. Biomonitoring of captan coupled with toxicokinetic modelling enables risk assessment of these field workers. The aim of this study was to document the relevance of using temporal profiles of biomarkers of exposure to captan in urine to assess the individual exposure of agricultural field workers. Using urinary excretion profiles for 2-thioxothiazolidine-4-carboxilic acid (TTCA), self-reported information during the follow-up period and a toxicokinetic model, the absorbed doses of captan for each worker were estimated. The main routes of exposure were also determined. Among the six agricultural field workers who applied captan, TTCA was detected in their urine mainly after 20 hours post-exposure (mean of 30.0 ± 36.1 μmol/mol creatinine between 0 and 24 hours). The detection of TTCA seems to be caused by secondary exposure to the application arising from tasks such as cleaning equipment or working in the treated fields on the day following application. Simulation of the temporal profiles of workers using toxicokinetic modelling suggests a predominantly oral absorption to captan. This would be compatible with hand-to-mouth behaviour following contact with contaminated surfaces. Based on modelling of estimated absorbed doses of captan, the probability of exceeding the acceptable daily intake (ADI) is less than 1 (ADI set at 0.1 mg/kg bw/day). Short-term use of this fungicide does not appear to pose any appreciable health risk for the majority of these workers based on comparison with the ADI.