Biological Monitoring for Organophosphate-induced Delayed Polyneuropathy

Certain organophosphate (OP) pesticides cause a delayed polyneuropathy. The two-step initiation mechanism for this toxicity involves the phosphorylation and subsequent 'aging' of a protein in the nervous system called Neuropathy Target Esterase (NTE). The observation of this enzyme activity in peripheral blood lymphocytes led to several studies to verify whether its measurement after OP exposures might be used as a biological monitoring test for the OP-induced delayed polyneuropathy (OPIDP). The evidence, so far, on the use of this biochemical test in man is discussed together with the need for further research.