The association of nuclear abnormalities in exfoliated buccal epithelial cells with the health status of different agricultural activities farmers in Peninsular Malaysia

Background Pesticide exposure possesses risk of genotoxicity to humans, particularly farmers. Despite accumulating evidences linking genotoxicity to pesticide exposure, epidemiological studies to address pesticide toxicity in occupationally exposed farmers in Malaysia remain underreported. Thus, this study was aimed to determine the presence of nuclear abnormalities through the assessment of micronucleus (MN) and binucleus (BNu) frequencies in exfoliated buccal epithelial cells from farmers who were exposed to pesticides. A cross-sectional study of farmers among different agricultural activities farmers in Bachok and Pasir Puteh, Kelantan, North East of Peninsular Malaysia was done to evaluate the presence of nuclear abnormalities and its correlation with their health status and farming activities. Results Analysis of buccal cells revealed that the frequency of MN was significantly higher (p 0.05) was observed for BNu frequency in between groups. Correlation analysis showed that apart from a significant (p