BOOK SETAC North America 26th Annual Meeting Environmental Science in a Global Society: SETAC’s Role in the Next 25 Years 13 17 November 2005

Environmental toxicology is the study of the ecological effects of anthropogenic substances released into the environment. It is a relatively diverse field addressing impacts to aquatic and terrestrial organisms and communities. The determination of potential risk associated with toxic agents is of interest to government regulators, industry, researchers, private organizations and citizen group...

It has by now become obvious that environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) may pose a health risk to nonsmokers. Epidemiological data suggest that exposure to ETS may increase the risk of developing lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, intrauterine growth retardation, predisposition to chronic lung disease, and sudden infant death syndrome. The human populations most at risk from ETS exposure appear t...

The scientific efforts of the Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology (LET) are directed toward the prevention of environmentally related diseases through understanding mechanisms of toxicity. Special emphasis is placed upon environmental factors which may adversely affect reproduction and development. Toxicologic phenomena are studied from the descriptive to the molecular level in search of a b...

Bioassays are used for the assessment of environmental pollution and risk assessment of environmental stresses. In bioassay systems, harmless is estimated by monitoring biological responses to environmental stress. An extensive literature exists on bioassay systems that include tests by Ames, Microtox, Umu, and others. These traditional bioassays did contribute to prevent adverse effect of chem...

Clomazone, an isoxazolane herbicide, was first registered for use in 1986 for pest grasses and broad leaf weeds. Although the exact mode of action is still unclear, it is well documented that clomazone causes bleaching of foliar structures; the clomazone metabolite 5-ketoclomazone is regarded to cause the bleaching and to be the ultimate plant toxicant. Although clomazone exhibits low mammalian...

Chlorothalonil is a broad spectrum, non systemic, organochlorine pesticide that was first registered in 1966 for turf grasses, and later for several food crops. Chlorthalonil has both a low Henry's law constant and vapor pressure, and hence, volatilization losses are limited. Although, chlorothalonil's water solubility is low, studies have shown it to be highly toxic to aquatic species. Mammali...

The insecticide dimethoate, an organophosphate, was first introduced in 1962 for broad spectrum control of a wide range of insects including mites, flies, aphids, and plant hoppers. It inhibits AChE activity, resulting in nerve damage, which may lead to death. It is considered highly toxic to insects although dimethoate resistance has been observed. Dimethoate has both a low vapor pressure (0.2...