Toxicity Assessment Alternatives: Methods, Issues, Opportunities contains a broad array of critical surveys, contributed by active and respected investigators, describing their research and offering updates on toxicity assessment alternatives, directions determined by current and future grant programs, opportunities for mechanistically based test methods to detect endocrine disruptor activity, the use of alternatives in the Department of Defense hazard assessment initiatives, and the issues and opportunities for validation and regulatory acceptance. Several of these advances make use oftransgenic models that reduce the time and cost of carcinogenicity testing. Others use tissue cultures for the assessment of endocrine disrupting chemicals. Cultures of human epidermal keratinocytes are applicable as models for sulfur mustard lesions, and in vitro protein denaturation is used as a chemical test for assessing the ocular and dermal irritation potential of cosmetic prod ucts. Molecular modeling is applied to explaining chemical toxicity. Commercially developed assay systems have undergone extensive evaluation by their manufacturers. Some of these await external valida tion, and others await acceptance by North American and European regulatory agencies. Toxicity Assessment Alternatives: Methods, Issues, Opportunities provides information from members of the scientific and regulatory communities on what has been achieved and what has been accepted in alternatives to animal testing."

The field of endocrine disruption or endocrine active compounds (EACs), which is just emerging and still controversial, is comprehensively covered by leading experts in Volume 3, Subvolumes L (Part I) and M (the present volume, Part II). The major classes of endocrine active chemicals are discussed, as well as methods for their detection and their association with health disturbances in humans and wildlife. The etiology of several of the human diseases associated with endocrine disruptors, e.g. breast and prostate cancer, decreased fertility and malformations, is still poorly understood, and the current state of knowledge is presented. Since hormonally active agents appear to have the potential of both adverse and beneficial effects, the evidence of health benefits associated with endocrine active compounds in humans is also presented. Basic chapters on the mode of action of EACs and on the etiology of the associated diseases facilitate the understanding of this complex subject for non-medical readers.

Developed from a short course taught at Leeds University, this book covers methods of monitoring emissions of air pollutants from stationary sources. It surveys the techniques and points out their advantages and disadvantages.

Fiber Crop-Based Phytoremediation: Socio-economic and Environmental Sustainability provides an informative source of information on using fiber crops for phytoremediation. Phytoremediation is gaining attention globally due to ever-increasing numbers and areas of industrially polluted sites. The major challenge is to develop new and cost-effective solutions to decontaminate polluted sites. In this regard, plant-based remediation, especially using fiber crops, is a promising and cost-effective approach for environmental remediation on a large-scale due to its socio-economic and ecological sustainability. Furthermore, changing environmental conditions also cause various biotic and abiotic stresses in fiber crops and thereby negatively affect the fiber crop establishment, growth and yield. This book will be specifically important to these readers who need to be able to select specific fiber crop species according to site-specificity of the contaminated site.

This book discusses UV radiation, its effects on ecosystems and the likely evolutionary consequences of changed UV radiation environments, past, present and future. The first two chapters examine the history of the UV radiation climate of earth and the factors that determine organismal and ecosystem exposure. Their purpose is to give the reader a physical perspective on UV radiation and an understanding of the constantly changing UV environment that ecosystems are exposed to over time. Variations in the UV radiation environment occur at the local level (such as boundary layer and plant canopy effects) through to global-scale changes (such as alterations in the column abundance of UV-B protecting ozone). UV radiation regimes also vary over temporal scales. These alterations occur on time scales of seconds (the movement of clouds and plant canopies) to literally billions of years (gross long-term changes in the composition of the Earth's atmosphere). In the chapters that follow five specific biological and ecological topics in photobiology are considered. They are effects of UV radiation on amphibians, plants, corals, aquatic microbial ecosystems and Antarctic ecosystems that are exposed to the anthropogenically generated ozone 'hole'. These chapters consider UV radiation effects at a diversity of levels from the biochemical to the community. Their purpose is to provide the reader with our current understanding of the ecological effects of UV radiation, the areas where questions still remain and to provide a perspective from which the reader can better understand questions in evolutionary photobiology. The final chapter investigates the biological consequences of altered extraterrestrial ultraviolet fluxes, which are quite different from those experienced on the Earth. Our knowledge of the role of UV radiation in shaping ecologies and evolutionary change is still in its infancy. This book brings together a number of authors with the aim of helping to consolidate a better understanding of this interesting area of photobiology.

Neurotoxicology: Approaches and Methods provides a unique and comprehensive presentation of the current concepts and state-of-the-art methods for the assessment of neurotoxicity. The book analyzes various techniques available and discusses their strengths and weaknesses. This volume will serve as an excellent desk companion and laboratory guide for all investigators, researchers, clinicians, and students interested in neurotoxicology. The internationally knowngroup of editors divide the book into seven sections: "Neuromorphological and Neuropathological Approaches; Neurophysiological Approaches; Neurobehavioral Toxicology; Neurochemical and Biomolecular Approaches; In-Vitro Models; Clinical Neurotoxicology; and Risk Assessment of Neurotoxicity." Each section yields the most up-to-date information by experts in their fields. Meticulously organized and edited, Neurotoxicology: Approaches and Methods is the most authoritative and well-planned neurotoxicology book on the market.
Key Features
* Discusses neurobehavioral testing methods for assessment of neural dysfunctions
* Explains state-of-the-art diagnostic methods, such as clinico-neuropsychological and neurophysiological methods, for patients confronted by neurotoxic problems
* Discusses "In Vitro" methods, including aggregating brain cell methods, organotypic cultures, and the use of human neuronal cell lines for the assessment of neurotoxicity
* Presents step-by-step procedures for many methods
* Provides state-of-the-art neuromorphological and biomolecular methods and approaches for neurotoxicity investigation

In this book, editor G Rasul Chaudhry presents a wide range of topics authored by researchers at the cutting edge of biodegradation and bioremediation. The book includes recent research describing how microorganisms clean soil and water, and how they remove toxic substances. It also presents information on how genetics and molecular biological methods are used to improve the ability of microorganisms to degrade a variety of substances.

For investigators engaged in the study of toxins generally, and host-specific toxins in particular, it is a rare treat to attend a meeting in which toxins involved in plant pathogenesis are emphasized. A gathering of this type provides opportunity to consider the discovery of new toxins, their chemical structures, genes encoding enzymes that control their biosyntheses, their sites of action and physiological effects on plants, and their roles (if any) in pathological processes. Having acknowledged the inspiration fostered by a 'toxin meeting', however, it is important to point out that the program of this symposium was generously sprinkled with 'nontoxin' talks. These contributions generated cross-disciplinary discussion and promoted new ways of thinking about relationships among factors required for plant disease development. The point can be illustrated by considering just one example. We have in the past often regarded diseases mediated by host-specific toxins and diseases involving 'gene-for-gene' relationships as representing two different classes of fungal/plant interaction. This is largely because the key molecular recognition event in so-called 'toxin' diseases leads to compatibility, whereas the corresponding event in 'gene-for-gene' diseases leads to incompatibility. Yet the race specific elicitors produced by the 'gene-for-gene' fungi Cladosporium fulvum (De Wit, Adv. Bot. Res. 21:147- 185, 1995) and Rhynchosporium secalis (Rohe et a1. , EMBO J.

Molecular Toxicology Protocols, Second Edition aims to bring together a series of articles describing validated methods to elucidate specific molecular aspects of toxicology, the emphasis being on the application of molecular methods to genetic toxicology. The volume is divided into ten parts, roughly corresponding to the spectrum of biomarkers intermediate between exposure and disease outcomes as proposed in molecular epidemiology models. Subjects of these new chapters range from preparation of fluid specimens for analysis of cellular inflammatory responses to genotoxic insults to sensitive methods for proteomic analysis and aberrant DNA methylation patterns. Written in the successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible protocols, and notes on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and easily accessible, Molecular Toxicology Protocols, Second Edition addresses not only the needs of molecular biologists and toxicologists, but also those of individuals interested in applying molecular methods to clinical applications, such as geneticists, pathologists, biochemists, and epidemiologists.

International concern in scientific, industrial, and governmental communities of xenobiotics in foods and in both abiotic and biotic environments over traces has justified the present triumvirate of specialized publications in this field: comprehensive reviews, rapidly published research papers and progress reports, and archival documentations. These three international publications are inte grated and scheduled to provide the coherency essential for nonduplicative and current progress in a field as dynamic and complex as environmental contamina tion and toxicology. This series is reserved exclusively for the diversified litera ture on "toxic" chemicals in our food, our feeds, our homes, recreational and working surroundings, our domestic animals, our wildlife and ourselves. Tre mendous efforts worldwide have been mobilized to evaluate the nature, pres ence, magnitude, fate, and toxicology of the chemicals loosed upon the earth. Among the sequelae of this broad new emphasis is an undeniable need for an articulated set of authoritative publications, where one can find the latest impor tant world literature produced by these emerging areas of science together with documentation of pertinent ancillary legislation. Research directors and legislative or administrative advisers do not have the time to scan the escalating number of technical publications that may contain articles important to current responsibility. Rather, these individuals need the background provided by detailed reviews and the assurance that the latest infor mation is made available to them, all with minimal literature searching."

The aim of this book is to give an overview of the most important aspects of physiological and biochemical basis for metal toxicity and tolerance in plants. The book is expected to serve as a reference to university and college teachers, students of plant sciences, environmental biology, environmental biotechnology, agriculture, horticulture, forestry, plant molecular biology, and genetics.

Protection of human health by prevention of environmental hazards has become a major concern in all European countries. This concern is reflected in the regional strategy of Health for All by the Year 2000, as developed in 1984, and in the 1989 European Charter on Environment and Health. However, despite considerable progress, most efforts are related to single sources of exposure and to a small number of 'priority' chemicals. In protecting the population against chemical hazards, attention must also be paid to the fact that subgroups are particularly susceptible to the adverse effects of certain chemicals. This hypersusceptibility may be genetically determined. Such individual predisposition to toxic effects must be taken into account in the efforts to prevent adverse effects of environmental exposures to toxic chemicals. To help address these problems the Regional Office, in co-operation with the Institute of Human Genetics and Anthropology of the Univer sity of Dusseldorf and with financial support from the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety of the Federal Republic of Germany, organized a consultation in Krefeld in October 1989. The meeting was attended by 17 experts from 12 coun tries, three representatives of the host government, two representatives of other organizations and five staff members from the WHO Regional Office for Europe and WHO Headquarters. The list of participants is included as an appendix to the present volume."

The concern over the entry of agrochemicals and other xenobiotics into drinking water resources and over the general quality of drinking water is increasing. The topic of water quality and water supply will continue to be of great interest during the next two decades in developed as well as in developing countries. The new volume discusses in an authoritative way the key issues of drinking water and its often necessary treatment.

Pesticides have contributed impressively to our present-day agricultural productivity, but at the same time they are at the center of serious concerns about safety, health, and the environment. Increasingly, the public wonders whether the benefits of pesticides - the perfect red apple' - outweigh the costs of environmental pollution, human illness, and the destruction of animals and our habitat. Scientists and government officials are suspected of promoting commercial interests rather than protecting human welfare.

This volume presents a broad compendium of techniques used in biodegradation and toxicological research. Through both legacy and up-to-date approaches to practical methodologies with proven results, the book examines the role and applications of analytical biodegradation quantification as it applies to the environmental sciences, particularly in the range of byproducts that are usually linked to toxicology, and the test organisms most often used in toxicity testing. Topics include scientific and technical feasibility studies, contaminant impacts evaluation, study design and analytical techniques, key methodologies required to prepare the biodegradation and toxicology protocols, as well as the handling of microbial communities related to such processes. Written for the Methods in Pharmacology and Toxicology series, chapters deal with a critical discussion of laboratory scale experiments, as well as full scale in situ and ex situ apparatus, with each chapter containing both a discursive section along with a detailed methods section. Detailed and authoritative, Toxicity and Biodegradation Testing is primarily focused toward the environmental sciences researcher, while the range of techniques also provides an introduction to biodegradation and toxicology methods for researchers outside of the field.

This book comprises of the edited proceedings of a seminar on environmental modelling. It provides a comprehensive overview of current environmental problems and the progress achieved in their numerical simulation.

This is the first publication to offer a comprehensive and balanced view of atmospheric acidity. It is organised in three sections. The first part consists of reviews of sources of acidic compounds, the second part outlines the environmental consequences and the final part discusses the technological, legal and political aspects of control strategies.

Ecotoxicology is a relatively new scientific discipline. Indeed, it might be argued that it is only during the last 5-10 years that it has come to merit being regarded as a true science, rather than a collection of procedures for protecting the environment through management and monitoring of pollutant discharges into the environment. The term 'ecotoxicology' was first coined in the late sixties by Prof. Truhaut, a toxicologist who had the vision to recognize the importance of investigating the fate and effects of chemicals in ecosystems. At that time, ecotoxicology was considered a sub-discipline of medical toxicology. Subsequently, several attempts have been made to portray ecotoxicology in a more realistic light. Notably, both Moriarty (1988) and F. Ramade (1987) emphasized in their books the broad basis of ecotoxicology, encompassing chemical and radiation effects on all components of ecosystems. In doing so, they and others have shifted concern from direct chemical toxicity to humans, to the far more subtle effects that pollutant chemicals exert on natural biota. Such effects potentially threaten the existence of all life on earth. Although I have identified the sixties as the era when ecotoxicology was first conceived as a coherent subject area, it is important to acknowledge that studies that would now be regarded as ecotoxicological are much older.

A well-structured and comprehensive summary of the strategies and several case studies for applying molecular plant genomics in the fields of plant ecotoxicology and plant ecology. With an increasing number of plant genome projects now being completed, there arises the need to develop plant functional genomics. The book concentrates on ecological functions and relates molecular stress responses and signalling pathways to environmental interactions. This paves the way for uncovering new mechanisms of plant fitness, population dynamics and evolution, and new possibilities for plant breeding and sustainable agriculture. Topics covered include: definition and up-scaling of molecular ecotoxicology; signalling substances, enzymes and genes involved in defence against pathogens, xenobiotics, ozone, UV-B and further environmental stressors; and manipulation of plant signal transduction by soil bacteria.

There are various species of fungi which like to grow on food, thereby releasing toxins which might bear a health risk for the consumer. All foods which have been reported to be contaminated with mycotoxins are listed, including data on the degree of contamination, the concentration of the toxins and the country of origin and/or detection of the contaminated food. All relevant toxin producing fungi, their natural occurence, the possible mycotoxicosis, further the biochemical and physiological effects of mycotoxins, their chemical data and toxicity are treated comprehensively. For each mycotoxin, reference is given to the food at risk.

Proceedings of the Third Annual Conference, Washington, DC, USA, 3-4 December 1986

Applications of nanoparticles to the human life and tools in diagnosis and therapy in field of clinical medicine holds importance and has been an prime focus of biomedical and clinical research for quite sometime, though their application in veterinary medicine is a relatively new focus area of research. Prior to human applications, studies are initially conducted on animals models. Thus toxicity based studies and study of impact of nanoparticles on animal immune system finds importance. In the second volume of the book we discuss the immune system in animals across invertebrates and vertebrate phylas and discuss the impact of nanoparticles in animals life, health, survival and immune system. The book highlights the toxic effects of nanoparticles as environmental pollutants and their adverse impact on animal life forms. Both volumes are also included in a set ISBN 978-3-11-065666-4.

Preface When you write a book like this after ten years' working as an environmental specialist, you end up with something that reflects your career. Of course, when I started working at the Ministry of the Environment in the Netherlands, I could not foresee that I would now be at TNO, nor that I would have performed research into chlorine, PVC, waste, etc. , that would come to form the basis for this book. But step by step, with some coincidence and with the support of several people - who were probably unaware of the crucial role that, with hindsight, they played - I arrived at a position where I could start to consider this enterprise. At this point I shall try something dangerous - thanking a few of those people who gave that support. At the same time, it is obvious that I cannot mention them all. I hope that those whom I do not mention will forgive me. A first, crucial moment in this sequence of events came quite soon after I joined TNO in 1990. Just a few weeks later, all the senior staff in my section decided to leave in order to set up their own company. I decided to stay at TNO. As a consequence, I had to manage it on my own.

During the past five years work has been in progress to examine and treat the acidity of Loch Fleet in south west Scotland and its catchment waters. This text describes the background to the research, the application and effects of liming, and relates the experience gained in the project to practice and research in other parts of the world. In particular the success achieved in restoring fish populations to the loch is described as well as the consequences for other flora and fauna.

Pesticides in the Natural Environment: Sources, Health Risks, and Remediation presents the direct and indirect impacts of the use of pesticides on the environment, human health, and agriculture. The book explores sustainable alternatives to pesticide use, along with policies for regulations and remediation techniques. Bridging the gap between regulations and the tangible environmental threat, the book proposes practical solutions while also providing important context on the hazards of pesticides. It highlights the influence on climate change, offering a holistic perspective for researchers in environmental science, policymakers, and land managers. The book introduces pesticides and their applications, then goes on to cover their impact on various ecosystems in the natural environment. Health risks are covered, followed by various remediation techniques, such as biological processes, phytoremediation, and chemical treatments.