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Contents(click on page numbers for links)

LeGiSLATiON

ASiA PACiFiCProposed variation to registration of Lineout Insecticide containing the existing active constituents flubendiamide and thiacloprid ......................... 3

Australia lists seven cosmetic ingredients, removes ions and alloys from inventory ........................................................................................................................... 3

China MIIT requests chemical industry to submit information on substitution of hazardous substances .......................................................................... 4

AMeRiCAEPA Draft Ammonia Assessment Available for Public Comment/Draft assessment continues agency’s responsiveness to nAS recommendations ................................................................................................................... 6

updating The Periodic Table .............................................................................................. 7

notice of Intent to List: Isopyrazam and 3,3’,4,4’-Tetrachloroazobenzene . 7

eUROPeScientific Opinion on Risk Assessment Terminology ........................................... 10

Report: Europe could kick the F-gas habit by 2020 ............................................. 11

Eu Joint Research Centre adds risk assessment reports for biocidal products .................................................................................................................. 12

ReACH UPdATeECHA publishes information on substances notified under Directive 67/548/EEC on the ECHA website .......................................................................... 14

Eu Commission postpones REACH Review Communication ........................... 15

Germany’s Environment Agency and nGO provide barcode service for SVHCs in consumer products ................................................................................. 15

Animal rights group supports appeal against ECHA testing demand .........16

JANeT’S CORNeRIdeas About Science (Part 2) .......................................................................................... 17

HAzARd ALeRTBromoform .............................................................................................................................. 19

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ContentsGOSSiPBPA diminishes in vitro success ................................................................................... 23

How Bacteria in Our Bodies Protect Our Health ................................................... 25

Robotic fish shoal sniffs out pollution in harbours ................................................ 26

Summer heat variations can be fatal for unhealthy seniors ............................ 28

Easy Mass Measurement Of Viruses And nanoparticles ................................. 29

Study Compares Toxin Levels in Captive and Wild Sea Mammals ...............30

Identifying Botulism Toxins ............................................................................................... 32

Scientist Develops Simple Way to Make Clean Water for Everyone ...........33

War On Weeds ..................................................................................................................... 34

Humanmade Pollutants May Be Driving Earth’s Tropical Belt Expansion .38

Home Damage After 9/11 Linked With Respiratory Illness .......................... 40

TeCHNiCAL NOTeSEnVIROnMEnTAL ................................................................................................................ 42

MEDICAL ................................................................................................................................... 42

OCCuPATIOnAL .................................................................................................................... 42

PuBLIC HEALTH.................................................................................................................... 42

SAFETY ...................................................................................................................................... 43

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The Australian Pesticide and Veterinary Medicine Authority (APVMA) are considering an application to register the product Lineout insecticide, containing the existing active constituents flubendi-amide and thiacloprid (APVMA Product number P63388).

ASiA PACiFiC

Proposed variation to registration of Lineout insecticide containing the existing active constituents flubendiamide and thiacloprid2012-06-04The Australian Pesticide and Veterinary Medicine Authority (APVMA) are considering an application to register the product Lineout Insecticide, containing the existing active constituents flubendiamide and thiacloprid (APVMA Product number P63388). The agency now invites interested parties to comment. Comments are being sought on the trade implications of this registration proposal. The consultation will run from 23 May 2012 until 20 June 2012. The APVMA is able to consider comments relating to the legislative grounds for the assessment, which are the trade implications of registering the product. The Trade Advice notice provides a summary of the APVMA’s residue and trade assessment and is available at: Trade Advice notice on Flubendiamide and Thiacloprid in the Product Lineout Insecticide (PDF, 517kb)APVMA, 25 May 2012http://www.apvma.gov.au

Australia lists seven cosmetic ingredients, removes ions and alloys from inventory2012-06-04Australia’s national Industrial Chemicals notification and Assessment Scheme (nICMAS) has published its final decision to list seven chemicals in the public section of the Australian Inventory of Chemical Substances (AICS) for cosmetic use only, along with associated conditions of use. There will now be a period of a period of 28 days during which interested parties may apply for a review of this decision. If no appeals are received, the seven chemicals are expected to be listed on the AICS from June 2012, following which they will be regarded as existing chemicals within the context of the conditions of use, and so can be introduced into Australia under the conditions of use without pre-market notification or post market reporting to nICnAS. This is part of ongoing changes in cosmetics legislation. nICnAS has also proposed the removal of certain individual ions and alloys from the AICS on the basis that they do not meet the eligibility criteria for listing as chemical substances.Chemical Watch, 30 May 2012http://chemicalwatch.com

Legislation

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The Ministry of indus-try and information Technology (MiiT) of China published a notice requesting the chemical industry to submit information on the substitution of hazardous substances to authorities at provincial level.

LegislationChina MiiT requests chemical industry to submit information on substitution of hazardous substances2012-06-04On 25 May 2012, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) of China published a notice no. 372 to request chemical industry to submit information on the substitution of hazardous substances to authorities at provincial level. This will be a great opportunity for innovative companies to let the Chinese government know what substitution solutions are available on the market or are being developed. MIIT will then collect information from provincial authorities before 30 June 2012 and rely on collected information to draft national policies for existing hazardous chemicals and encourage substance substitution. Priority substances to be substituted are listed in the following table.

index Category Priority Substance

Substitution examples

1 Heavy Metals Hg Substitution of Hg in battery, fluorescent lamp and touch media

Cr Substitution of Cr in pre-treatment solutions

Pb Lead-Free SolderCd Substitution of

mercury and cadmium in battery.

As Substitution of As compounds used in pesticide, dye and leather processing industry.

Cyanide Electroplating solution without cyanide

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Legislationindex Category Priority

SubstanceSubstitution

examples2 Organic Pollutants PFOS Chromic acid

fog inhibitor without PFOs in electroplating industry.

Chlorinated Compounds

Substitution of chlorinated compounds in steel sintering

Brominated Flame Retardants

non-halogenated flame retardant used in electronics and electrical industry.

Volatile Organic Compounds

Substitution of VOCs in inks and paints

DDT Substitution of DDT anti corrosive paint for boat

PAHs Substitution of PAHs in plastic and rubber

Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB)

Substitution of PCBs in paint, additives, plastics and flame retardants

Short chain chlorinated paraffins

Substitution of Short chain chlorinated paraffins in pipes, flooring, films, leather, plastics and daily necessities.

3 Pesticide POPs Substitution of Aldrin, Chlordane, Dieldrin, Endrin, Heptachlor, HCB, Mirex, Toxaphen, DDT, PFOS in pesticide.

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On 1 June 2012, the United States envi-ronmental Protection Agency announced the release of its draft integrated Risk information System (iRiS) health assess-ment for ammonia.

LegislationIt shall be noted that substitution plans for hazardous chemicals are not only limited to above chemicals. Further details are available at: http://www.miit.gov.cn/n11293472/14625399.htmlChemical Inspection and Regulation Service, 25 May 2012http://www.cirs-reach.com

AMeRiCA

ePA draft Ammonia Assessment Available for Public Comment/draft assessment continues agency’s responsiveness to NAS recommendations2012-06-04On 1 June 2012, the united States Environmental Protection Agency announced the release of its draft Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) health assessment for ammonia. The draft assessment will be available for public comment for 60 days and will be sent for independent expert peer review. Ammonia is used in agricultural fertilisers, the manufacture of pharmaceuticals and explosives, water purification, household cleaners, as a refrigerant, and in many industries. Scientific studies show that ammonia can affect the respiratory system. The draft assessment includes an estimate of the amount of ammonia a person can inhale daily throughout a lifetime that is not likely to cause harmful health effects, which is less stringent than the current value for ammonia on IRIS. The draft IRIS assessment for ammonia represents major progress for EPA in implementing the April 2011 national Academy of Sciences (nAS) recommendations for improving IRIS assessments. The draft assessment uses a new streamlined document structure that is more transparent and clear; includes a template for describing the literature search approach; identifies the strengths and weaknesses of analysed studies; and describes how EPA applied their guidance, methods, and criteria in developing the assessment. When the assessment is final it will be posted to the IRIS database. IRIS is a publicly available online database that provides high quality science-based human health assessments used to inform the agency’s decisions on protecting public health and the environment. The IRIS database contains crucial information on more than 550 chemical substances and their impacts on human health. Governments and private entities use data from IRIS in conjunction with exposure information to help characterise the public health risks of chemical substances. These characterisations are then considered in risk management decisions to protect public health. More information about the draft IRIS assessment

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More than 10 years after their first iden-tification, elements 114 and 116 now have names: flerovium (Fl) and livermorium (Lv), respectively.

Legislationfor ammonia is available at: http://cfpub.epa.gov/ncea/iris_drafts/recordisplay.cfm?deid=200305u.S Environmental Protection Agency, 1 June 2012http://www.epa.gov

Updating The Periodic Table2012-06-04More than 10 years after their first identification, elements 114 and 116 now have names: flerovium (Fl) and livermorium (Lv), respectively. The International union of Pure & Applied Chemistry (IuPAC) recently approved the names, which were selected by the discovering teams. Flerovium pays tribute to the Flerov Laboratory of nuclear Reactions, in Dubna, Russia, where element 114 was first identified in 1999. Livermorium pays tribute to Lawrence Livermore national Laboratory (LLnL), in Livermore, California, where scientists sighted element 116 in 2000. Scientists at the Livermore facility retracted a 1999 sighting of element 116 after one of the team members was found to have falsified data. Last year, an IuPAC and International union of Pure & Applied Physics joint committee officially gave the elements a place on the periodic table. IuPAC will publish the new names in the July issue of Pure & Applied Chemistry. For years, the teams in Dubna and Livermore have worked together and separately to discover and confirm the existence of other superheavy elements in addition to flerovium and livermorium. In 2002, scientists at both sites observed element 118. The new names honour, in part, “the collaboration that has occurred between scientists” in Russia and the u.S., says William H. Goldstein, associate director of LLnL’s Physical & Life Sciences Directorate.Chemical & Engineering news, 1 June 2012http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news

Notice of intent to List: isopyrazam and 3,3’,4,4’-Tetrachloroazobenzene2012-06-04The California Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) intends to list the chemicals isopyrazam and 3,3’,4,4’ tetrachloroazobenzene as known to the State to cause cancer under the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986.1 This action is being proposed under the authoritative bodies listing mechanism. Isopyrazam (881685-58-1) is a Pyrazole fungicide. It is not registered for use in the u.S., but used in Central and South America on bananas to control black sigatoka (Mycosphaerella

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Legislationfijiensis). u.S. EPA established a tolerance on imported bananas. 3,3’,4,4’-Tetrachloroazobenzene (14047-09-7) is a contaminant of 3,4-dichloroaniline and the related herbicides linuron, diuron, and propanil, and a degradation product of 3,4-dichloroaniline and chloroanilide herbicides. OEHHA requested information relevant to the possible listing of isopyrazam and 3,3’,4,4’-tetrachloroazobenzene in a notice published in the California Regulatory notice Register on 10 February 2012 (Register 2012, Vol. no. 6-Z). OEHHA received comments for isopyrazam, but not for 3,3’,4,4’-tetrachloroazobenzene. A chemical must be listed under the Proposition 65 regulations when two conditions are met:• An authoritative body formally identifies the chemical as causing

cancer (Section 25306(d) ).• The evidence considered by the authoritative body meets the

sufficiency criteria contained in the regulations (Section 25306(e)).OEHHA’s has determined that: Isopyrazam and 3,3’,4,4’-tetrachloroazobenzene meet the criteria for listing as known to the State to cause cancer under Proposition 65, based on findings of u.S. EPA and nTP, respectively (u.S. EPA, 2011; nTP, 2010). Formal identification and sufficiency of evidence for isopyrazam: In 2011, u.S. EPA published a report on isopyrazam, entitled Cancer Assessment Document, Evaluation of the Carcinogenic Potential of Isopyrazam, which concludes the chemical causes cancer (u.S. EPA, 2011). This report satisfies the formal identification and sufficiency of evidence criteria in the Proposition 65 regulations.OEHHA is relying on u.S. EPA’s discussion of data and conclusions in the report that isopyrazam causes cancer. The u.S. EPA report concludes that isopyrazam is “likely to be carcinogenic to humans.” Evidence described in the report includes studies showing that isopyrazam increased the incidences of thyroid follicular cell carcinomas and combined adenomas and carcinomas in male Wistar rats, and uterine endometrial adenocarcinomas in female Wistar rats. Thus, u.S. EPA (2011) has found that isopyrazam causes increased incidences of malignant and combined malignant and benign thyroid tumours in male rats and malignant tumors of the uterus in female rats. Formal identification and sufficiency of evidence for 3,3’,4,4’-tetrachloroazo-benzene: In 2010, nTP published a report on 3,3’,4,4’-tetrachloroazobenzene (TCAB) entitled Toxicology and Carcinogenesis Studies of 3,3’,4,4’-Tetrachloroazobenzene (TCAB) (CAS no. 14047-09-7) in Harlan Sprague-Dawley Rats and B6C3F1 Mice (Gavage Studies), that concludes that the chemical causes cancer (nTP, 2010). This report satisfies the formal identification and sufficiency of evidence criteria in the Proposition 65 regulations. OEHHA is relying on nTP’s discussion of data and conclusions in the report

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Legislationthat 3,3’,4,4’-tetrachloroazobenzene causes cancer. The nTP (2010) report concludes: “under the conditions of these 2-year gavage studies, there was clear evidence of carcinogenic activity of TCAB in male Harlan Sprague-Dawley rats based on increased incidences of cystic keratinizing epithelioma of the lung, cholangiocarcinoma of the liver, and gingival squamous cell carcinoma of the oral mucosa. The increased incidences of follicular cell adenoma of the thyroid gland were also considered to be related to TCAB administration. The marginally increased incidence of malignant schwannoma may have been related to TCAB administration. There was clear evidence of carcinogenic activity of TCAB in female Harlan Sprague-Dawley rats based on increased incidences of cystic keratinizing epithelioma of the lung and gingival squamous cell carcinoma of the oral mucosa. The increased incidences of cholangiocarcinoma of the liver and squamous cell papilloma or squamous cell carcinoma (combined) of the forestomach were also considered to be related to TCAB administration. The marginally increased incidences of adenoma of the adrenal cortex may have been related to TCAB administration. There was clear evidence of carcinogenic activity of TCAB in male B6C3F1 mice based on increased incidences of carcinoma of the urethra and alveolar/bronchiolar neoplasms of the lung. The increased incidences of squamous cell carcinoma of the forestomach were also considered to be related to TCAB administration. The marginally increased incidence of carcinoma of the ureter may have been related to TCAB administration. There was clear evidence of carcinogenic activity of TCAB in female B6C3F1 mice based on increased incidences of fibrosarcoma and fibrosarcoma or malignant schwannoma (combined) of the skin. The increased incidences of carcinoma of the urethra, alveolar/bronchiolar neoplasms and cystic keratinizing epithelioma of the lung, and squamous cell carcinoma of the forestomach were also considered to be related to TCAB administration. The marginally increased incidences of malignant lymphoma may have been related to TCAB administration.” Thus, nTP (2010) has found that 3,3’,4,4’-tetrachloroazobenzene causes increased incidences of malignant tumours at multiple sites in male rats, rare malignant tumors of the oral cavity in female rats, malignant tumours at multiple sites in male mice, and malignant tumors at multiple sites in female mice. OEHHA is requesting comments as to whether these chemicals meet the criteria set forth in the Proposition 65 regulations for authoritative bodies listings. Comments must be submitted to the agency by 25 June 2012.California OEHHA, 25 May 2012http://www.oehha.ca.gov

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The Scientific Commit-tee of the european Food Safety Authority (eFSA) reviewed the use of risk assessment terminology within its Scientific Panels.

LegislationeUROPe

Scientific Opinion on Risk Assessment Terminology2012-06-04The Scientific Committee of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) reviewed the use of risk assessment terminology within its Scientific Panels. An external report, commissioned by EFSA, analysed 219 opinions published by the Scientific Committee and Panels to recommend possible ways of improving the expression and communication of risk and/or uncertainties in the selected opinions. The Scientific Committee concluded that risk assessment terminology is not fully harmonised within EFSA. In part this is caused by sectoral legislation defining specific terminology and international standards for specific fields of risk assessment and thus for specific Panels. The use of defined terminology for risk assessment is driven by three standard-setting organisations, the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) in relation to food safety, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) for animal health and the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) for plant health, under the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement) of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) of which the European union is a member. Should the major purpose of risk assessment be international trade, the Scientific Committee concludes that particular care must be taken that the principles of CAC, OIE or IPPC are followed strictly. EFSA Scientific Panels should identify which specific approach is most useful in dealing with their individual mandates. The Scientific Committee considered detailed aspects of risk assessment terminology and identified their relevance for EFSA to adopt more harmonised use. These included examining definitions of risk and uncertainty, expressing uncertainty and different levels of risk, the merits of using qualitative and quantitative expressions and the use of glossaries of definitions to improve both the understanding and harmonisation of terminology across EFSA’s scientific opinions. Follow-up action by EFSA is identified to develop appropriate detailed guidance to the Scientific Panels. Recommendations are made to improve the clarity, consistency and where possible the harmonisation of risk assessment terminology within and across EFSA’s scientific opinions.EFSA, 31 May 2012http://www.efsa.europa.eu

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According to a new re-port, most fluorinated greenhouse gases (also known as F-Gas-es), used in today’s mobile air conditioning and refrigeration units, could realisti-cally be banned across the eU by 2020.

LegislationReport: europe could kick the F-gas habit by 20202012-06-04According to a new report, most fluorinated greenhouse gases (also known as F-Gases), used in today’s mobile air conditioning and refrigeration units, could realistically be banned across the Eu by 2020. The Karlsruhe university of Applied Sciences study ‘Availability of Low-GWP Alternatives to HFCs: Feasibility of an Early Phase-Out of HFCs by 2020’ contends that Hydrofluorocarbons (also called HFCs, the most common types of F-gas) could be replaced by energy efficient and climate friendly alternatives in 20 different industrial sectors within eight years. “Banning the use of HFCs in new equipment could prevent the release of 600 million tonnes [of] C02-equivalent by 2030, more than the uK’s entire annual carbon emissions,” said Clare Perry, a spokeswoman for the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), which sponsored the report. “At the same time, many of the alternatives are more energy-efficient than existing technologies,” she said. But in a reflection of accelerated lobbying by both environmentalists and industry ahead of imminent new Eu F-Gas proposals, the report’s methodology was quickly challenged by Andrea Voigt, the director-general of the European Partnership for Energy and the Environment (EPEE). The report “can hardly be called new,” Voigt said - as it relied on existing data from the European Commission – and she pointed instead to a report commissioned by EPEE and carried out by the French research bodies ERIE and ARMInES. “The results of this study clearly demonstrate that F-Gas emissions can be reduced significantly by at least 15% and up to at least 60% without the necessity of bans,” she said. The report was published in October 2011 but EPEE plan to release a follow-up study soon. F-gases only make up 1%-2% of greenhouse gas emissions today, but that number is rising by some 8%-9% annually, and some scientific studies say that if nothing is done, they could account for between 9%-19% of all emissions by 2050. The most widely-used F-gas, HFC 134a, is over a thousand times more potent than CO

2 in causing global warming. In 2006, the Eu

passed a regulation covering stationary air conditioning systems and a ‘Mac Directive’, phasing out some F-gases used in mobile air conditioning systems. Just last month, the Eu sent a ‘reasoned opinion’ to Italy and Malta warning them they could face legal action if they fail to comply with their F-Gas obligations. But an independent study commissioned as part of a review of the legislation, recently highlighted what it saw as several serious shortcomings in the existing statute. The Eu is currently reviewing its F-Gas legislation and is expected to bring forward proposals for a new policy regime this autumn. One of the key debates hinges on whether F-Gas-use should be capped and phased down – as favoured by the HFC

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The european Com-mission’s Joint Research Centre has updated its european Chemical Substances information System (eSiS) by adding risk assessment reports for eight active substances listed in the biocidal products directive (BPd).

Legislationindustry – or whether ‘placing on the market prohibitions’ (POMs) should apply to those with the highest global warming potential (gwp).The Karlsruhe study describes POM limitations and prohibitions as “very effective ways of reducing HFC emissions”. But Voigt said that a phase down of F-Gases was already starting to happen “where it is technically feasible and where it makes sense from an energy efficiency and safety point of view.” Industry figures also argue passionately that the costs involved in a revamp of existing refrigerants-use would be expensive and counter-productive. In contrast, the Karlsruhe university report, which was authored by Professor Michael Kauffeld, a refrigeration technology expert, disagrees. “While investment costs are often higher for alternatives to HFCs, these costs are often absorbed by lower running costs over the lifetime of the equipment,” it says. “In addition these energy savings increase the amount of the total CO

2 equivalent savings by 2%.” Fluorine-

free ‘natural refrigerants’ such as Ammonia, CO2 and Propane are one

alternative form of coolant. But alternative methods and processes - fibre insulation materials, dry powder asthma inhalers, and innovative building designs - are another. The study says that “there is no single alternative that will replace HFCs in all applications” Low-gwp alternatives to HFCs already account for over 90% of new domestic refrigerators and around 25% of new industrial air conditioners, according to the report. ”The Eu has a fantastic opportunity, and a responsibility, to phase out the use of HFCs,” Perry said. “There is simply no reason for new HFC equipment or products to be allowed on the market when efficient, safe and affordable alternatives are available.”Euractiv, 30 May 2012http://www.euractiv.com/

eU Joint Research Centre adds risk assessment reports for biocidal products2012-06-04The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre has updated its European Chemical Substances Information System (ESIS) by adding risk assessment reports for eight active substances listed in the biocidal products Directive (BPD). The substances are:• Beniocarb;• copper carbonate;• copper (II) oxide;• copper (II) hydroxide;• DCOIT;• Deltamethrin;

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Legislation• Fipronil; and• Lambda-cyhalothrin (LInK).Further details are available at: AnnouncementChemical Watch, 31 May 2012http://chemicalwatch.com

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Before ReACH entered into force, compa-nies’ notified ‘new substances’ under directive 67/548/eeC, the so-called Notification of New Substances (NONS).

eCHA publishes information on substances notified under directive 67/548/eeC on the eCHA website2012-06-04Before REACH entered into force, companies’ notified ‘new substances’ under Directive 67/548/EEC, the so-called notification of new Substances (nOnS). notifications under Directive 67/548/EEC are considered as registrations under REACH. The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) has announced it will start making information from these notifications available as of May 2012. ECHA started to make information available from the nOnS notifications. This will increase from 78% to almost 100% the number of publishable substances made available on the ECHA website. As these notifications were originally submitted in a format different from that of the current IuCLID, the information will be released in a stepwise approach; to give nOnS registrants required time to adapt the different parts of their dossier to the REACH format. The information that is now being made publicly available in the first publication is the majority of the dossier content: classification and labelling of the substance, physicochemical data, data on pathways and fate, results of toxicological and ecotoxicological studies, the DnEL and PnEC (if available) and the guidance on safe use. This will considerably enhance the volume of information on ECHA’s dissemination portal. In a second publication, as of autumn 2012, ECHA will start adding the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) related information, to its registered substances database. For the nOnS dossiers, this includes in particular the company name and registration number. The publication will ensure that the dissemination portal identifies the company name and registration numbers for all registrations except where claimed confidential by the registrant. In the third publication for the nOnS dossiers, the remainder of the information according to Article 119 of the REACH Regulation will be published after the 2013 registration deadline. This will require industry to review their dossiers and consider whether an update is needed in respect of the information to be disseminated. nOnS registrants who have claimed their notification are being contacted directly via REACH-IT with specific advice on the method and timing for potential registration updates in response to the second and third dissemination steps in this announcement. ECHA urges all nOnS registrants to act promptly on the advice received. Some nOnS dossiers have been and will continue to be fully published ahead of the 2013 registration deadline. This concerns nOnS dossiers that have undergone a tonnage band update and those containing a testing proposal requiring a public consultation. The nOnS dossiers which are published with a reduced set of information can be recognised on ECHA’s registered

ReACH Update

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The european Com-mission has officially announced that the ReACH Review Communication, due to be published on 1 June 2012, has been postponed.

REACH Updatesubstances database by their yellow background, while other registration dossiers have a blue background. Further information is available at: http://echa.europa.eu/information-on-chemicals/registered-substancesEuropean Chemicals Agency, 31 May 2012http://echa.europa.eu

eU Commission postpones ReACH Review Communication2012-06-04The European Commission has officially announced that the REACH Review Communication, due to be published on 1 June 2012, has been postponed. A spokesperson for DG Environment said the aim was to make the Communication public in early September. Currently information collected in the course of the review is being analysed. “Given the volume of information and the complexity of the matter this is time-consuming but good progress is being made,” he noted. A workshop on the review planned for September has been postponed as well; it will now be scheduled for the end of October or the beginning of november. Further information is available at: REACH ReviewChemical Watch, 1 June 2012http://chemicalwatch.com

Germany’s environment Agency and NGO provide barcode service for SVHCs in consumer products2012-06-04The German Environment Agency (uBA) has teamed up with Friends of the Earth Germany (Bund) to create an online service for consumers wanting information on substances of very high concern in products. Consumers, who have a right to chemical information under REACH, can enter the number under a product barcode into an online form, which automatically sends an information request to the manufacturer or importer. The barcode service will soon be available as an app for smart phones. Any supplier of a product containing a substance of very high concern under REACH at a concentration of more than 0.1 weight % needs to respond to consumer requests for information within 45 days of a request, at no charge. Further information on the new service is available at: Press release (in German)Chemical Watch, 31 May 2012http://chemicalwatch.com

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The european Coali-tion to end Animal experiments (eCeAe) has been granted permission to support an appeal brought by dow Chemical against a request made by the european Chemicals Agency (eCHA) to carry out a prenatal developmental toxic-ity test on rats.

REACH UpdateAnimal rights group supports appeal against eCHA testing demand2012-06-04The European Coalition to End Animal Experiments (ECEAE) has been granted permission to support an appeal brought by Dow Chemical against a request made by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) to carry out a prenatal developmental toxicity test on rats. Dow Chemical made the appeal in February against the decision made by the agency on the compliance check of its REACH registration dossier for dipropylene glycol methyl ether acetate (DPMA). The company states that the additional testing requested would involve nearly 1,500 animals, and that it does not want to conduct the test because it has enough evidence from read-across from similar, non-toxic substances, which has previously been accepted by the OECD. This will be the second appeal case that ECEAE has intervened in following submission of documents in support of Honeywell Belgium’s appeal. Katy Taylor, representing the ECEAE, said in a statement, “We are pleased to have been granted leave for the second time to intervene on a case of this nature at ECHA. We believe the read-across approach used by Dow is scientifically-sound and we are dismayed, yet again, at the agency’s overly conservative approach in rejecting it. The case has wider implications for the acceptance of read-across which could impact on thousands of animals under REACH.” To see full statement from ECEAE go to: ECEAE statementChemical Watch, 30 May 2012http://chemicalwatch.com

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ideas About Science (Part 2)2012-05-28The beguiling ideas about science quoted here were gleaned from essays, exams, and classroom discussions. Most were from 5th and 6th graders.• There is a tremendous weight pushing down on the centre of the Earth

because of so much population stomping around up there these days.• Lime is a green-tasting rock.• Many dead animals in the past changed to fossils while others

preferred to be oil.• Genetics explain why you look like your father and if you don’t why you

should.• Vacuums are nothings. We only mention them to let them know we

know they’re there.• Some oxygen molecules help fires burn while others help make water,

so sometimes it’s brother against brother.• Some people can tell what time it is by looking at the sun. But I have

never been able to make out the numbers.• We say the cause of perfume disappearing is evaporation. Evaporation

gets blamed for a lot of things people forget to put the top on.• To most people solutions mean finding the answers. But to chemists

solutions are things that are still all mixed up.• In looking at a drop of water under a microscope, we find there are

twice as many H’s as O’s.• Clouds are high flying fogs.• I am not sure how clouds get formed. But the clouds know how to do it,

and that is the important thing.• Clouds just keep circling the earth around and around. And around.

There is not much else to do.• Water vapour gets together in a cloud. When it is big enough to be

called a drop, it does.• Humidity is the experience of looking for air and finding water.• We keep track of the humidity in the air so we won’t drown when we

breathe.• Rain is often known as soft water, oppositely known as hail.• Rain is saved up in cloud banks.• In some rocks you can find the fossil footprints of fishes.• Cyanide is so poisonous that one drop of it on a dogs tongue will kill the

strongest man.• A blizzard is when it snows sideways.• A hurricane is a breeze of a bigly size.• A monsoon is a French gentleman.

Janet’s Corner

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Janet’s Corner• Thunder is a rich source of loudness.• Isotherms and isobars are even more important than their names

sound.• It is so hot in some places that the people there have to live in other

places.• The wind is like the air, only pushier.Aha Jokeshttp://www.ahajokes.com

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Bromoform (CHBr3) is a pale yellowish liquid with a sweet odour similar to chloroform.

Bromoform2012-05-15Bromoform (CHBr

3) is a pale yellowish liquid with a sweet odour similar

to chloroform. It is soluble in about 800 parts water and is miscible with alcohol, benzene, chloroform, ether, petroleum ether, acetone, and oils. It is also non-flammable and readily evaporates into the air. Bromoform is produced naturally by phytoplankton and seaweeds in the ocean and this is thought to be the predominant source to the environment. However, locally significant amounts of bromoform enter the environment formed as disinfection by-products known as the trihalomethanes when chlorine is added to drinking water to kill bacteria. [1,2]

USeS [3]

Bromoform is used as an intermediate in geological assaying and as a solvent for waxes, greases, and oils. It is also used in shipbuilding, aircraft, and aerospace industries and as an ingredient in fire-resistant chemicals and gauge fluid. Traces of bromoform are likely to be present in swimming pools, municipal waters, and wastes as a result of chlorination in the presence of naturally occurring bromide ions and humic substances. It is hypothesised that bromoform may be formed by the haloform reaction which occurs during the chlorination of water.

SOURCeS & ROUTeS OF exPOSURe [2, 4]

Studies have indicated that bromoform can easily enter the body after swallowing them in water or breathing them in air. In addition, they can enter the body through the skin (for example, by washing or showering in water containing these chemicals). Some portion of bromoform entering the body may be broken down to other compounds. Bromoform and its breakdown products can be removed from the body by being exhaled from the lungs. These chemicals leave the body fairly rapidly. Bromoform does not tend to build up in the body; 50-90% of the amount that enters the body is removed within 8 hours. The principal route of human exposure to bromoform is from drinking water that has been disinfected with chlorine, bromine, or bromine compounds. Bromoform has been detected in swimming pools that have been disinfected with bromine or bromine compounds; therefore, exposure to low levels could occur from inhalation of bromoform that has evaporated into the air or through the skin from bromoform in the water. In addition, exposure could also occur from inhalation of ambient air near factories or laboratories that use

Hazard Alert

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Hazard Alertbromoform. Another place for exposure is near a chemical waste site where bromoform leaked into water or soil.

HeALTH eFFeCTS [2]

Acute effects

Human exposure to large amounts of bromoform through inhalation and oral exposure can result in unconsciousness. Animal studies, combined with limited observations in humans, indicate that the principal adverse health effects associated with short-term inhalation or oral exposure to high levels of bromoform are CnS depression, resulting in the slowing down of normal brain activities, sedation, narcosis, and sleep, and liver and kidney injury.

Chronic effects

The long-term effects of exposure to bromoform in humans have not been studied. Animal studies indicate effects on the liver, kidney, and CnS from chronic oral exposure to bromoform. The Reference Dose (RfD) for bromoform is 0.02 milligrams per kilogram body weight per day (mg/kg/d) based on hepatic lesions in rats. The united States Environmental Protection Agency has determined that there are insufficient data to calculate a Reference Concentration (RfC) for bromoform.

Cancer Risk

The only available human cancer study suggested a positive correlation between levels of bromoform in drinking water and the incidence of several tumour types. However, this study was considered to be incomplete and preliminary because the study design did not permit consideration of variables such as personal habits, residential histories, and past exposures. Animal studies have demonstrated an increase in the incidences of liver and intestinal tumours following oral exposure to bromoform. EPA considers bromoform to be a probable human carcinogen and has ranked it in EPA’s Group B2.

SAFeTy [5]

First Aid Measures

• Eye Contact: Check for and remove any contact lenses. Immediately flush eyes with running water for at least 15 minutes, keeping eyelids open. Cold water may be used. WARM water MuST be used. Get medical attention.

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Hazard Alert• Skin Contact: In case of contact, immediately flush skin with plenty of

water. Cover the irritated skin with an emollient. Remove contaminated clothing and shoes. Wash clothing before reuse. Thoroughly clean shoes before reuse. Get medical attention.

• Serious Skin Contact: Wash with a disinfectant soap and cover the contaminated skin with an anti-bacterial cream. Seek immediate medical attention.

• Inhalation: If inhaled, remove to fresh air. If not breathing, give artificial respiration. If breathing is difficult, give oxygen. Get medical attention.

• Serious Inhalation: Evacuate the victim to a safe area as soon as possible. Loosen tight clothing such as a collar, tie, belt or waistband. If breathing is difficult, administer oxygen. If the victim is not breathing, perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. Seek medical attention.

• Ingestion: Do nOT induce vomiting unless directed to do so by medical personnel. never give anything by mouth to an unconscious person. If large quantities of this material are swallowed, call a physician immediately. Loosen tight clothing such as a collar, tie, belt or waistband.

exposure Control & Personal Protection

Engineering ControlsProvide exhaust ventilation or other engineering controls to keep the airborne concentrations of vapours below their respective threshold limit value.

Personal Protection Equipment• Splash goggles;• Lab coat;• Vapour respirator - Be sure to use an approved/certified respirator or

equivalent;• Gloves;Personal Protection in Case of a Large Spill:• Splash goggles;• Full suit;• Vapour respirator (A self contained breathing apparatus should be

used to avoid inhalation of the product);• Boots;• Gloves;Please note: Suggested protective clothing might not be sufficient; consult a specialist BEFORE handling this product.

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Hazard AlertReGULATiON [6]

Exposure Limits:EH40−OES (United Kingdom (UK), 1997). Skin• TWA: 5.3 mg/m3• TWA: 0.5 ppmNiOSH ReL (United States, 1994). Skin• TWA: 5 mg/m3 Period: 10 hour(s).• TWA: 0.5 ppm Period: 10 hour(s).NOHSC (Australia, 1995).Skin notes: Documentation for the substances with this footnote can be found in the 5th Edition of the ACGIH documentation of the threshold limit values and biological exposure indices. For all other substances with ‘H’ in Column 7 the documentation can be found in the 6th Edition of the ACGIH documentation of the threshold limit values and biological exposure indices.• TWA: 5.2 mg/m3• TWA: 0.5 ppm

ReFeReNCeS

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bromoform2. http://www.epa.gov/ttn/atw/hlthef/bromofor.html3. http://scorecard.goodguide.com/chemical-profiles/html/

bromoform.html4. http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/phs/phs.asp?id=711&tid=1285. http://www.sciencelab.com/msds.php?msdsId=99271096. http://www.setonresourcecenter.com/msdshazcom/htdocs//

MSDS/E/EMD/Docs/wcd00019/wcd01908.pdf

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A new study by re-searchers at Harvard University has found that exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) at levels commonly found in the general population may cut a woman’s chance of getting pregnant if she is undergoing fertility treatment.

BPA diminishes in vitro success2012-05-24A new study by researchers at Harvard university has found that exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) at levels commonly found in the general population may cut a woman’s chance of getting pregnant if she is undergoing fertility treatment. The results showed that those with higher BPA levels were less likely to get pregnant than women with lower levels. The link was stronger in women having more intense fertility treatments. The pregnancies failed because the embryos did not attach to the uterus. While animal studies show similar results, this is the first time researchers report a link in people. BPA is widely used in some plastics, most food can linings and certain receipt paper. The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that about 6.1 million women in the united States have trouble getting or staying pregnant. This is partly because they are having babies at an older age. One type of fertility problem is when the embryo(s) fails to implant in the uterus. This accounts for up to 75 percent of preclinical pregnancy loss – an early loss that ends before a woman’s next menstrual period. Successful implantation requires proper hormone function and response. Previous research suggests that continuous exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals like bisphenol A (BPA) lead to fertility problems such as failed embryo implantation. Endocrine disruptors are a group of chemicals that can behave like or block hormones, including the reproductive hormones involved in pregnancy. Bisphenol A is widely used in the manufacture of polycarbonate plastics and epoxy resins. It is in many consumer products, including the lining of food and beverage cans, plastic food containers, dental sealants, cigarette filters, water supply pipes and paper receipts. Thus, exposure in the general population is widespread. Exposure to BPA is mainly through contaminated food. It can also be breathed in or absorbed in the skin. In animals, BPA exposure at levels measured in the general population is linked to reproductive problems, including failed implantation, reduced litter size and lower percentage of females having pups. In humans, limited studies indicate that BPA exposure is associated with reproductive problems. BPA exposure in women undergoing in vitro fertilisation (IVF) is related to lower quality and number of eggs retrieved during treatment and the level of hormones essential to get pregnant. Studying the effects of endocrine disruptors, like BPA, on reproductive health can be a challenge in couples trying to get pregnant naturally. IVF allows researchers to have a look into the earliest stages of pregnancy usually not observable in couples conceiving naturally. Implantation failure, for example, happens before a woman knows she’s pregnant. For many couples, IVF is the only way to get pregnant. During

Gossip

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GossipIVF, a woman takes fertility drugs to stimulate the ovaries to produce more eggs. The process is then monitored via blood tests and an ultrasound exam. To trigger ovulation, a woman is given hormones before collecting her eggs. Once retrieved from the woman’s ovaries, the eggs are fertilised with sperm in a laboratory dish in hopes that one or more will grow into a viable embryo. Lastly, the embryo – fertilised egg(s) – is transferred to the woman’s uterus.During the new study, the researchers followed 137 women seeking fertility treatment at Massachusetts General Hospital Fertility Centre. They examined the relationship between BPA exposure and pregnancy success among women undergoing IVF treatment. Women were of childbearing age (18-45 years), used their own eggs in the IVF procedure and most were Caucasian and non-smokers. They were followed through each IVF cycle until they delivered their baby or stopped treatment. The participants underwent one of three IVF treatment protocols based on whether they were “poor responders” or “good responders.” Women who are “poor responders” require large doses of fertility drugs and end up with fewer eggs. BPA concentrations in urine samples were measured at each fertility treatment. The researchers confirmed pregnancies – defined as successful embryo implantation – by measuring the levels in blood samples of a hormone produced during pregnancy – ß-human chorionic gonadotropin hormone (ß-HCG). The hormone is found in blood and urine of pregnant women as early as 10 days after conception. Medical history, lifestyle factors, occupation and other personal information were collected in a nurse-administered questionnaire and/or in an in-depth take-home questionnaire. The researchers categorised women into one of four exposure groups based on the BPA levels in their urine: 1.69 micrograms per litre (μg/L) or lower, 1.70-2.33 μg/L, 2.34-3.79 μg/L and 3.80 μg/L or higher. They compared the chances of getting pregnant in women in the highest exposure groups (1.70 μg/L and higher) to women in the lowest exposure group (1.69 μg/L or lower). In their analysis, they considered several factors that could affect the association between BPA exposure and implantation failure, including women’s age, day of embryo transfer and specific IVF protocol treatment followed. Regardless of the factors considered, the results show a clear trend of increasing implantation failure with higher BPA levels. These effects were observed in women with BPA levels lower than those in women of childbearing age in the general u.S. population. Average levels of BPA measured in the women’s urine – 1.53 μg/L – were comparable to those reported in women from the general u.S. population – 1.97 μg/L. Without taking into account women’s age, day of embryo transfer and IVF protocol followed, the chances of getting pregnant decreased with increasing exposure levels of

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Bacterial cells in the body outnumber human cells by a factor of 10 to 1. yet only recently have researchers begun to elucidate the beneficial roles these microbes play in fostering health.

GossipBPA. Women in the highest exposure group had half the odds of getting pregnant than women with the lowest levels. Findings were similar after controlling for women’s age, day of embryo transfer, and IVF protocol followed. The relationship was not as strong in women in the highest exposure group.Furthermore, the researchers observed stronger associations between BPA and failed pregnancies in women who were poor responders. Those with higher levels of BPA were less likely to become pregnant. Women who were poor responders were generally older and more likely to have past IVF treatment cycle failures. They also had reduced number of eggs; lower average number of eggs retrieved and diminished ovarian response to stimulation. This is the first study to find an association between failed egg implantation and BPA exposure in women undergoing IVF treatment. This finding is important because it provides the first human data on the association between implantation failure in women seeking IVF treatment and BPA exposure at levels observed in women of childbearing age in the general population. Results suggest that as BPA levels increase so do the number of failed pregnancies in women undergoing fertility treatment. These findings confirm in people what has been observed in animal studies and support previous studies that link BPA to fertility problems in humans. Prior studies in humans report that BPA exposure is associated with recurrent miscarriages, quality and number of eggs retrieved during IVF treatment and peak hormone levels essential for a successful pregnancy. Additionally, findings support earlier studies that suggest women seeking IVF treatment minimise their exposure to BPA (Fujimoto et al. 2011; Mol-Lin et al. 2010). The results may not be applicable to women trying to conceive naturally. According to the authors, it is possible that women undergoing fertility treatment are more sensitive to BPA exposure due to different factors “including their underlying infertility, the in vitro conditions of early embryonic development or the ovarian hyperstimulation protocols.” nonetheless, because 10-15 percent of the population in the united States and developed countries are infertile, the results are still relevant to a large subset of the general population.Environmental Health news, 16 May 2012http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/

How Bacteria in Our Bodies Protect Our Health2012-05-17Bacterial cells in the body outnumber human cells by a factor of 10 to 1. Yet only recently have researchers begun to elucidate the beneficial roles these microbes play in fostering health. Some of these bacteria possess

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in a new study, researchers are us-ing an autonomous robotic fish to sense marine pollution.

Gossipgenes that encode for beneficial compounds that the body cannot make on its own. Other bacteria seem to train the body not to overreact to outside threats. Advances in computing and gene sequencing are allowing researchers to create a detailed catalogue of all the bacterial genes that make up this so-called microbiome. unfortunately, the inadvertent destruction of beneficial microbes by the use of antibiotics, among other things, may be leading to an increase in autoimmune disorders and obesity. Biologists once thought that human beings were physiological islands, entirely capable of regulating their own internal workings. Our bodies made all the enzymes needed for breaking down food and using its nutrients to power and repair our tissues and organs. Signals from our own tissues dictated body states such as hunger or satiety. The specialised cells of our immune system taught themselves how to recognise and attack dangerous microbes—pathogens—while at the same time sparing our own tissues. However, over the past decade or so, researchers have demonstrated that the human body is not such a neatly self-sufficient island after all. It is more like a complex ecosystem—a social network—containing trillions of bacteria and other microorganisms that inhabit our skin, genital areas, mouth and especially intestines. In fact, most of the cells in the human body are not human at all. Bacterial cells in the human body outnumber human cells 10 to one. Moreover, this mixed community of microbial cells and the genes they contain, collectively known as the microbiome, does not threaten us but offers vital help with basic physiological processes—from digestion to growth to self-defence.Scientific American, 15 May 2012http://www.sciam.com

Robotic fish shoal sniffs out pollution in harbours2012-05-24There is something unnatural lurking in the waters of the port of Gijon, Spain, and researchers are tracking its every move. It is not some bizarre new form of marine life, but an autonomous robotic fish designed to sense marine pollution, taking to the open waves for the first time. “With these fish we can find exactly what is causing the pollution and put a stop to it right away,” explains Luke Speller, a scientist at the British technology firm BMT and the leader of SHOAL, a European project involving universities, businesses and the port of Gijon, which have joined forces to create the fish. Currently the port relies on divers to monitor water quality, which is a lengthy process costing €100,000 per year. The divers take water samples from hundreds of points in the port, then send them off for analysis, with the results taking weeks to return. By contrast, the SHOAL

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Gossiprobots would continuously monitor the water, letting the port respond immediately to the causes of pollution, such as a leaking boat or industrial spillage, and work to mitigate its effects. The SHOAL fish are one and a half metres long, comparable to the size and shape of a tuna, but their neon-yellow plastic shell means they are unlikely to be mistaken for the real thing. A range of onboard chemical sensors detect lead, copper and other pollutants, along with measuring water salinity. They are driven by a dual-hinged tail capable of making tight turns that would be impossible with a propeller-driven robot. In addition, they are less noisy, reducing the impact on marine life. The robots are battery powered and capable of running for 8 hours between charges. At the moment the researchers have to recover them by boat, but their plan is that the fish will return to a charging station by themselves. Working in a group, the fish can cover a 1 kilometre-square region of water, down to a depth of 30 metres. They communicate with each other and a nearby base-station using very low-frequency sound waves, which can penetrate the water more easily than radio waves. However, this means the fish have a low data transmission rate and can only send short, predefined messages. “It’s a good solution, but it requires thinking carefully about what data to transmit and how to use that data,” says Kristi Morgansen, a roboticist at the university of Washington, who was not involved in the research.navigation relies on a related system that communicates with four “pingers” at the corners of the port, which act much like GPS satellites for the fish. If one fish senses pollution in an area it can call the others to create a detailed map of high and low concentrations around it, helping port authorities to locate the exact source of the pollutant. Versions of the fish have been working successfully in the lab for a few years now, but trialling them in a real-life port has proved more difficult. Rough weather has often prevented the researchers from venturing out on the waves, though Speller says the fish would be fine as they can simply dive below the water. But depth has also been a problem – the waterproofing on one component is unable to withstand the pressure at 30m underwater, so it requires a last-minute replacement. Thankfully the fish are fitted with a variety of safety features if something goes wrong, such as airbags that inflate to make the fish surface, and a GPS and cellphone chip in the fin so that a distressed fish can send its location details to Speller’s phone via text message. Having demonstrated that the fish can sense pollution and communicate underwater, the SHOAL group now plans to commercialise the design and sell it to other ports in Europe and the rest of the world. The prototypes currently cost around £20,000 each, but mass production should bring that price down. Speller plans to do more than just track pollution, however – the fish’s modular design makes it easy to swap the

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Researchers in the United States have discovered that more elderly people with heart and respiratory problems die when there is a larger difference between summertime high and low temperatures.

Gossipchemical sensors for other applications. “I like to see the fish as platform for other things that can be done in the sea, such as search and rescue, helping divers, and port security.” Morgansen says that underwater gliders have proved successful in monitoring open waters, but they cannot move within the tight spaces of a port or harbour. This means nimbler fish-inspired robots like SHOAL’s may be the way forward. “I think the use of agile underwater robots for monitoring water systems will happen in most ports in the not-distant future.”new Scientist, 22 May 2012http://www.newscientist.com/

Summer heat variations can be fatal for unhealthy seniors2012-05-24Researchers in the united States have discovered that more elderly people with heart and respiratory problems die when there is a larger difference between summertime high and low temperatures. During the new study, the researchers analysed the changes over two decades. The study is the first long-term one to link mortality and summer temperature fluctuations. A small swing between the high and low temperatures in summer might increase the risk of death in older people with certain chronic diseases, report researchers who tracked around 10 million elderly residents in 135 u.S. cities. Those who had cardiovascular, respiratory diseases and diabetes were more vulnerable to the summer temperature variations. This is the first study to look at the link between year-to-year temperature variations in the summer months and year-to-year variations in survival of elderly. Variation between seasonal annual high and low temperatures are expected to increase with a warming climate. The findings from this research highlight the need to expand current public health intervention programs from a focus on extreme heat events to strategies that include warnings about the dangers of summer temperature fluctuations. People naturally think more heat-related deaths occur in regions with year-round hot weather, such as in the southern united States. However, prior studies of those living in areas with consistently higher temperatures find the opposite. Fewer deaths are due to heat in southern compared to northern states. Short-term studies focus on the exposures to temperatures on the day of death or hospital admission, or several days before. Long-term studies deal with temperature exposures over months, a year or even longer. Few studies have investigated health effects of long exposures. This means summer temperature variations have not yet been linked to reduced life expectancy. To establish if there is a connection, researchers

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Mass spectrometry can now measure individual viruses, such as these HiV particles (small spheres), shown growing on human lym-phocytes, in a scanning electron micrograph.

Gossipmade good use of the u.S. Medicare database, which includes all u.S. residents older than 65. They focused on data from 1985 to 2006 in 135 u.S. cities. They placed people into one of four groups based on pre-existing diseases. These four groups included 3.7 million older people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 1.9 million with diabetes, 3.4 million with congestive heart failure and 1.5 million with myocardial infarction. Researchers used statistical models to examine the associations between year-to-year summer temperature variations and year-to-year changes in mortality risk among these four populations. Furthermore, they tested whether these associations varied by age and green space in a city area. They took into account winter temperatures, ozone levels, personal risk factors and others that might influence the associations. They found the risk of death increased around 5 percent among these four populations for every 1 degree Celsius the yearly summer temperature variation increased. Considering an average of 270,000 deaths among these four populations, this increased risk is equivalent to around 14,000 more deaths per year than would be expected. Older people living in areas with less green space were twice as likely to die than those in areas with more green space. Those older than 75 years were more likely to die than those between 65 – 74 years old. Given that temperature variations are expected to rise as the climate warms, this work highlights the importance of incorporating summer temperature variations into current adaptation and intervention strategies that currently focus on extreme hot weather.Environmental Health news, 22 May 2012http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/

easy Mass Measurement Of Viruses And Nanoparticles2012-05-24A new study published in the journal Analytical Chemistry, has reported on a new method developed by researchers in Taiwan, to find the mass of nanoparticles and viruses. For quality control, manufacturers need to know the mass of nanoparticles they produce. But measuring the particles’ masses quickly is difficult. Calculating mass based on particle volumes obtained from electron micrographs and density is fairly fast but inaccurate for oddly shaped particles, says Chung-Hsuan Chen of Academia Sinica, in Taipei. In addition, he says, mass spectrometry techniques that researchers have tried are slow and expensive. Similarly, the mass distribution of virus particles, which are about the same size as nanoparticles (between 1 megadalton and 1 gigadalton) is hard to measure. If viruses in a sample vary in mass, researchers might want to know why, Chen says. Mass spectrometry measures a molecule’s or

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Amid growing concerns about the spread of harmful mercury in plants and animals, a new study by researchers from The Johns Hopkins University and The National Aquarium has compared levels of the chemical in captive dolphins with dolphins found in the wild.

Gossipparticle’s mass-to-charge ratio. Most viruses and nanoparticles have around 50 charges or fewer when ionised. This range lies in a detection black hole: Mass spectrometry can easily cope with small molecules with one or a few charges, and techniques exist for much larger biomolecules or cells with thousands of charges. But in between, noise from the instrument’s electronics wipes out the signal. Chen and his team used a technique they recently developed based on laser-induced acoustic desorption spectroscopy. unlike other techniques for large particles, Chen’s method doesn’t need a matrix to hold the sample before it is ionised; matrices can form aggregates with the sample and thereby distort its mass spectral signal. It also doesn’t blast the particles apart when they are ionised, which would decrease accuracy, Chen says. In the technique, after the sample ionises, the ions collect in an ion trap. Chen’s team introduced a steel shield around their charge detector to reduce the electronic noise. When the researchers analysed either spherical polystyrene nanoparticles or HIV particles, the whole process took less than a minute, Chen says – one-tenth the time of the team’s previous best efforts, which analysed cells (Angew. Chem. Int. Ed., DOI: 10.1002/anie.200700309). The work is a “great example of how scientists are bridging the gap” in large particle analysis, says Mark Bier, an expert in mass spectrometry of biological samples at Carnegie Mellon university.Chemical & Engineering news, 22 May 2012http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news

Study Compares Toxin Levels in Captive and Wild Sea Mammals2012-05-24Amid growing concerns about the spread of harmful mercury in plants and animals, a new study by researchers from The Johns Hopkins university and The national Aquarium has compared levels of the chemical in captive dolphins with dolphins found in the wild. The captive animals were fed a controlled diet, while the wild mammals dined on marine life that may carry more of the toxic metal. The study detected lower levels of mercury in the captive animals, particularly compared to wild dolphins tested off the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of Florida, a state that is in the path of mercury-laden fumes from power plants. The aquarium dolphins are fed smaller fish from north Atlantic waters, where mercury pollution is less prevalent. The findings were published in the journal Science of the Total Environment. Although these results represent a significant case study, the research focused on a small number of animals, and Edward Bouwer, chair of the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering at Johns

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GossipHopkins and supervisor/co-author of the study, cautioned against drawing wide-ranging conclusions from the research. “This is just one snapshot, one puzzle piece,” said Bouwer. “What we’d like to do now is repeat this project with aquariums in other parts of the world. The goal is to get a clearer comparison of mercury-related health risks facing dolphins both in captivity and in the wild. This type of research can give us hints about how the type of diet and where it originated can affect mercury-related health problems in captive dolphins, compared to their cousins in the wild.” Public health officials are concerned about human consumption of mercury, particularly in a form called methylmercury, because it can damage the brain and other parts of the nervous system, especially in young children. Dolphins that ingest too much methylmercury can suffer similar harm. Mercury is emitted as a gas from coal- and oil-fired power plants. Some makes its way into the ocean, where bacteria turn it into methylmercury, which moves up the food chain. Eventually, it turns up in the large fish that serve as dinner for wild dolphins. Once ingested, the heavy metal makes its way into the animals’ bloodstream, where it can begin to damage the nervous system. With this in mind, the Johns Hopkins and national Aquarium researchers wanted to investigate mercury exposure differences between captive and wild dolphins whose diets came from different regions.During the new study, the researchers collected blood samples from seven aquarium dolphins, ages 2 to 38, and tested them for mercury, methylmercury and a third chemical, selenium, which appears to help ward off the toxic effects. The researchers compared their results against those derived from wild dolphin blood samples collected in earlier capture-and-release studies conducted in the waters off Charleston, S.C.; Indian River Lagoon on Florida’s Atlantic coast; and Sarasota, on Florida’s Gulf Coast. “While mercury levels in the wild dolphins off South Carolina were slightly higher than those in the national Aquarium dolphins, readings from the dolphins off the Florida coasts were significantly higher,” said Yongseok Hong, postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Geography and Environmental Engineering in Johns Hopkins’ Whiting School of Engineering and lead author of the study. “The difference in mercury exposure was attributed to differences in the dolphins’ diets,” he said. “The aquarium dolphins were fed a consistent level of small fish–capelin and herring–that were caught in north Atlantic waters off newfoundland and new England. Lower levels of mercury are expected in these waters, compared to the waters off Florida.” Leigh Clayton, the national Aquarium’s director of animal health, said the team members who care for the aquarium’s dolphins were enthusiastic about contributing to this study because it gave them a chance to more fully evaluate the food that the team feeds to its

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in a new study, researchers have developed a new way to analyse the deadly protein botu-linum neurotoxin.

Gossipmarine mammals. “It is important that we gain a better understanding of the mercury levels in the north Atlantic food chain in order to ensure we’re providing the best diet possible to our dolphins,” Clayton said. “The research we have done with Johns Hopkins has provided helpful information for our marine mammal’s team and allows us, at this time, to have confidence that our current fish food sources do not have excessively elevated mercury levels.” Last December, after the study was conducted, the u.S. Environmental Protection Agency adopted strict standards aimed at reducing the release of toxic air pollution from coal- and oil-fired power plants, a key source of mercury contamination in sea water.Environmental Protection news, 22 May 2012http://www.eponline.com

identifying Botulism Toxins2012-05-24In a new study, researchers have developed a new way to analyse the deadly protein botulinum neurotoxin. This discovery makes it possible to differentiate its numerous subtypes, many of which differ by only a few amino acids. Botulinum toxin induces paralysis and is considered a potential bioterrorism agent. Subtype identification could be particularly important in tracking down the sources of outbreaks of botulism, the illness caused by the toxin. not only does the toxin have seven serotypes, designated A through G, but those serotypes themselves contain numerous subtypes and variants. Methods based on the polymerase chain reaction can identify the toxin subtypes, but they require DnA from the toxin-producing organisms, which include Clostridium botulinum. In many cases, only the toxin itself is available. By expanding a traditional analytical method, which involves enzymatically digesting the large protein in a gel and then sequencing the resulting peptides via mass spectrometry, research chemists John R. Barr of the Centres for Disease Control & Prevention and colleagues were able to get their results. Barr says the traditional method is inefficient because of incomplete digestion, and it often fails to produce enough peptides to generate a thorough sequence identification. Instead, the group used several enzymes in sequence in a single gel to chop the toxin into many more peptides. The sequential digestions in the same gel band allow the team to systematically detect more thoroughly digested protein pieces, yielding dramatically higher sequence coverage, Barr says. Analysis of the resulting peptides by mass spectrometry made it possible for them to accurately identify more than 98% of the protein sequence of a botulinum toxin variant in contaminated carrot juice. The method could be generalised “to identify or distinguish

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A new study by researchers at Michigan Techno-logical University has developed a simple, cheap way to make water safe to drink.

Gossipother important protein toxins, or any proteins with variants that have close sequence identities,” notes Luisa W. Cheng, a uSDA biologist.Chemical & Engineering news, 21 May 2012http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news

Scientist develops Simple Way to Make Clean Water for everyone2012-05-24A new study by researchers at Michigan Technological university has developed a simple, cheap way to make water safe to drink. nearly 80 percent of disease in developing countries is linked to bad water and sanitation. now a scientist at Michigan Technological university has developed a simple, cheap way to make water safe to drink, even if it’s muddy. It’s easy enough to purify clear water. The solar water disinfection method, or SODIS, calls for leaving a transparent plastic bottle of clear water out in the sun for six hours. That allows heat and ultraviolet radiation to wipe out most pathogens that cause diarrhoea, a malady that kills 4,000 children a day in Africa. It’s a different story if the water is murky, as it often is where people must fetch water from rivers, streams and boreholes. “In the developing world, many people don’t have access to clear water, and it’s very hard to get rid of the suspended clay particles,” says Joshua Pearce, an associate professor of materials science and engineering. “But if you don’t, SODIS doesn’t work. The microorganisms hide under the clay and avoid the uV.” Thus, to purify your water, you first have to get the clay to settle out, a process called flocculation. Working with student Brittney Dawney of Queen’s university in Ontario, Pearce discovered that one of the most abundant minerals on Earth does this job very well: sodium chloride, or simple table salt. Salt is inexpensive and available almost everywhere. And it doesn’t take very much to make muddy water clear again. “The water has a lower sodium concentration than Gatorade,” Pearce says. This would still be too much salt to pass muster as American tap water, but American tap water is not the alternative. “I’ve drunk this water myself. If I were somewhere with no clean water and had kids with diarrhoea, and this could save their lives, I’d use this, no question,” he says. Salt works best when the suspended particles are a type of clay called bentonite. The technique doesn’t work as well with other kinds of clay. However, by adding a little bentonite with the salt to water containing these different clays, most of the particles glom together and settle out, creating water clear enough for SODIS treatment. Pearce and Dawney are running more tests on water containing various types of clays, and they

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New crop traits that allow use of older herbicides may help farmers manage resistant weeds.

Gossipare also investigating different soil types across Africa to see where their methods might work the best.Environmental Protection news, 21 May 2012http://www.eponline.com

War On Weeds2012-05-24Farmers, plant geneticists, chemists, and agronomists recently have been engaged in an arms race against weeds, particularly weeds that have evolved resistance to the common herbicide glyphosate. A second generation of herbicide-tolerant crops has been developed to battle resistant weeds, but they have sparked concerns about over reliance on chemical controls. Introduced in the 1980s, glyphosate has been the best-selling herbicide since 2001. Monsanto, which markets glyphosate as Roundup, introduced crops engineered to be tolerant of glyphosate in the late 1990s, and farmers now plant Roundup Ready herbicide-tolerant corn, soybeans, and cotton on the majority of cultivated acres in the u.S. Thanks to the popularity of the firm’s Roundup Ready trait, last year 94% of soybean acres were herbicide-tolerant, as was 73% of cotton acreage and 72% of corn acreage, according to the Department of Agriculture. Farmers liked glyphosate because it vastly simplified weed control. But it also led to the emergence of resistant weeds that are increasingly hard to kill. Beginning in 2013, pending approval by uSDA, farmers will be able to plant crops that have been genetically modified to also tolerate applications of the herbicides 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and 3,6-dichloro-2-methoxybenzoic acid (dicamba).Both herbicides have been in use for more than 40 years. The traits will be “stacked” to include tolerance to glyphosate as well as to 2,4-D or dicamba. Dow AgroSciences’ 2,4-D-tolerant corn, part of its Enlist Weed Control System, is the first of the new crops in line for uSDA consideration and marketing to u.S. farmers. Monsanto plans to follow with its 2014 introduction of dicamba-tolerant soybeans, called Roundup Ready 2 Xtend. Both companies say that the emergence of weeds resistant to glyphosate will drive farmers’ adoption of the new seeds. Farmers would still be able to manage most weeds through applications of glyphosate, but for any resistant weeds that remain, they will have the option of adding 2,4-D or dicamba without worrying about damaging their crops. The firms are promoting the seeds as a way to control weeds without having to resort to tilling or hand-weeding. So-called low-till or conservation tillage is a common soil conservation practice. But in the long term, experts say, if farmers do not also use nonchemical methods for weed control, such as crop rotation,

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Gossipeventually weeds will emerge that are resistant to 2,4-D and dicamba as well as glyphosate. The new crops will be a valuable tool to help diversify weed management programs, says David R. Shaw, a research professor at Mississippi State university and chair of a task force on weed resistance for the Iowa-based nonprofit Council for Agricultural Science & Technology. However, if farmers depend too much on the new technology, “evolutionary nature is such that when you put enough selection pressure on a species, it will develop resistance,” he says. That pressure would create weeds that could survive 2,4-D or dicamba applications. The range of weeds brandishing multiple resistances has made the new crops a target for groups promoting sustainable agriculture. Others have raised alarms about risks associated with an increase in use of 2, 4-D and dicamba. For example, growers of crops that are susceptible to the herbicides are worried that more drift of 2,4-D and dicamba from treated fields will weaken or kill their crops.For their part, Dow and Monsanto insist that the lessons learned from over reliance on glyphosate are changing farming practices. never again, they say, will it be the norm to use the same herbicide, year after year, on the same crop in the same location. They dispute estimates that the use of 2,4-D or dicamba will greatly increase. And both firms have developed new, low-drift formulations of these herbicides that they say will minimise off-field migration. At Dow, plant scientists began the search for a new herbicide-tolerance trait almost 10 years ago, with the emergence of weeds resistant to glyphosate, says Mark Peterson, Dow’s global biology team leader for Enlist. The company settled on 2,4-D as the target herbicide because it is already commonly used, kills a wide range of weeds, and has a mode of action that’s different from glyphosate’s. Both 2,4-D and dicamba are synthetic versions of the plant hormone auxin. Putting additional auxin on weeds triggers uncontrolled growth that leads to death. To find genes that confer a tolerance to 2,4-D, scientists looked in bacteria that live in soils where 2,4-D has been used. One bacterium, Ralstonia eutropha, produces enzymes that break down the molecule into constituents that are not lethal to plants. Dow’s plant geneticists were able to insert the gene into corn, soy, and cotton. The resulting genotypes were tested for 2,4-D tolerance, and the successful plants were then tested for any impact on yield, grain quality, stress tolerance, or maturity. “Our plant breeders say they are very well behaved plant traits,” Peterson reports. Well-behaved traits confer the desired advantage without also bringing along other metabolic changes that would weaken the crops. While the Enlist crops were showing their stuff in field trials, Dow chemists worked on a new formulation of 2,4-D, called 2,4-D choline, to minimise volatility. David E. Hillger, an application technology specialist at Dow AgroSciences,

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Gossipexplains that rather than traditional ester or amine forms of the molecule, which can volatilise in the environment, the new version is a more stable quaternary ammonium salt. In addition, Hillger says Dow’s proprietary manufacturing process produces a product with less particle drift when application directions are followed. Dow recently reported that field tests of the formula showed a 92% reduction in volatility and a 90% reduction in drift. Crops that contain the 2,4-D tolerance- trait will also tolerate older versions of 2,4-D. However, Dow has developed a stewardship program that obligates farmers to use a premixed combination of 2,4-D choline and glyphosate. The program includes farmer education about using multiple herbicide modes of action, the requirement to use Dow’s new herbicide mixture, and labelling instructions for proper application. State pesticide regulations generally require farmers to follow labelling guidelines when using herbicides. Soybean growers will have their first opportunity to use a synthetic auxin herbicide beginning in 2014 with the arrival of Monsanto’s dicamba-tolerant soybeans. Like Dow’s 2,4-D trait, the dicamba-tolerance gene was isolated from a soil bacterium, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia. Much of the plant genetics work was done by researchers at the university of nebraska, Lincoln. The bacteria metabolise dicamba with the help of the enzyme dicamba monooxygenase, explains Cindy L. Arnevik, Monsanto’s north American soybean trait lead.Monsanto licensed the trait technology in 2005 from the university, and Arnevik’s team tested more than 100 resulting transformations. “We can put the same gene in a plant and one will express in the right place and get the right tolerance; the next plant doesn’t,” Arnevik says. Years of field trials of the tolerant strains followed to make sure the trait does not affect yield, regardless of whether the field is sprayed with herbicide. On the chemicals side, Monsanto worked with BASF to develop a new generation of dicamba that has reduced volatility compared with the common formulation currently available. Current versions of dicamba are not labelled for use with soybeans, giving farmers added incentive to trade up to the new formula. Monsanto does not plan to require farmers to spray a dual-herbicide mixture; farmers in areas where resistant weeds are not a problem can stick with glyphosate. On the other hand, farmers who do have glyphosate-resistant weeds should not depend just on a two-herbicide blend, even in cases where the mixture appears to kill all weeds. Monsanto and Dow promote varying the herbicides used and always including ones that have a residual effect when applied to the soil. More herbicide-resistant traits are in the pipeline, which will increase the availability of diverse modes of action. For example, Syngenta and Bayer CropScience are collaborating on a p-hydroxyphenylpyruvate dioxygenase herbicide-tolerance trait for soybeans. And crops tolerant of three or more

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Gossipherbicides are not far behind. Since the advent of Roundup Ready traits, however, farmers have not been in the habit of controlling for nonexistent weeds. “To some extent it is true that farmers might not change what they are doing until a resistant weed appears. Roundup Ready was so good, farmers could forget what they knew in terms of weed management. Before that, there were no silver bullets,” says MSu’s Shaw. “There is now a whole generation of farmers that haven’t known anything but this very simplistic system.” In addition to using a changing rotation of herbicides, Shaw says farmers will need to change their agricultural practices to include crop rotation, cover cropping, and weed control after harvest. And in some areas, low-till practices will be more difficult to adhere to. Bill Freese, science policy analyst at the Centre for Food Safety, is not convinced that seed firms will encourage better habits. “All of this talk about stewardship and grower education is window dressing.Monsanto promoted Roundup Ready as a weed system, and that is how Dow is promoting its crops,” he says. What’s more, he is sceptical that new application guidelines to control herbicide drift will be followed. “A lot of pesticide application is done by commercial applicators.” With applications scheduled in advance, “there is a low likelihood they will hold off on applying if wind speed is too high.” In addition, Freese points to research from Pennsylvania State university that projects a fourfold increase in the amount of 2,4-D used on corn after growers adopt the Enlist system. “It is postemergence use that causes most crop injury” and selects for resistant weeds, Freese says. For its part, Dow says that “rates of herbicide application per acre of corn will not increase with our new technology package.” Without the new traits, farmers would still need to apply an ever-greater amount of herbicides to control weeds resistant to glyphosate. In addition, farmers would have to resort to cultivation practices that could increase soil erosion and pollution. A group of u.S. growers organised as the Save Our Crops Coalition has asked uSDA to take a close look at the problem of damage from 2,4-D drift. In a statement, the group, which includes fruit and vegetable growers, says “SOCC appreciates Dow’s substantial efforts to develop a low-volatility formulation of 2,4-D.” But, it adds, “an environmental impact statement should be conducted regarding the approval of the entire class of synthetic auxin-tolerant crops.” For now, groups for and against the introduction of the new herbicide-tolerant crops are waiting on a ruling from uSDA, which wrapped up its public comment period on the 2,4-D trait at the end of April. MSu’s Shaw is already looking ahead. “Herbicide resistance is a sociological problem more than a physiological problem. It’s about the practices that people choose or choose not to follow.” He says that companies bear a major responsibility to ensure the adoption of good

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New research by a team of scientists has demonstrated that black carbon aerosols and tropo-spheric ozone, both humanmade pollutants emitted predomi-nantly in the Northern Hemisphere’s low- to mid-latitudes, are most likely pushing the boundary of the trop-ics further poleward in that hemisphere.

Gossipstewardship practices in their direct sales role with the grower. “They have the best chance to educate them. It’s where the rubber meets the road.”Chemical & Engineering news, 21 May 2012http://pubs.acs.org/cen/news

Humanmade Pollutants May Be driving earth’s Tropical Belt expansion2012-05-24new research by a team of scientists has demonstrated that black carbon aerosols and tropospheric ozone, both humanmade pollutants emitted predominantly in the northern Hemisphere’s low- to mid-latitudes, are most likely pushing the boundary of the tropics further poleward in that hemisphere. While stratospheric ozone depletion has already been shown to be the primary driver of the expansion of the tropics in the Southern Hemisphere, the researchers are the first to report that black carbon and tropospheric ozone are the most likely primary drivers of the tropical expansion observed in the northern Hemisphere. Led by climatologist Robert J. Allen, an assistant professor of Earth sciences at the university of California, Riverside, the research team notes that an unabated tropical belt expansion would impact large-scale atmospheric circulation, especially in the subtropics and mid-latitudes. “If the tropics are moving poleward, then the subtropics will become even drier,” Allen said. “If a poleward displacement of the mid-latitude storm tracks also occurs, this will shift mid-latitude precipitation poleward, impacting regional agriculture, economy and society.” The new study was published in a recent edition of the journal nature. Observations show that the tropics have widened by 0.7 degrees latitude per decade, with warming from greenhouse gases also contributing to the expansion in both hemispheres. To study this expansion, the researchers first compared observational data with simulated data from climate models for 1979-1999. The simulated data were generated by a collection of 20 climate models called the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project version 3 or “CMIP3.” The researchers found that CMIP3 underestimates the observed 0.35 degrees latitude per decade expansion of the northern Hemisphere tropics by about a third. But when they included either black carbon or tropospheric ozone or both in CMIP3, the simulations mimicked observations better, suggesting that the pollutants were playing a role in the northern Hemisphere tropical expansion.next, to ensure that their results were not influenced by intrinsic differences between CMIP3’s 20 models, the researchers expanded the time period studied to 1970-2009, comparing available observed

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Gossipdata with simulated data from nCAR’s Community Atmosphere Model (CMIP3 data did not extend to 1970-2009). They then repeated the exercise with the GFDL Atmospheric Model. using these models allowed the researchers to directly isolate the effects of black carbon and tropospheric ozone on the location of the tropical boundaries. As before, they observed that the models underestimate the observed northern Hemisphere expansion of the tropics by about a third. When black carbon and tropospheric ozone were incorporated in these models, however, the simulations showed better agreement with observations, underscoring the pollutants’ role in widening the tropical belt in the northern Hemisphere. “Both black carbon and tropospheric ozone warm the tropics by absorbing solar radiation,” Allen explained. “Because they are short-lived pollutants, with lifetimes of one-two weeks, their concentrations remain highest near the sources: the northern Hemisphere low- to mid-latitudes. It’s the heating of the mid-latitudes that pushes the boundaries of the tropics poleward.” Allen further explained that with an expansion of the tropics, wind patterns also move poleward, dragging other aspects of atmospheric circulation with them, such as precipitation. “For example, the southern portions of the united States may get drier if the storm systems move further north than they were 30 years ago,” he said. “Indeed, some climate models have been showing a steady drying of the subtropics, accompanied by an increase in precipitation in higher mid-latitudes. The expansion of the tropical belt that we attribute to black carbon and tropospheric ozone in our work is consistent with the poleward displacement of precipitation seen in these models.” Black carbon aerosols are tiny particles of carbon produced from biomass burning and incomplete combustion of fossil fuels. Most of the world’s black carbon production occurs in the northern Hemisphere, with Southeast Asia being a major producer. The same is true of tropospheric ozone, a secondary pollutant that results when volatile organic compounds react with sunlight. “Greenhouse gases do contribute to the tropical expansion in the northern Hemisphere,” Allen said. “But our work shows that black carbon and tropospheric ozone are the main drivers here.We need to implement more stringent policies to curtail their emissions, which would not only help mitigate global warming and improve human health, but could also lessen the regional impacts of changes in large-scale atmospheric circulation in the northern Hemisphere.” Thomas Reichler, an associate professor of atmospheric sciences at the university of utah, noted that the new work by the Allen-led team represents a major advance in climate dynamics research. “For a long time it has been unclear to the research community why climate models were unable to replicate the observed changes in the atmospheric wind structure,” said

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A new study has con-cluded that residents of Lower Manhattan who suffered home damage following the September 11 terrorist attacks are more likely to report respiratory symp-toms and diseases than area residents whose homes were not damaged.

GossipReichler, who was not involved in the study. “This work demonstrates now in very convincing ways that changes in the amount and distribution of tiny absorbing particles in the atmosphere are responsible for the observed changes. Since previous model simulations did not account properly for the effects of these particles on the atmosphere, this work provides a surprisingly simple but effective answer to the original question.” Allen, who conceived the research project and designed the study, was joined in the research by Steven C. Sherwood at the university of new South Wales, Australia; Joel norris at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, San Diego; and Charles S. Zender at uC Irvine. The next step for the research team will be to study the implications of the tropical expansion from a predominantly hydrological perspective. “The question to ask is how far must the tropics expand before we start to implement policies to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases, tropospheric ozone and black carbon that are driving the tropical expansion?” said Allen, who joined uCR in 2011.Environmental Protection news, 17 May 2012http://www.eponline.com

Home damage After 9/11 Linked With Respiratory illness2012-05-24A new study has concluded that residents of Lower Manhattan who suffered home damage following the September 11 terrorist attacks are more likely to report respiratory symptoms and diseases than area residents whose homes were not damaged. The new study was undertaken by researchers in Atlanta and new York City. The researchers based their study on data collected in the World Trade Centre Health Registry (WTCHR), a cohort study of more than 71,000 rescue/recovery workers and survivors of the World Trade Centre attacks. The study results will be presented at the ATS 2012 International Conference in San Francisco. Thousands of Lower Manhattan residents sustained some type of damage to their homes following the 9/11 collapse of the twin towers. Although previous studies found an increased level of asthma reported by residents who experienced a heavy layer of dust in their homes following the attacks, this is the first study to use WTCHR data to evaluate the specific effects of home damage, including broken windows and damage to furnishings, on other respiratory diseases and symptoms in addition to asthma. “This preliminary analysis demonstrates that Lower Manhattan residents who suffered home damage following the 9/11 attacks are more likely to report respiratory symptoms and diseases in the Registry,”

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Gossipsaid study author Vinicius Antao, MD, MSc, PhD, registries team leader at the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention’s Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). “These health outcomes persisted for at least 5-6 years after the event. Thus, they may have translated into elevated medical expenditures and lower quality of life.” During the study, the researchers used data from 6,463 area residents who participated in both the Registry’s Wave 1 survey conducted two to three years after 9/11 and the Wave 2 survey, conducted five to six years after 9/11. The researchers specifically investigated respiratory symptoms, including shortness of breath, wheezing and persistent cough, which first occurred or became worse after the September 11 attacks and which were present during the Wave 2 time period. In addition, they also looked for respiratory diseases, such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which were first diagnosed after the attacks and which were present during the Wave 2 survey period. The results showed that 60.8 percent of survey respondents reported new onset or worsening upper respiratory symptoms five to six years after 9/11. In addition, 16.1 percent of respondents reported shortness of breath, 10.7 percent reported wheezing and 6.9 percent reported chronic cough. Eight percent of survey respondents had been diagnosed with asthma, and 5.4 percent had been diagnosed with COPD. After controlling for gender, age, education level, smoking status, and exposure to the dust and debris cloud, Dr. Antao and his colleagues found that Lower Manhattan residents who had reported a heavy coating of dust on their homes were, on average, 50 percent more likely to report a respiratory symptom or disease. “This study highlights the magnitude of the 9/11 attacks by showing that people exposed to dust in their homes continued to have respiratory problems even five to six years after the fact,” Dr. Antao said. Dr. Antao and the researchers are interested in examining next the influence of distance from Ground Zero on the types and frequency of adverse respiratory outcomes reported after 9/11.Science Daily, 22 May 2012http://www.sciencedaily.com

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(note: Open your Web Browser and click on Heading to link to section)

eNViRONMeNTALToxicities effects of pharmaceutical, olive mill and textile wastewaters before and after degradation by Pseudomonas putida mt-2

Removal of heavy metals from industrial effluent using bacteria

MediCALCongenital combined deficiency of factor VII and X in a patient due to accidental diphacinone intoxication

Evaluation of a ricin vaccine candidate (RVEc) for human toxicity using an in vitro vascular leak assay

Cytogenotoxicity of sewage sludge leachate before and after calcium oxide-based solidification in human lymphocytes

Physico-chemical characteristics and cytogenotoxic potential of ZnO and TiO2 nanoparticles on human colon carcinoma cells

Gene expression analysis in rat lungs after intratracheal exposure to nanoparticles doped with cadmium

OCCUPATiONALPollution of River Mahaweli and farmlands under irrigation by cadmium from agricultural inputs leading to a chronic renal failure epidemic among farmers in nCP, Sri Lanka

Environmental health assessment of stone crushers in and around Jhansi, u. P., India

Formation of 1,2:3,4-diepoxybutane-specific haemoglobin adducts in 1,3-butadiene exposed workers

Pre-assessment of occupational hazards in polysilicon production project

Study on chromium content in urine and erythrocytes of workers in a chromate factory and nearby villagers

PUBLiC HeALTHIntelligence quotient of 7 to 9 year-old children from an area with high fluoride in drinking water

Technical Notes

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Technical Notesurinary excretion of phthalate metabolites in 129 healthy Danish children and adolescents: Estimation of daily phthalate intake

Exposure sources and reasons for testing among women with low blood lead levels

Lung function in adults following in utero and childhood exposure to arsenic in drinking water: preliminary findings

Environmental lead exposure and otoacoustic emissions in Andean children

SAFeTyAn interplay model for authorities’ actions and rumour spreading in emergency event.

Calibration of a stochastic health evolution model using nHIS data

Safety assessment on productive process in furfural factory