Environmental Health Perspectives articles from February 2004

Environmental Health Perspectives archives from February 2004

The growth and control of international environmental crime.(Guest Editorial)
February 1, 2004... Over the last three decades the national and international framework for the protection of the natural environment has evolved rapidly. Charles Schmidt's excellent article (Schmidt 2004) in this issue shows that as national and international...

Note from the Editor: EHP expands information sharing on global health issues.(Guest Editorial)
February 1, 2004... EHP is launching a new program to further disseminate information on global health issues to the international community. Last month, EHP entered into a partnership with the newly reformatted Spanish-language peer-reviewed journal Ciencia y...

Radiographic abnormalities and asbestos exposure: Libby, Montana.(Correspondence)
February 1, 2004... Peipins et al. (2003) described the study conducted by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR 2001, 2002a) to analyze the association between the prevalence of radiographic abnormalities and asbestos exposure pathways for...

Radiographic abnormalities: response from Peipins et al. (Correspondence).
February 1, 2004... We appreciate Price's interest in our article (Peipins et al. 2003). We stated clearly that being a former W.R. Grace (WRG) worker was a significant risk factor for both pleura] and interstitial abnormalities. We also noted that only age was...

Overstating the consequences of radiographic abnormalities.(Correspondence)
February 1, 2004... "Radiographic Abnormalities and Exposure to Asbestos-Contaminated Vermiculite in the Community of Libby, Montana, USA" by Peipins et al. (2003) is the first journal publication by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) of...

Overstating the consequences: Peipins et al.'s response.(Correspondence)
February 1, 2004... Flynn et al. raise concerns about differences in chest radiograph interpretation and bias among B-readers in our study (Peipins et al. 2003). Furthermore, they suggest that an internal review by Health Network America (HNA) found misdiagnosis...

Expert witnesses need to know about the new risks.(Correspondence)
February 1, 2004... Professionals should not enter into providing witness or consulting services without considering their personal liabilities. I would like to provide some recent changes and liability issues for the consideration of expert witnesses and...

Validation of (Q)SARs models.(Correspondence)
February 1, 2004... From a practitioner's point of view (but not having been part of the workshop), I feel compelled to comment on "Summary of a Workshop on Regulatory Acceptance of (Q)SARs for Human Health and Environmental Endpoints" by Jaworska et al. (2003)....

Validation of (Q)SARs models: Jaworska et al.'s response.(Correspondence)
February 1, 2004... We warmly welcome and agree with the comments from Kaiser. In writing the reports that comprised the Mini-Monograph on "Regulatory Acceptance of (Q)SARS" published in EHP and also during the workshop sponsored by the International Council of...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
February 1, 2004... In the January Forum article "Tidal Turbines: Wave of the Future?" [EHP 112:A26 (2004)], Bjorn Bekken was incorrectly quoted as saying, "Once we pass peak production of fossil fuels, the difference between supply and demand decreases day by day...

Environmental forensic files.(Innovative Technologies)
February 1, 2004... If the spate of recent television shows focused on investigating crimes is any indication, forensic science has taken hold of the public consciousness. A standing-room-only crowd at environmental forensics sessions at the 17th Annual...

Stopping traffic.(Trade/Commerce)
February 1, 2004... Illegal trafficking of hazardous waste, endangered natural resources including animals and plants, and toxic chemicals including ozone-depleting substances has become big business. To stop that traffic, the United Nations Environment Programme...

Stopping Schistosomiasis in Africa.(The Beat)
February 1, 2004... The Schistosomiasis Control Initiative, a project funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and based at imperial College London, has announced it will deliver treatment to some 15 million people, mainly children, in Burkina Faso, Mali,...

NAFTA side accord under review.(The Beat)
February 1, 2004... The North American Agreement on Environmental Cooperation was signed in 1993 as a side accord of the North American Free Trade Agreement, in part to address environmental concerns expected to arise in conjunction with the boost to...

FDA issues animal drug guidance.(The Beat)
February 1, 2004... The U.S. FDA has issued first-ever guidelines for assessing the safety of antimicrobial drugs used in food-producing animals with regards to microbial resistance in the humans who eat them. The guidance centers on a three-part, evidence-based...

The stress factor: temperature and toxicity.(Research Issues)
February 1, 2004... For toxicologists, defining the toxicity of a substance focuses on determining the lethal dose for 50% of rodents under well-defined conditions, even though life itself is rarely carried out under anything like the ideal. Environmental...

Arsenic, variability, and risk.(Genetics)
February 1, 2004... Millions of people across the world consume arsenic daily in their drinking water. In some regions, such as parts of Bangladesh and Taiwan, the drinking water levels of this toxic metal have been associated with diseases such as anemia,...

The Center for International Environmental Law.(ehpnet)
February 1, 2004... Founded in 1989, the nonprofit Washington, D.C.- and Geneva, Switzerland-based Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) is a public-interest law firm focused on building awareness of international and comparative environmental law and...

Europe boosts battery recycling.(The Beat)
February 1, 2004... The removal of potentially toxic batteries from the world's waste stream got a boost in November 2003 when the European Commission adopted a directive that will require the collection of, and new recycling targets for, all types of batteries in...

EU gets graphic.(The Beat)
February 1, 2004... Fourteen graphic health warnings featuring color photographs and illustrations of the damage that smoking can inflict on the human body are being developed as part of a European Union (EU) effort to stem the use of tobacco products in member...

Pesticides prevalent in hospitals.(The Beat)
February 1, 2004... A new study released by the advocacy groups Health Care Without Harm and Beyond Pesticides, has found that a large percentage of major U.S. hospitals use hazardous conventional pesticides to rid their facilities of pests. But conventional...

Breast cancer takes center stage.(NIEHS News)
February 1, 2004... Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in American women today, claiming more than 40,000 lives annually. Accumulating evidence suggests that interactions between genetic and environmental factors may be at the center of its...

Keeping it close to home with imby.(beyond the Bench)
February 1, 2004... "imby"--which stands for "in my back yard"--is a community health and environment research center in the University of Cincinnati Department of Environmental Health. It was founded in 1999 in response to the request voiced by residents,...

Low-level ozone, particulate matter, and children with asthma.(Respiratory Disease)
February 1, 2004... Gent JF, Triche EW, Holford TR, Belanger K, Bracken MB, Beckett WS, Leaderer BP. 2003. Association of low-level ozone and fine panicles with respiratory symptoms in children with asthma. JAMA 290:1859-1867. Many studies have shown that...

Environmental crimes profiting at the Earth's expense.(Focus)
February 1, 2004... "Imagine for a moment that it's a hot summer day and you're driving; you roll up the windows in your car and turn on the air conditioning. As chilly air flows from the dashboard, you begin to feel comfortably insulated from the sweltering world...

Does secrecy equal security? Limiting access to environmental information.(Spheres of Influence)
February 1, 2004... After the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001, the response by governmental agencies frightened by the prospect of more terrorist action was swift. Agencies that routinely provided information about the environment, public health, and...

A cleaner doctor's kit: tiny bubbles mean huge improvements.(Innovations)
February 1, 2004... Medical and dental instruments are composed of a variety of materials, some that can withstand repeated applications of heat and chemical treatment, and others that will fail, quickly and completely, upon such exposures. Something like an...

Sport-caught fish and breast cancer: angling for more data.(Science Selections)
February 1, 2004... The U.S. Food and Drug Administration inspects fish sold at market for environmental contaminants and removes tainted seafood from sale. But consumption of sport-caught fish by fishing enthusiasts and those with whom they share their catch may...

A new mechanism for chlorpyrifos? Implicating serotonin.(Science Selections)
February 1, 2004... Organophosphate pesticides kill insects by allowing the neurotransmitter acetylcholine to build up at nerve endings. This short-circuits the cholinergic system, which governs involuntary processes. Low organophosphate doses given to rats in...

The danger of extrapolation: humans and rodents differ in response to PCBs.(Science Selections)
February 1, 2004... Although awareness of the extreme toxicity of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) led to their 1976 ban in the United States, these chemicals' virtually indestructible molecular nature and environmental ubiquity make them a continuing serious...

Human exposure monitoring and evaluation in the Arctic: the importance of understanding exposures to the development of public health policy.(Commentary)
February 1, 2004... Arctic indigenous peoples face significant challenges resulting from the contamination of Arctic air, water, and soil by persistent organic pollutants, heavy metals, and radionuclides. International cooperative efforts among governments and...

Is public support for environmental protection decreasing? An analysis of U.S. and New Jersey data.(Commentary)
February 1, 2004... Telephone surveys made of 800-1,000 randomly selected residents of the United States and New Jersey in 2003 show a sharp decline in support for antipollution regulations, although pollution remains a major concern. This drop in support is...

A high-level disinfection standard for land-applied sewage sludges (biosolids).(Commentary)
February 1, 2004... Complaints associated with land-applied sewage sludges primarily involve irritation of the skin, mucous membranes, and the respiratory tract accompanied by opportunistic infections. Volatile emissions and organic dusts appear to be the main...

An evaluation of the environmental and health effects of vehicle exhaust catalysts in the United Kingdom.(Research)
February 1, 2004... Since 1993, all new gasoline-engine automobiles in the United Kingdom have been supplied with three-way vehicle exhaust catalytic converters (VECs) containing platinum, palladium, and rhodium, to comply with European Commission Stage I limits...

Agricultural task and exposure to organophosphate pesticides among farmworkers.(Research)
February 1, 2004... Little is known about pesticide exposure among farmworkers, and even less is known about the exposure associated with performing specific farm tasks. Using a random sample of 213 farmworkers in 24 communities and labor camps in eastern...

Developmental exposure to chlorpyrifos elicits sex-selective alterations of serotonergic synaptic function in adulthood: critical periods and regional selectivity for effects on the serotonin transporter, receptor subtypes, and cell signaling.(Research)
February 1, 2004... During brain development, serotonin (5HT) provides essential neurotrophic signals, and in earlier work, we found that developmental exposure to chlorpyrifos (CPF) elicits short-term changes in 5HT systems. In the present study, we evaluated the...

Potential exposure to PCBs, DDT, and PBDEs from sport-caught fish consumption in relation to breast cancer risk in Wisconsin.(Research)
February 1, 2004... In Wisconsin, consumption of Great Lakes fish is an important source of exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and other halogenated hydrocarbons, all of...

Highly chlorinated PCBs inhibit the human xenobiotic response mediated by the steroid and xenobiotic receptor (SXR).(Research)
February 1, 2004... Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are a family of persistent organic contaminants suspected to cause adverse effects in wildlife and humans. In rodents, PCBs bind to the aryl hydrocarbon (AhR) and pregnane X receptors (PXR) inducing the...

Developmental effects of chlorpyrifos extend beyond neurotoxicity: critical periods for immediate and delayed-onset effects on cardiac and hepatic cell signaling.(Research)
February 1, 2004... The fetal and neonatal neurotoxicity of chlorpyrifos (CPF) and related insecticides is a major concern. Developmental effects of CPF involve mechanisms over and above cholinesterase inhibition, notably events in cell signaling that are shared...

Cause-specific mortality and the extended effects of particulate pollution and temperature exposure.(Research)
February 1, 2004... Air pollution exposure studies in the past decade have focused on acute (days) or long-term (years) effects. We present an analysis of medium-term (weeks to months) exposure effects of particulate pollution and temperature. We assessed the...

Concentrations of dialkyl phosphate metabolites of organophosphorus pesticides in the U.S. population.(Research)
February 1, 2004... We report population-based concentrations, stratified by age, sex, and racial/ethnic groups, of dialkyl phosphate (DAP) metabolites of multiple organophosphorus pesticides. We measured dimethylphosphate (DMP), dimethylthiophosphate (DMTP),...

Vanadyl sulfate inhibits NO production via threonine phosphorylation of eNOS.(Research)
February 1, 2004... Exposure to excessive vanadium occurs in some occupations and with consumption of some dietary regimens for weight reduction and body building. Because vanadium is vasoactive, individuals exposed to excessive vanadium may develop adverse...

Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane burden and breast cancer risk: a meta-analysis of the epidemiologic evidence.(Research)
February 1, 2004... The relationship of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) exposure and breast cancer risk has received increasing attention since the beginning of the 1990s. Contradicting published results regarding the relationship between body burden levels...

Assessing potential risk of heavy metal exposure from consumption of home-produced vegetables by urban populations.(Research)
February 1, 2004... We performed a risk assessment of metal exposure to population subgroups living on, and growing food on, urban sites. We modeled uptake of cadmium, copper, nickel, lead, and zinc for a selection of commonly grown allotment and garden...

An unexplained case of elevated blood lead in a hispanic child.(Grand Rounds)
February 1, 2004... A 6-month-old child presented to a local pediatrician with an elevated blood lead level (BLL) of 41 [micro]g/dL. The child was treated as an outpatient for chelation therapy by a toxicologist. Subsequent BLLs obtained at 8 and 13 months of age...

Assessing the health benefits of air pollution reduction for children.(Children's Health)
February 1, 2004... Benefit-cost analyses of environmental regulations are increasingly mandated in the United States. Evaluations of criteria air pollutants have focused on benefits and costs associated with adverse health effects. Children are significantly...

Effect of succimer on growth of preschool children with moderate blood lead levels.(Children's Health)
February 1, 2004... Growth deficits associated with lead exposure might be ameliorated by chelation. We examined the effect of succimer on growth in 780 children 12-33 months old who had blood lead levels of 20-44 [micro]g/dL and were randomized to receive up to...

A framework for assessing risks to children from exposure to environmental agents.(Assessing risks in children: mini-monograph)
February 1, 2004... In recent years there has been an increasing focus in environmental risk assessment on children as a potentially susceptible population. There also has been growing recognition of the need for a systematic approach for organizing, evaluating,...

Children's health and the environment: public health issues and challenges for risk assessment.(Assessing risks in children: mini-monograph)
February 1, 2004... Infants and children are not little adults. They are uniquely vulnerable to environmental toxicants. To protect infants and children against toxicants, the National Research Council in 1993 called for development of an approach to risk...

Hazard identification and predictability of children's health risk from animal data.(Assessing risks in children: mini-monograph)
February 1, 2004... Children differ from adults both physiologically and behaviorally. These differences can affect how and when exposures to xenobiotics occur and the resulting responses. Testing using animal models may be used to predict whether children display...

Incorporating children's toxicokinetics into a risk framework.(Assessing risks in children: mini-monograph)
February 1, 2004... Children's responses to environmental toxicants will be affected by the way in which their systems absorb, distribute, metabolize, and excrete chemicals. These toxicokinetic factors vary during development, from in utero where maternal and...

Centers Programs.(NIEHS Extramural Update)
February 1, 2004... The NIEHS has created several specialized centers programs to support research in high-priority areas that could benefit from formal coordination and integration of the efforts of individual investigators. These programs incorporate...

Centers for Construction Safety and Health.(Fellowships, Grants & Awards)
February 1, 2004... The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announces the availability of fiscal year 2004 funds for cooperative agreement (U50) applications from single institutions...

Calendar.(Calendar)
February 1, 2004... March 1-2 March, Mon-Tue. 12th International Activated Carbon Conference. Mexico City, Mexico. Information: Professional Analytical & Consulting Services, 409 Meade Drive, Coraopolis, PA 15108 USA, 800-367-2587, fax: 724-457-1214, e-mail:...

New Tools for Environmental Protection: Education, Information, and Voluntary Measures.
February 1, 2004... Edited by Thomas Dietz and Paul C Stern Washington, DC:National Academy Press, 2003. 356 pp. ISBN: 0-309-08422-9, $55 paper. This book resulted from a workshop convened in November 2000 by the National Research Council Committee on Human...

New books.
February 1, 2004... Aldo-Keto Reductases and Toxicant Metabolism Trevor M. Penning, J. Mark Petrash, eds. New York:Oxford University Press, 2003. 272 pp. ISBN: 0-8412-3846-4, $135 Assessing Microbial Safety of Drinking Water: Improving Approaches and...