EDC Science Weekly: Nov. 13 – 19, 2019

Post author:HEEDS
Post published:November 19, 2019
Post category:EDC Science Weekly

A summary of articles on endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) added to PubMed this week.

Contents: Regulations/Policy, Methods/Screening, Reviews, Human Health Studies, Laboratory Studies, Human Exposure Studies, Wildlife/Environment Studies.

Regulations/Policy

Consensus on the key characteristics of endocrine-disrupting chemicals as a basis for hazard identification.

Qualification of impurities based on metabolite data.

Methods/Screening

High-Throughput Analysis of Endocrine-Disrupting Compounds Using BLYES and BLYAS Bioluminescent Yeast Bioassays.

Predicting the Probability that a Chemical Causes Steatosis Using Adverse Outcome Pathway Bayesian Networks (AOPBNs).

Application of Interspecies Correlation Estimation (ICE) models and QSAR in estimating species sensitivity to pesticides.

A review of recent advances towards the development of QSAR models for toxicity assessment of ionic liquids.

Impact of Hurricanes Irma and Maria on Puerto Rico Maternal and Child Health Research Programs. [re the need to integrate disaster preparedness into programs’ operating procedures]

Reviews

Gestational Exposure to Common Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals and Their Impact on Neurodevelopment and Behavior. [BPA, PCBs, organophosphates, PBDEs]

Populations Collapses in Marine Invertebrates Due to Endocrine Disruption: A Cause for Concern?

BPA/Phenols/Phthalates/Parabens

MicroRNAs: potential targets and agents of endocrine disruption in female reproduction. [BPA]

Association of prenatal exposure to phenols and parabens with birth size: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Association of exposure to phthalates with cardiometabolic risk factors in children and adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Persistent Organic Pollutants: PCBs, Dioxin, OCPs

Persistent Organic Pollutants in Food: Contamination Sources, Health Effects and Detection Methods.

Pesticides

Pesticide exposure and genotoxic effects as measured by DNA damage and human monitoring biomarkers.

Metals

Relationships between seafood consumption during pregnancy and childhood and neurocognitive development: Two systematic reviews.

Microplastics

Environmental exposure to microplastics: An overview on possible human health effects.

Microplastics in aquatic environments: Occurrence, accumulation, and biological effects.

Advances and challenges of microplastic pollution in freshwater ecosystems: A UK perspective.

Bioavailability and toxicity of microplastics to fish species: A review.

Air Pollution

Maternal exposure to air pollution and risk of autism in children: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

The correlation between PM2.5 exposure and hypertensive disorders in pregnancy: A Meta-analysis.

Effects of short-term exposure to particulate matters on heart rate variability: A systematic review and meta-analysis based on controlled animal studies.

Biodiesel fuels: A greener diesel? A review from a health perspective.

Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products

Twenty years of transcriptomics, 17alpha-ethinylestradiol, and fish.

Occurrence, toxic effects and removal of metformin in the aquatic environments in the world: Recent trends and perspectives.

Occurrence and treatment of contaminants of emerging concern in the African aquatic environment: Literature review and a look ahead.

Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products: From Wastewater Treatment into Agro-food Systems.

Human Health Studies

Mixtures

Exposures to chemical mixtures during pregnancy and neonatal outcomes: The HOME study. [43 phenols, phthalates, metals, pesticides, PCBs, PBDEs, PFAS, tobacco smoke]

BPA/Phenols/Phthalates

Trimester-specific, gender-specific, and low-dose effects associated with non-monotonic relationships of bisphenol A on estrone, 17β-estradiol and estriol.

Association of urinary phthalate metabolites and phenolics with adipokines and insulin resistance related markers among women of reproductive age.

Persistent Organic Pollutants: PCBs, Dioxin, OCPs

Prenatal dioxin exposure and glucose metabolism in the Seveso Second Generation study.

The Influence of Persistent Organic Pollutants on Thyroidal, Reproductive and Adrenal Hormones After Bariatric Surgery.

Gene-environment interactions between GSTs polymorphisms and targeted epigenetic alterations in hepatocellular carcinoma following organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) exposure.

Perfluoroalkyl Substances

Perfluoroalkyl Substances and Maternal Thyroid Hormones in Early Pregnancy; Findings in the Danish National Birth Cohort.

Distribution of novel and legacy per-/polyfluoroalkyl substances in serum and its associations with two glycemic biomarkers among Chinese adult men and women with normal blood glucose levels.

Perfluoroalkyl substances, airways infections, allergy and asthma related health outcomes – implications of gender, exposure period and study design.

Association between prenatal exposure to perfluoroalkyl substances and asthma in 5-year-old children in the Odense Child Cohort.

Flame Retardants

An exploratory analysis of urinary organophosphate ester metabolites and oxidative stress among pregnant women in Puerto Rico.

Pesticides

DNA damage induced by exposure to pesticides in children of rural areas in Paraguay.

Arsenic/Fluoride/Metals

Association between fluoride exposure and cardiometabolic risk in peripubertal Mexican children.

Copper-zinc imbalance induces kidney tubule damage and oxidative stress in a population exposed to chronic environmental cadmium.

The concentration of selected elements in the placenta according to selected sociodemographic factors and their effect on birth mass and birth length of newborns.

Air Pollution

Exposure to Household Air Pollution During Pregnancy and Birthweight.

Association of ambient particulate matter exposure with the incidence of glaucoma in childhood.

Depression in the house: The effects of household air pollution from solid fuel use among the middle-aged and older population in China.

Exposure to air pollution and risk of hospitalization for cardiovascular diseases amongst Vietnamese adults: Case-crossover study.

Exposure to ambient air pollution and autoantibody status in rheumatoid arthritis.

Ambient outdoor air pollutants and sex ratio of singletons born after in vitro fertilization: the effect of single blastocyst transfer. ‘

Maternal exposure to ambient fine particulate matter and risk of premature rupture of membranes in Wuhan, Central China: a cohort study.

Laboratory Studies

BPA/Phenols

Developmental programming: Prenatal bisphenol A treatment disrupts mediators of placental function in sheep.

The mechanism of root growth inhibition by the endocrine disruptor bisphenol A (BPA).

Environmental Pollution as a Risk Factor in Testicular Tumour Development: Focus on the Interaction between Bisphenol A and the Associated Immune Response.

Maintenance of mitochondrial function by astaxanthin protects against bisphenol A-induced kidney toxicity in rats.

Multilevel ecotoxicity assessment of environmentally relevant bisphenol F concentrations in Daphnia magna.

Early-life exposure to 17β-estradiol and 4-nonylphenol impacts the growth hormone/insulin-like growth-factor system and estrogen receptors in Mozambique tilapia, Oreochromis mossambicus.

Phthalates

Effects of di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and high-fat diet on lipid metabolism in rats by JAK2/STAT5.

Persistent Organic Pollutants: PCBs, Dioxin, OCPs

PCB126 blocks the thermogenic beiging response of adipocytes.

Effects of PCB exposure on serum thyroid hormone levels in dogs and cats.

p,p’-Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane promotes aerobic glycolysis via reactive oxygen species-mediated extracellular signal-regulated kinase/M2 isoform of pyruvate kinase (PKM2) signaling in colorectal cancer cells.

In vivo profiling of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin-induced estrogenic/anti-estrogenic effects in female estrogen-responsive reporter transgenic mice.

Human CYP1B1-dependent genotoxicity of dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls in mammalian cells.

Perfluoroalkyl Substances

Perfluoropolyether carboxylic acids (novel alternatives to PFOA) impair zebrafish posterior swim bladder development via thyroid hormone disruption.

Transcriptomic Changes in Liver of Juvenile Cynoglossus Semilaevis Following Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS) Exposure.

Flame Retardants

Screening of House Dust from Chinese Homes for Chemicals with Liver X Receptors Binding Activities and Characterization of Atherosclerotic Activity Using an in Vitro Macrophage Cell Line and ApoE−/− Mice.

Sex-specific effects of perinatal FireMaster® 550 (FM 550) exposure on socioemotional behavior in prairie voles.

Early-life exposure to the organophosphorus flame-retardant tris (1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate induces delayed neurotoxicity associated with DNA methylation in adult zebrafish.

Pesticides

Acclimation alters glyphosate temperature-dependent toxicity: Implications for risk assessment under climate change.

The synthetic pyrethroid deltamethrin impairs zebrafish (Danio rerio) swim bladder development.

Evaluation of the pesticide Oberon on a model organism Drosophila melanogaster via topical toxicity test on biochemical and reproductive parameters.

Effects of Dual Exposure to the Herbicides Atrazine and Paraquat on Adult Climbing Ability and Longevity in Drosophila melanogaster.

In Vitro Metabolism of Imidacloprid and Acetamiprid in Rainbow Trout and Rat.

Role of miR-731 and miR-2188-3p in mediating chlorpyrifos induced head kidney injury in common carp via targeting TLR and apoptosis pathways.

ROS generation and DNA damage contribute to abamectin-induced cytotoxicity in mouse macrophage cells.

Behavior and gut bacteria of Partamona helleri under sublethal exposure to a bioinsecticide and a leaf fertilizer.

Bifenthrin induces developmental immunotoxicity and vascular malformation during zebrafish embryogenesis.

Exposure of honey bee larvae to thiamethoxam and its interaction with Nosema ceranae infection in adult honey bees.

Sub-chronic exposure to Kalach 360 SL-induced damage in rats’ liver and hematological system.

Impacts of the biocide chlorothalonil on biomarkers of oxidative stress, genotoxicity, and sperm quality in guppy Poecilia vivipara.

Impact of diuron and S-metolachlor on the freshwater diatom Gomphonema gracile: Complementarity between fatty acid profiles and different kinds of ecotoxicological impact-endpoints.

Toxicity assessment of the herbicide acetochlor in the human liver carcinoma (HepG2) cell line.

Immunological response of white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) to sublethal concentrations of malathion and endosulfan, and their mixture.

Arsenic/Metals

Effects of secondary biological treatment plant effluent administration, as drinking water, to rats’ urogenital system in relation to cadmium and lead accumulation.

Cannabidiol Protects Dopaminergic Neuronal Cells from Cadmium.

Towards Therapeutic Alternatives for Mercury Neurotoxicity in the Amazon: Unraveling the Pre-Clinical Effects of the Superfruit Açaí (Euterpe oleracea, Mart.) as Juice for Human Consumption.

Spirulina platensis ameliorates the sub chronic toxicities of lead in rabbits via anti-oxidative, anti- inflammatory, and immune stimulatory properties.

Neurobehavioural and biochemical responses associated with exposure to binary waterborne mixtures of zinc and nickel in rats.

Competitive endogenous RNA (ceRNA) regulation network of lncRNA-miRNA-mRNA during the process of the nickel-induced steroidogenesis disturbance in rat Leydig cells.

Arsenic induces human chondrocyte senescence and accelerates rat articular cartilage aging.

Effects of cadmium, inorganic mercury and methyl-mercury on the physiology and metabolomic profiles of shoots of the macrophyte Elodea nuttallii.

Can inorganic elements affect herpesvirus infections in European eels?

Arsenic induces pancreatic dysfunction and ferroptosis via mitochondrial ROS-autophagy-lysosomal pathway.

Lipid Metabolism Alterations in a Rat Model of Chronic and Intergenerational Exposure to Arsenic.

Microplastics

Dynamics of interaction and effects of microplastics on planarian tissue regeneration and cellular homeostasis.

Evaluation of microplastic toxicity in accordance with different sizes and exposure times in the marine copepod Tigriopus japonicus.

Polystyrene microplastics impaired the feeding and swimming behavior of mysid shrimp Neomysis japonica.

Microplastic serves as a potential vector for Cr in an in-vitro human digestive model.

Environmental samples of microplastics induce significant toxic effects in fish larvae.

Polystyrene microplastic particles: In vitro pulmonary toxicity assessment.

Chemical composition and ecotoxicity of plastic and car tire rubber leachates to aquatic organisms.

Molecular characterisation of cytochrome P450 enzymes in waterflea (Daphnia pulex) and their expression regulation by polystyrene nanoplastics.

Air Pollution

Diesel Exhaust Particle Exposure Compromises Alveolar Macrophage Mitochondrial Bioenergetics.

Pharmaceuticals

Low concentrations of the benzodiazepine drug oxazepam induce anxiolytic effects in wild-caught but not in laboratory zebrafish. [important for zebrafish research!]

Field-realistic antidepressant exposure disrupts group foraging dynamics in mosquitofish.

Using a high-throughput zebrafish embryo screening approach to support environmental hazard ranking for cardiovascular agents.

Detection of biomarkers to differentiate endocrine disruption from hepatotoxicity in zebrafish (Danio rerio) using proteomics. [acetaminophen]

Mixtures

Combinatory estrogenic effects of bisphenol A in mixtures with alternariol and zearalenone in human endometrial cells.

Integrative Assessment of Mixture Toxicity of Three Ionic Liquids on Acetylcholinesterase Using a Progressive Approach from 1D Point, 2D Curve, to 3D Surface.

Metabolic effects in the freshwater fish Geophagus iporangensis in response to single and combined exposure to graphene oxide and trace elements.

Single and combined effects of amino polystyrene and perfluorooctane sulfonate on hydrogen-producing thermophilic bacteria and the interaction mechanisms.

A preliminary study of the interactions between microplastics and citrate-coated silver nanoparticles in aquatic environments.

Combined toxicities of binary mixtures of alachlor, chlorfenvinphos, diuron and isoproturon. [all are pesticides]

Combined toxicity of graphite-diamond nanoparticles and thiabendazole to Daphnia magna.

Combined effects of CO2-driven ocean acidification and Cd stress in the marine environment: Enhanced tolerance of Phaeodactylum tricornutum to Cd exposure.

Miscellaneous

Butylated hydroxyanisole induces testicular dysfunction in mouse testis cells by dysregulating calcium homeostasis and stimulating endoplasmic reticulum stress. [BHA is a food additive]

Regional epigenetic variation in asexual snail populations among urban and rural lakes.

Receptor-mediated estrogenicity of native and chemically dispersed crude oil determined using adapted microscale reporter gene assays.

Human Exposure Studies

Phthalates

Exposure of nail salon workers to phthalates, di(2-ethylhexyl) terephthalate, and organophosphate esters: A pilot study.

Persistent Organic Pollutants: PCBs, Dioxin, OCPs

Application of ensemble methods to analyse the decline of organochlorine pesticides in relation to the interactions between age, gender and time.

Patterns of PCBs and OCPs exposure in a sample of Lebanese adults: The role of diet and physical activity.

Pesticides

Exposure levels of organophosphate pesticides in Japanese diapered children: Contributions of exposure-related behaviors and mothers’ considerations of food selection and preparation.

Pesticide exposures for residents living close to agricultural lands: A review.

Arsenic/Metals

Mercury exposure assessment in indigenous communities from Tarapaca village, Cotuhe and Putumayo Rivers, Colombian Amazon.

Toenail Metal Exposures in Fishermen from Bodo City, Nigeria.

Air Pollution

Investigation of Microenvironmental Exposures to Particle-Bound Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons for Elementary School Children.

Chemical Pollution in Healing Spaces: The Decalogue of the Best Practices for Adequate Indoor Air Quality in Inpatient Rooms.

Wildlife/Environment Studies

Triclosan

Removal of triclosan during wastewater treatment process and sewage sludge composting-A case study in the middle reaches of the Yellow River.

Persistent Organic Pollutants: PCBs, Dioxin, OCPs

Study of organochlorine pesticides and heavy metals in soils of the Juarez valley: an important agricultural region between Mexico and the USA.

The decomposition and ecological risk of DDTs and HCHs in the soil-water system of the Meijiang River.

Accumulation and time trends (2003-2015) of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in blubber of finless porpoises (Neophocaena asiaeorientalis) from Korean coastal waters.

Levels of persistent organic pollutants in pine tree components and ambient air.

Organochlorine pesticides contamination in agricultural soils of southern Iran.

Perfluoroalkyl Substances

Distribution of perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in aquatic plant-based systems: From soil adsorption and plant uptake to effects on microbial community.

Occurrence and trophic transfer of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances in an Antarctic ecosystem.

Flame Retardants

Organophosphate esters by GC-MS: an optimized method for aquatic risk assessment.

Organophosphate esters (OPEs) in fine particulate matter (PM2.5) in urban, e-waste, and background regions of South China.

Occurrence, air-sea exchange, and gas-particle partitioning of atmospheric polybrominated diphenyl ethers from East Asia to the Northwest Pacific Ocean.

Pesticides

Field evidence supports former experimental claims on the stimulatory effect of glyphosate on picocyanobacteria communities.

Residential household yard care practices along urban-exurban gradients in six climatically-diverse U.S. metropolitan areas.

Contamination of pyrethroids and atrazine in greenhouse and open-field agricultural soils in China.

Environmental impacts of reduced-risk and conventional pesticide programs differ in commercial apple orchards, but similarly influence pollinator community.

Arsenic/Metals

Trace metals as markers for historical anthropogenic contamination: Evidence from the Peshawar Basin, Pak istan.

Reconstructing avian mercury concentrations through time using museum specimens from New York State.

Mercury levels in Southern Ocean squid: Variability over the last decade.

Wheat is an emerging exposure route for arsenic in Bihar, India.

Remediation of mercury contaminated soil, water, and air: A review of emerging materials and innovative technologies.

Estimating the pollution characteristics and health risks of potentially toxic metal(loid)s in urban-industrial soils in the Indus basin, Pakistan.

Significant Seasonal Variations in Isotopic Composition of Atmospheric Total Gaseous Mercury at Forest Sites in China Caused by Vegetation and Mercury Sources.

The Mercury Behavior and Contamination in Soil Profiles in Mun River Basin, Northeast Thailand.

The Toxic Element Concentration in Fish Tissues from Saničani Lake, an Urban Environment, in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Operationally defined mercury (Hg) species can delineate Hg bioaccumulation in mangrove sediment systems: A case study.

Risk assessment of using fish from different types of reservoirs as human food – A study on European perch (Perca fluviatilis).

Environmental magnetic parameter characteristics as indicators of heavy metal pollution in the surface sediments off the Zhoushan Islands in the East China Sea.

Estimation of some trace metal pollutants in River Atuwara southwestern Nigeria and spatio-temporal human health risks assessment.

Metal accumulation in riverine macroinvertebrates from a platinum mining region.

Heavy metals in indoor settled dusts in Toronto, Canada.

Trace metals in different socioeconomic indoor residential settings, implications for human health via dust exposure.

Spatial distribution of fluoride in drinking water and health risk assessment of children in typical fluorosis areas in north China.

Analysis and health risk assessment of toxic and essential elements of the wild fish caught by anglers in Liuzhou as a large industrial city of China.

Heavy metal pollution and health risk assessment of agricultural land in the Southern Margin of Tarim Basin in Xinjiang, China.

Water environment in the Tibetan Plateau: heavy metal distribution analysis of surface sediments in the Yarlung Tsangpo River Basin.

Microplastics

Can microplastics pose a threat to ocean carbon sequestration?

Microplastic study reveals the presence of natural and synthetic fibres in the diet of King Penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) foraging from South Georgia.

Microplastic pollution in water, sediment, and fish from artificial reefs around the Ma’an Archipelago, Shengsi, China.

Holistic assessment of microplastics in various coastal environmental matrices, southwest coast of India.

Microplastics in beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) from the Eastern Beaufort Sea.

Quali-quantitative analysis of plastics and synthetic microfibers found in demersal species from Southern Tyrrhenian Sea (Central Mediterranean).

Pharmaceuticals

Characterization of the Nairobi River catchment impact zone and occurrence of pharmaceuticals: Implications for an impact zone inclusive environmental risk assessment.

Multiple Chemicals

Pharmaceuticals, pesticides, personal care products and microplastics contamination assessment of Al-Hassa irrigation network (Saudi Arabia) and its shallow lakes.

The Occurrence and Risks of Selected Emerging Pollutants in Drinking Water Source Areas in Henan, China. [pharmaceuticals, OPEs, UV filters]

Priority and emerging micropollutants distribution from coastal to continental slope sediments: A case study of Capbreton Submarine Canyon (North Atlantic Ocean). [PAHs, PCPs, metals, pharmaceuticals]

Mixtures

Effects of multiple stressors on the distribution of fish communities in 203 headwater streams of Rhine, Elbe and Danube.

Miscellaneous

Determination and occurrence of natural and synthetic glucocorticoids in surface waters.

Towards Non-Invasive Methods in Measuring Fish Welfare: The Measurement of Cortisol Concentrations in Fish Skin Mucus as a Biomarker of Habitat Quality.

Marine invertebrate larvae love plastics: Habitat selection and settlement on artificial substrates. [invasive species and plastics]

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This list is not meant to be exhaustive, and generally does not include studies on detection, remediation, or treatment of EDCs. Note that journal publication dates may be different than dates added to PubMed. To see the searchable archives, please email me at Sarah@healthandenvironment.org and ask to join the group EDC_research@googlegroups.com. Archives are at https://groups.google.com/d/forum/edc_research. Compiled by Sarah Howard, Diabetes and Environment Program and HEEDS at Commonweal.

EHN EHN

Endocrine-disrupting chemicals: hazards and opportunities (ECHO) course
by Sarah Howard on October 31, 2024 at 2:50 pm
This course focuses on the chemical, biological, and societal challenges of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and new opportunities for moving forward. ECHO is a two-week intensive bootcamp-style career development course for graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and professionals in the field. It is held at Woods Hole, Massachusetts.
Lou Guillette Jr. Memorial Symposium
by Sarah Howard on October 22, 2024 at 1:30 pm
On March 14-15, 2025, HEEDS is hosting the Lou Guillette Jr. Memorial Symposium on endocrine disrupting science at the University of Florida. It will celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. Guillette, gather together his trainees and colleagues, and focus on the research topics that Lou made famous. Information here.
Webinar: The overturning of Chevron deference: impacts on environmental health decision making
by Sarah Howard on October 17, 2024 at 4:21 pm
In this Nov. 13 webinar, legal experts will discuss the implications of the overturning of Chevron deference and its profound impact on science, public health and decision-making. Sponsored by CHE and UCSF's EaRTH Center.

EHN EHN

Ultra-processed foods and plastic packaging make for the ultimate toxic pair, scientists say
by Katherine McMahon,Sarah Howard on October 25, 2024 at 10:37 am
A recent paper published in Globalization and Health explores the relationship between ultra-processed foods (UPFs), plastic packaging, and their combined threat to public health. “Consumers do not have the power to solve a problem of this scale, and thus it is the responsibility of policymakers to ensure that transitions away from unhealthy, unsustainable foods are accompanied by structural measures that support demand and access to healthy foods.”
Microplastic exposure linked to reduced sperm quality in humans
by Katherine McMahon,Sarah Howard on October 23, 2024 at 4:29 pm
Exposure to microplastics is associated with a decrease in sperm concentration, motility, and shape, according to a new study published in The Lancet. “The identification of non-stick pan coating material PTFE as a particularly hazardous microplastic for male fertility underscores the importance of targeted interventions to reduce exposure to this and similar substances.”
Exposure to PFAS in ski wax may be linked to high cholesterol
by Katherine McMahon,Sarah Howard on October 16, 2024 at 7:42 pm
According to a new study published in Environmental Research, skiers and snowboarders may face health risks from their exposure to PFAS via ski wax, which can contain up to 100% PFAS by mass. “Interventions to remove PFAS from fluorinated wax could decrease direct exposure to skiers and reduce PFAS release into the environment.”

EHN EHN

Stricter toxic chemical rules reduce Californians’ exposures
by Kristina Marusic on October 31, 2024 at 11:25 am
Californians have lower levels of toxic chemicals linked to cancer, birth defects and reproductive harm in their bodies than people in the rest of the country, according to a new study. The study, published in Environmental Health Perspectives and conducted by researchers at Silent Spring Institute, a nonprofit scientific research organization, and the University of California at Berkeley (UC Berkeley), looked at nationwide data on the levels of 37 toxic chemicals in people’s blood before and after California introduced its stringent regulations. It found that for 18 of these chemicals, Californians have lower levels in their bodies than the rest of the country.
EPA dismissed data on the neurotoxicity of common insecticides
by Katherine McMahon,Sarah Howard on October 30, 2024 at 5:56 pm
A recent paper in Frontiers in Toxicology examined research submitted by industry to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the neurotoxicity of neonicotinoids - the most widely used class of insecticides in the U.S. and worldwide - and found that the data was evaluated improperly by the agency. Why this matters: Neonicotinoids are widely used not only for commercial agriculture but also for more personal uses like home gardens and in some flea and tick treatments for pets. Humans are regularly exposed to neonicotinoids – which are structurally similar to nicotine – through the environment, food and water. Neonicotinoids’ popularity partly comes from the belief that their harmful effects are mostly limited to insects, but studies like this one demonstrate that mammals may also be harmed by the chemicals, and highlight the urgent need for stronger regulations around their use.
Pesticide regulations ignore critical threats to insect health and ecosystems
by EHN Curators on October 30, 2024 at 10:26 am
In a study revealing regulatory gaps, researchers found that pesticides impact insect behavior and survival at non-lethal doses, especially in warmer temperatures, calling into question the effectiveness of current pesticide safety protocols. Dave Goulson writes for The Conversation.