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While all links worked when entries were posted to the database, different publishers
have different policies about retaining articles and providing access to archived material.
Thus some of the links, particularly older ones, may no longer be functional.
For links no longer working, you may be able to gain paid access to text via the publisher's site.
For the first time, research shows that nanoparticles called fullerenes are filtered out of water by oysters and taken up by their liver cells.
Fullerenes may cause long-term health problems in oysters and reduced survival and reproduction. 16 November 2009. More...
Exposure to arsenic causes human stem cells to transform into cancer cells, report researchers who studied the cells in a laboratory.
People in certain regions of the world are exposed to high levels of arsenic through drinking water tainted by the naturally-occurring element. The results of this new study may explain why arsenic is associated with several human cancers, including prostrate cancer in men. 5 November 2009. More...
Levels of antibiotics measured in streams, lakes and well water near pharmaceutical factories in India are 100,000 to 1,000,000 times higher than levels measured in waters that receive sewage effluent in the US or China.
Much of the world's supply of supply of generic antibiotics are produced in the study area. 9 September 2009. More...
A mother's contribution of pollutants to her offspring is more important to the survival of a young turtle than its exposure through food, according to a new wildlife study that compared the long-term effects of PCBs from both sources.
The results show for the first time that it is exposure from the mother, and not diet, that has more serious consequences for survival of these turtles. Additionally, the most severe effect --death-- was only seen after an 8-month delay. 3 September 2009. More...
The common and highly-used herbicide atrazine can act within the brain to disrupt the cascade of hormone signals needed to initiate ovulation, finds a new study.
The results shed new light on the way atrazine affects the female reproductive system and the persistence of these effects when adults are exposed. 20 August 2009. More...
Iron nanoparticles that are poised for use in large-scale pollution remediation can rapidly react with oxygen and cause lung cells to die.
The same qualities that make these particles potentially useful in environmental clean-up -- their high reactivity -- also make them potentially harmful to living things. Some of the reactions can release free radicals that can damage cell DNA. 12 August 2009. More...
Large piles of aging chicken manure to be used as fertilizer on farm crops can house bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics, finds a new study.
The results raise concern that typical storage conditions may fail to keep the microbes from reaching people through contaminated food or drinking water. Poultry manure is not required to be treated before it is applied to farm fields. 7 August 2009. More...
Women who are having difficulty conceiving may want to cut back on their soy consumption after a mouse study reveals that dietary exposure to genistein, a compound found in soy foods, can reduce the odds of a successful pregnancy in multiple ways.
The results reveal how natural compounds like genistein may have both risks – it can act as an endocrine disurptor to affect female reproduction – and benefits - such as protecting the heart. 28 July 2009. More...
The herbicide atrazine lowers the production of androgen hormones in male rats by altering the genes responsible for making them.
This is the first study to show that atrazine directly affects the genes responsible for hormone production in testicular cells. 27 July 2009. More...
People who eat meat and poultry have significantly higher levels of common flame retardants compared to vegetarians.
The findings indicate that food may be a more important source of the contaminants, known as PBDEs, than previously thought. 22 July 2009. More...
A new study with mice links arsenic exposure to reduced immune response.
The results suggest those people most exposed to arsenic through their drinking water may be more susceptible to illness and possibly death when infected with the H1N1 swine flu virus. 17 July 2009. More...
A detailed analysis of all the available studies comparing work-related, parental pesticide exposure and childhood leukemia finds that the mother’s exposure during pregnancy can double her child’s risk of the disease. The father’s exposure before pregnancy does not.
The study emphasizes the significant contribution of prenatal exposure in developing childhood disease and shows a need for more in-depth studies of the effects of prenatal exposures to environmental factors. 17 June 2009. More...
Bacteria in sewage can chemically transform estrogenic compounds, converting them to back to their original chemical form as the sewage travels toward treatment plants after the compounds have been excreted by people.
The findings open the door to exploring new ways in which the estrogens that are more resistant to bacterial modification could be changed at the sewage treatment plant to make them easier to remove from the water. 5 June 2009. More...
Traditional and locally harvested foods contribute more persistent, stain-repelling compounds to the native Inuit diet than packaged food that is imported and sold at the local stores, report researchers who analyzed and compared exposures from the two food sources.
The estimated PFC exposure of the Nunavut Inuit studied is similar to levels measured in Canadians and Europeans. Yet, no universal health standards are set for PFC exposure, so the health impacts are unclear. 2 June 2009. More...
A five-generation rat study provides the clearest evidence to date that exposure to low levels of environmental estrogens can increase the risk of abnormal cell growth in the male breast.
Abnormalities which could have the potential to become cancerous developed in the mammary gland tissue of male rats that were exposed to either the soy-based phytoestrogen genistein or ethinyl estradiol -- an estrogen used in birth control pills. 27 May 2009. More...
A new study with rats shows that long-term exposure to the common agricultural pesticide atrazine causes weight gain in animals fed normal diets and obesity in those fed high fat diets.
The new results suggest a mechanism for prior studies that found an association between areas of the United States with heavy atrazine use and high obesity prevalence. 23 April 2009. More...
Researchers sampling skin from sperm whales around the world found the animals have the highest levels of the metal chromium in their bodies of any marine mammal tested to date.
The levels in the skin of the whales are similar to those found in lung tissues of humans with chromium-induced lung cancer and may be an additional health threat to the already endangered species. 22 April 2009. More...
Atlantic salmon exposed to short springtime bursts of acidic runoff water are less able to migrate to the ocean because of important changes in their ability to balance salt.
This is the first study to show that health effects occur in streams with only brief periods of acidification. The decline in water quality occurs when the salmon are at a critical period in their development and may contribute to the continued decline of this endangered species. 6 April 2009. More...
Researchers find for the first time that mice exposed to dioxin during development or while nursing have a diminished capacity to fight a flu infection later in life.
Mouse pups born to pregnant mice that were exposed to a small amount of the ubiquitous and persistent pollutants had fewer white blood cells that normally kill the flu virus and more of a different kind that increases lung inflammation. The increased inflammation can make the disease more severe and recovery more difficult. 18 March 2009. More...
As babies grow into toddlers, their ability to alter arsenic into less harmful forms changes, leaving them less able to get rid of the cancer-causing metal and perhaps, more susceptible to its effects.
According to this new research from Bangladesh, children exposed to arsenic face a double whammy: they are less able to detoxify the poison at a time when their exposure through food and water is most likely increasing. 6 February 2009. More...
Parking lots treated with coal-tar-based sealcoats are a major source of cancer-causing contaminants that can pollute air, soil, water and wildlife, posing a significant health risk to humans who may breathe, drink or eat them in fish and other food.
Levels in eastern and central parking lots were as much as a thousand-fold higher than western lots, reflecting differences in the types of sealants used. 22 January 2009. More...
Using a mathematical model based on enzymatic differences between newborns and adults, scientists estimate that the amount of bisphenol A (BPA) circulating in the blood of babies is more than 11 times higher than the amount in adult blood, given the same exposure.
The striking disparity is most likely due to natural differences in metabolism and body size between babies and adults. This study points to the need for chemical exposure standards to better incorporate differences in vulnerabilities between children and adults. 12 January 2009. More...
Dibutyltin, an understudied chemical used widely in PVC plastics, can interfere with the natural ability of human and animals cells to control important immune responses and inflammation.
The results may help understand why asthma and allergies are increasing in people. 11 December 2008. More...
Triclosan, an antibacterial agent used in toothpastes, soaps and cosmetics, alters thyroid function in male rats, highlighting a potential concern for people - especially pregnant women and children.
Effects occurred at doses that people may experience, given the many diverse sources of exposure now prevalent because of triclosan's widespread use. 5 December 2008. More...
A modern day 'canary in a coal mine' unfolds as thousands of birds “dropping from the sky” alert authorities to lead-tainted drinking water and people.
Residents of a seaside community in Australia had unusually high concentrations of a unique and toxic form of lead that was discovered after thousands of local birds died. 1 December 2008. More...
A common disinfectant used by public water treatment plants creates a byproduct that is highly toxic to mammalian cells. How much is made depends upon details of how the plants process water.
The amount produced can be reduced significantly by simple changes in the treatment process. Despite this, many plants continue to use methods that create more of the toxic chemical than necessary. 18 November 2008. More...
In a unique study, researchers show that exposure to PCBs in rats interferes with learning by stopping the brain from forming complex nerve networks essential for memory and intellect.
This effect could underpin some of the impacts that PCBs have on children's ability to learn. 7 November 2008. More...
Prenatal exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) may lower a child's intelligence at age nine by several points, a study from Oswego, New York, finds.
The pre-teen children whose mothers were highly exposed to PCBs during pregnancy scored lower in general and verbal IQ tests than those born to mothers who were mildly exposed. The findings support other human studies that suggest exposure to these persistent chemicals disrupts early childhood mental development. 27 October 2008. More...
Some people are much more sensitive to arsenic poisoning than others. In this new study, researchers used fruit flies to discover the gene that may be responsible for these differences.
The gene they discovered produces an enzyme called glutathione synthetase which is important for detoxifying arsenic. 23 September 2008. More...
Scientists in Florida report that intersex conditions found in amphibians are associated with agricultural land use.
In the most heavily farmed area, almost 40% of male toads have abnormalities that make them less male and more like females. The results suggest that agricultural chemicals may be responsible. 3 July 2008. More...
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