Arsenic News and Research

RSS

Arsenic is a naturally occurring element widely distributed in the earth’s crust. In the environment, arsenic is combined with oxygen, chlorine, and sulfur to form inorganic arsenic compounds. Arsenic in animals and plants combines with carbon and hydrogen to form organic arsenic compounds.

Breathing high levels of inorganic arsenic can give you a sore throat or irritated lungs.

Ingesting very high levels of arsenic can result in death. Exposure to lower levels can cause nausea and vomiting, decreased production of red and white blood cells, abnormal heart rhythm, damage to blood vessels, and a sensation of “pins and needles” in hands and feet.

Ingesting or breathing low levels of inorganic arsenic for a long time can cause a darkening of the skin and the appearance of small “corns” or “warts” on the palms, soles, and torso.

Study reveals urban and rural differences in prenatal exposure to essential and toxic elements

New findings from a team of Marshall University Joan C. Edwards School of Medicine researchers reveal urban and rural differences in prenatal exposure to essential and toxic elements.

13 Dec 2018

Mercury is not well detoxified by yelloweye rockfish, researchers find

It takes six months to get really good at accurately gauging the age of yelloweye rockfish. Because they can live for up to 120 years, this species is of particular interest to Benjamin Barst and scientists like him who study the effects of toxic chemicals on living organisms.

21 Nov 2018

EMA recommends first all-oral treatment to tackle deadly sleeping sickness

The European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use has adopted a positive scientific opinion of fexinidazole, the first all-oral treatment that has been shown to be efficacious for both stages of sleeping sickness.

16 Nov 2018

Nexus announces availability of Arsenic Trioxide Injection in the US

Nexus Pharmaceuticals announced today the immediate availability in the United States for Arsenic Trioxide Injection. Nexus Pharmaceuticals' Arsenic Trioxide Injection is available as 10 mg per 10 mL vial for injection.

16 Nov 2018

Study shows novel strategy to reduce breast cancer bone metastasis

Uncovering a novel mechanism that promotes growth of breast cancer bone metastasis has revealed a potential Achilles' heel for these cancer cells. Reported in the journal Cancer Cell, the study shows that interfering with this mechanism can reduce the risk of relapses in animal models.

12 Nov 2018

MDI Biological Laboratory receives $1.2 million SEPA grant to promote data literacy

The MDI Biological Laboratory will take a national lead in teaching data literacy to students and teachers though a five-year, $1.2 million SEPA grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, an institute of the National Institutes of Health.

15 Oct 2018

Cobalt mining in DR Congo takes a high toll on both creuseurs and environment

In past years, the demand for cobalt has been on the increase due to its many applications. For one thing, the metal is a crucial component of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries for smartphones and electric cars.

20 Sep 2018

Combination of arsenic and existing leukemia drug may combat cancer

Investigators have discovered that arsenic in combination with an existing leukemia drug work together to target a master cancer regulator.

9 Aug 2018

World Lung Cancer Day: FIRS commemorates and supports lung cancer patients

On World Lung Cancer Day, the American Thoracic Society, alongside members of the Forum of International Respiratory Societies commemorate and support those impacted by lung cancer.

1 Aug 2018

Scientists find link between soil metals and cancer mortality

Spanish epidemiologists and geologists have found associations between esophageal cancer and soils where lead is abundant, lung cancer and terrains with increased copper content, brain tumor with areas rich in arsenic, and bladder cancer with high cadmium levels.

20 Apr 2018

UIC researchers examine how arsenic affects development of diabetes

A five-year, $2.7 million grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences will help researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago answer basic questions about the role of arsenic in the development of diabetes and examine the mechanisms by which selenoproteins - found in the human body in 25 different forms - counter the effects of arsenic.

9 Mar 2018

Scientists find significant amounts of toxic metals in e-cigarette vapors

Significant amounts of toxic metals, including lead, leak from some e-cigarette heating coils and are present in the aerosols inhaled by users, according to a study from scientists at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

22 Feb 2018

Indigenous people exposed to oil spills have harmful metal contaminants in their body, study finds

People from two indigenous communities in the Peruvian Amazon who live close to the country's longest oil pipeline have mercury, cadmium and lead in their bodies at concentrations that could be harmful to their health.

11 Feb 2018

German researchers find way to accurately differentiate prostate cancer from benign tissue

Using nuclear medicine, German researchers have found a way to accurately differentiate cancerous tissue from healthy tissue in prostate cancer patients. The research is highlighted in the February issue of The Journal of Nuclear Medicine.

6 Feb 2018

Cannabis Quality and Contamination Testing

Dr. Bob Clifford has published and presented over 125 papers in the fields of food, pharmaceutical, environmental, energy, geology, material science, photonics, and cannabis. However, his true love is in food. After graduating with his Ph.D., he left his job with the FDA for Shimadzu where he has worked for the last 26 years.

From Pittcon 5 Feb 2018

Cancer risk can be reduced with unique regulations for water treatment

Dr. Megan Rockafellow-Baldoni, Rutgers School of Public Health alum and Center for Public Health Workforce Development program coordinator, has found a reduction in the risk of cancer due to arsenic exposure in Hopewell Township (Mercer County), New Jersey with use of arsenic treatment systems. Arsenic exists in varying levels in all parts of New Jersey; chronic exposure can increase rates of bladder, lung, liver, kidney, and skin cancers.

31 Jan 2018

Chronic exposure to arsenic may increase risk of diabetes, study reveals

A new study reports that chronic exposure to arsenic interferes with insulin secretion in the pancreas, which may increase the risk of diabetes.

10 Jan 2018

Sleeping sickness actually caused by acceleration of biological clocks

Sleeping sickness could use a more encompassing moniker. An international study from the O'Donnell Brain Institute shows one of Africa's most lethal diseases is actually a circadian rhythm disorder caused by the acceleration of biological clocks controlling a range of vital functions besides sleep.

4 Jan 2018

Men who tan tend to do it in riskier ways, study finds

Even though men use tanning beds at lower rates than women, men who tan tend to do it in riskier ways, according to a study by researchers at the University of Connecticut. The findings should help public health officials rethink how, and to whom, they're targeting anti-tanning messages.

2 Nov 2017