Pesticides News and Research

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Maryland anesthesiologist named 2011 Researcher of the Year

Often on the mind of Gary Fiskum, PhD, are the more than 250,000 people in the U.S. who get resuscitated from cardiac arrest each year, the 6 million living with traumatic brain injuries, and the wounded warriors whose brain whose brains sustain enormous G-forces from roadside bombs in the war zone.

9 Nov 2011

Potential fish enzyme biomarker for environmental toxins

The level of the enzyme carbonyl reductase (CBR) is elevated in the livers of fish that have been exposed to cleaned wastewater. Scientists at the University of Gothenburg can show that CBR has properties that may make it suitable to be used as a biomarker, an early warning signal of environmental toxins. The aim of the project is to achieve better environmental monitoring.

9 Nov 2011

Pesticides, pollutants increase risk of spina bifida and anencephaly in rural China

Pesticides and pollutants are related to an alarming 450 percent increase in the risk of spina bifida and anencephaly in rural China, according to scientists at The University of Texas at Austin and Peking University.

20 Oct 2011

Scientists conclude pesticide contamination as a major problem in Europe

Pesticides are a bigger problem than had long been assumed. This is the conclusion of a study in which scientists analysed data on 500 organic substances in the basins of four major European rivers. It was revealed that 38 per cent of these chemicals are present in concentrations which could potentially have an effect on organisms.

14 Oct 2011

Environmental toxicants can pose risk for atherosclerosis

Environmental toxicants such as dioxins, PCBs, and pesticides can pose a risk for cardiovascular disease. For the first time a link has been demonstrated between atherosclerosis and levels of long-lived organic environmental toxicants in the blood.

12 Oct 2011

BPA found in kids’ canned food

The chemical Bisphenol A (BPA) that is suspected to be harmful to babies may be found in several child-friendly canned foods. Breast Cancer Fund researchers tested for bisphenol A (BPA) in six products specifically marketed to children. Included in the list were such popular kid-targeted meals as Campbell’s “Disney Princess" soup with "shaped pasta with chicken in chicken broth” and Annie’s Homegrown certified organic “Cheesy Ravioli.” BPA, which is found in plastics, cash-register receipts, dental sealants and even money, has been linked in animal studies to a host of health ills, including possible cancers and developmental problems and early puberty.

22 Sep 2011

Study investigates links between GWI and veterans' locations during war

Gulf War Illness (GWI)-the chronic health condition that affects about one in four military veterans of the 1991 Gulf War-appears to be the result of several factors, which differed in importance depending upon the locations where veterans served during the war, according to a Baylor University study.

19 Sep 2011

Dr. Oz and apple juice – FDA and experts fume at arsenic false alarm

Television's Dr. Mehmet Oz is being questioned by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and others for sounding what they say is a false alarm about the dangers of apple juice.

16 Sep 2011

Prostate cancer linked to pesticides: Study

Researchers at the University of Southern California (USC) have found an increased prevalence of prostate cancer among older men exposed to certain pesticides in Central Valley neighborhoods.

31 Aug 2011

Cell's reserve fighting force shrinks with age: Study

When the body fights oxidative damage, it calls up a reservist enzyme that protects cells - but only if those cells are relatively young, a study has found.

31 Aug 2011

Disappearance of mosquitoes from some parts of Africa puzzles researchers

"Malaria-carrying mosquitoes are disappearing in some parts of Africa, ... indicat[ing] controls such as anti-mosquito bed nets are having a significant impact on the incidence of malaria in some sub-Saharan countries," researchers report in a paper published in Malaria Journal, according to BBC News. But the team of Danish and Tanzanian "researchers say mosquitoes are also disappearing from areas with few controls," and "[t]hey are uncertain if mosquitoes are being eradicated or whether they will return with renewed vigor," the news agency writes.

29 Aug 2011

Malaria mosquito has disappeared from villages without organized control measures

The incidence of malaria in many African countries south of the Sahara is falling rapidly. A Danish-Tanzanian research group has discovered that the mosquito carrying the malaria parasite has practically disappeared from villages without organized mosquito control, and the researchers do not know why.

26 Aug 2011

Risk of Parkinson's disease increases with traumatic brain injury and exposure to pesticide paraquat

Traumatic brain injury has entered the public's consciousness as the silent, signature wound brought back by many of our military warriors from Iraq and Afghanistan. But such injuries don't only happen in warfare, they happen to civilians too. Think car crashes, a slip and fall, two football players colliding helmet to helmet.

22 Aug 2011

International symposium on Persistent Organic Pollutants to take place in Brussels

The 31st international symposium on Persistent Organic Pollutants (Dioxin 2011) will take place in Brussels from August 22 to 25, 2011, bringing together close to 1000 specialists from the world over.

18 Aug 2011

UC Riverside research could help prevent crop loss, pest outbreaks

New research by scientists at the University of California, Riverside shows that evolution - genetic changes in populations over time - can occur so rapidly in organisms that its impact on population numbers and other aspects of biology can be seen within just a few generations.

17 Aug 2011

Dangers of colon cleansing: More harm than good

According to a new study released today in the Journal of Family Practice colon cleaning may be harmful. Researchers from Georgetown University Medical School looked at 20 studies published in the last decade and found little evidence of benefit to colon cleansing. But they did find dozens of cases of problems: cramping, bloating, vomiting, electrolyte imbalance, renal failure, and even death.

1 Aug 2011

Facts and myths about bed bugs

Bed bugs are back. Since 2000, bed bug infestations have risen 81 percent, according to The National Pest Management Association. This resurgence has consumers nationwide on high alert, seeking information on the pests and how they can protect themselves.

18 Jul 2011

Body builders using greyhound injections to increase muscle mass

According to reports many body builders are injecting drugs meant for greyhounds in the mistaken belief it will help them build bigger muscles faster. L-carnitine is found in supplements sold for human consumption but these users are buying an injectable form from pet shops which experts say can increase the risk of heart attacks. L-carnitine is a quaternary ammonium compound biosynthesized from the amino acids lysine and methionine.

10 Jul 2011

Unraveling molecular dysfunction due to environmental toxin exposure

In a new article published in the journal Molecular Neurodegeneration, researchers at the University of Missouri School of Medicine take some of the first steps toward unraveling the molecular dysfunction that occurs when proteins are exposed to environmental toxins. Their discovery helps further explain recent NIH findings that demonstrate the link between Parkinson's disease and two particular pesticides - rotenone and paraquat.

23 Jun 2011

HHS adds eight substances to 12th Report on Carcinogens

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services added eight substances to its Report on Carcinogens, a science-based document that identifies chemicals and biological agents that may put people at increased risk for cancer.

13 Jun 2011