Pesticides News and Research

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Versar awarded $7.6M contract to review and evaluate pesticide product

Versar, Inc. announced today that it was awarded a five-year, $7.6 million contract to review and evaluate pesticide product and residue chemistry data by the Office of Pesticide Programs, Health Effects Division, of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

31 Mar 2010

Researchers evaluate the effect of chemical cocktails on humans and the environment

Throughout our lives we are exposed to an enormous range of man-made chemicals, from food, water, medicines, cosmetics, clothes, shoes and the air we breathe. At the request of the EU, researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, have looked at the risk of "chemical cocktails" and have proposed a number of measures that need to be implemented in the current practice of chemical risk assessment.

29 Mar 2010

Exposure to pesticide chlorpyrifos associated with early childhood developmental delays: Study

Exposure to the pesticide chlorpyrifos-which is banned for use in U.S. households but is still widely used throughout the agricultural industry-is associated with early childhood developmental delays, according to a study by researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health.

20 Mar 2010

New heart-healthy omega-3 crops on horizon

A new heart-healthy, essential omega-3 fatty acid is about to improve an American pantry staple: soybean oil. The new scientific advance will move biotechnology onto the average consumer's daily radar.

17 Mar 2010

Hospitals across the nation celebrate National Nutrition Month

Hospitals across the nation are celebrating National Nutrition Month by changing their food service offerings and staging events to draw more attention to their participation in the Health Care Without Harm Balanced Menus program, which advocates a "Less Meat, Better Meat" approach to hospital food service operations.

5 Mar 2010

Dermatologist addresses common parasitic infestations and latest treatment options at Academy Annual Meeting

If simply the thought of bedbugs, scabies and head lice makes you feel a little itchy, imagine how those affected by these common infestations feel when they learn what has been creeping around them and causing symptoms such as intense itching, red bite marks or irritated scalps.

5 Mar 2010

Agilent Technologies, NCFST enter into collaboration to develop new scientific methods for food testing

Agilent Technologies Inc. and the National Center for Food Safety and Technology today announced that they have entered into a collaboration to develop new scientific methods for food testing, with the goal of solving a wide range of persistent problems facing global food supply chains.

2 Mar 2010

New non-neurotoxic treatment for head lice in children

A new non-neurotoxic treatment for head lice has been found to have an average of 91.2% treatment success rate after one week, and to be safe in humans from six months of age and up. This is the finding of a study published today in Pediatric Dermatology.

24 Feb 2010

Allylix raises $6M in first closing of Series C financing

Allylix Inc. announced today that it has raised $6 million in the first closing of its Series C financing. The money will allow the Company to commercialize its first three products for the food and fragrance industry, and allow it to advance several additional products in its pipeline.

10 Feb 2010

Researchers design smart capsules that release their contents on demand

How can an active principle be delivered in a controlled way? Until now, there was no obvious answer to this question. Now however, researchers at the CNRS Paul Pascal Research Center in Bordeaux have designed smart capsules that are able to release their contents on demand, simply by raising the temperature. Described in an article published on 2 February 2010 in the journal Langmuir, this novel system has just been patented. It opens up the way to many applications in a large number of fields such as food, perfumes and agriculture, for instance to deliver pesticides above a specific temperature.

28 Jan 2010

Women with higher blood levels of PBDEs take longer to become pregnant, say researchers

Women with higher blood levels of PBDEs, a type of flame retardant commonly found in household consumer products, took longer to become pregnant compared with women who have lower PBDE levels, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.

27 Jan 2010

New functions in an enzyme can develop through point mutation

A new study by a research team at Uppsala University shows how new functions can develop in an enzyme. This can explain, for example, how resistance to toxins can occur so simply. The findings are now being published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

19 Jan 2010

Study provides new insights into genetics and evolution

Researchers from the University of Geneva and the SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics led an analysis of the sequenced genomes of parasitic wasps. Generally unknown to the public, the parasitic wasps kill pest insects. They are like 'smart bombs' that seek out and kill only specific kinds of insects.

19 Jan 2010

Unintentional suffocation of infants twice as common in rural areas of China

The death rate from injuries in rural areas of China is higher than in urban areas, according to a new study by researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health's Center for Injury Research and Policy.

13 Jan 2010

Canadian Cancer Society calls on the B.C. government to ban cosmetic use of pesticides

The Canadian Cancer Society British Columbia and Yukon today called on the B.C. government to enact legislation to ban the cosmetic use of pesticides that would set a new national standard. The Society is also asking British Columbians to participate in the on-line public consultation.

8 Jan 2010

Toxic chemicals make us susceptible to a wide range of diseases

From the Industrial Revolution and onward, the world has become an environment that is overflowing with dangerous toxins. Mass manufacturing has resulted in thousands of chemical pollutants being released in the atmosphere, water, and soil. As well, there has been a widespread increase of chemicals being added to almost every type of food and retail product.

6 Jan 2010

Scientists develop inexpensive dipstick test to identify pesticides in foods and beverages

Scientists in Canada are reporting the development of a fast, inexpensive "dipstick" test to identify small amounts of pesticides that may exist in foods and beverages. Their paper-strip test is more practical than conventional pesticide tests, producing results in minutes rather than hours by means of an easy-to-read color-change, they say.

23 Dec 2009

A properly managed metabolic detoxification program can benefit

“Detox” programs have been in the spotlight recently, with a bevy of Hollywood celebrities citing their “detox” programs as the secret to looking great on the red carpet. But, what exactly is detoxification? Is it merely the latest health and beauty fad, or is it a true health therapy? And can anyone besides the Hollywood elite benefit from it?

22 Dec 2009

AFP examines insecticide resistance's effect on malaria fight in Nigeria

Agence France-Presse examines the increase in insecticide-resistant mosquitoes in Nigeria - "the latest threat to combating malaria" in the country. "Nigeria, Africa's most populous country, contributes more than a quarter of the one million malaria deaths in Africa, according to official statistics," AFP writes.

10 Dec 2009

USGS researchers examine PAHs and PCBs sources in urban environment

Toxic dust: Toxins in coal-tar-based sealcoats in parking lots may be the culprit in contaminated house dust, according to a USGS study. PAHs - or polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons - are large molecules found in oil, coal and tar deposits, and can have toxic effects.

21 Nov 2009