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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.
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...
New research in Virginia reports that levels of hormones key for growth and controlling stress were skewed in tree swallow nestlings contaminated with mercury.
The study finds some of the highest mercury levels ever measured in wild songbird nestlings. The researchers point to the birds' insect food as the source of contamination. 10 September 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 study of young children in India has found that higher blood lead levels are associated with a suite of behavioral and thinking problems that can alter attention, abstract thinking and appropriate behavior.
This study is one of the first to pinpoint specific childhood behaviors and cognitive skills affected by lead exposure, most notably anxiety, social problems and overall executive function (planning, problem solving, behavior control). The study found no "safe" level. 4 August 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...
In a study of men and women 55 to 67 years old, higher lead levels were associated with poorer performance on tasks used to assess memory deficits.
Although other studies have found associations between lead exposure and cognitive deficits in older adults, this is the first study to link lead exposure with specific measures of memory impairment that are characteristic of Alzheimer’s Disease. 26 June 2009. More...
Developmental exposure to PCBs can permanently damage hearing but co-exposure with methyl mercury reduces the effects.
The mercury doses were selected to achieve a ratio of PCBs to methyl mercury similar to that found in walleye caught by fisherman in Wisconsin, but the doses were higher than those typically encountered by people. 25 June 2009. More...
A new study adds to the growing literature suggesting that chemical exposure may affect male fertility.
Men exposed to higher levels of contaminants produced by burning a range of substances, including coal, oil, gas and wood had an increased risk of infertility, according to results from a study conducted in China. 29 May 2009. More...
Exposure to commonly used agricultural pesticides may increase the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease, particularly among people who have certain gene types.
The degenerative nerve disease can develop when dopamine levels in the brain are lower than normal. Without pesticide exposures, susceptible gene variants alone were not sufficient to increase risk. The increased risk to Parkinson's required both susceptible genes and pesticide exposure. 14 May 2009. More...
Both long and short summer ice thaws in Arctic waters are associated with higher mercury levels in seals.
As global climate change progresses, and the sea ice melts for longer periods each year, the seals' mercury levels could consistently increase over time. Mercury levels are predicted to increase in fish as coal power plants continue to spew the metal. Mercury is a neurotoxin that has known effects on reproduction, behavior and immune responses. 5 May 2009. More...
Lead released from a woman's bones during pregnancy can affect her developing baby's DNA in ways that can alter gene expression and possibly increase the child's lifelong susceptibility to disease.
This is the first study to show that lead can influence genetic programming in human cells, and hence, gene expression, throughout life. 21 April 2009. More...
Dogs are more likely to develop cancer if they live near Naples, Italy in places where illegal waste disposal commonly occurs and people have a high rate of cancer deaths.
Other studies from the Naples region document high rates of people dying from cancer, especially in an area northeast of Naples called the “triangle of death." 20 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...
For the first time, scientists find that extremely low levels of some types of environmental estrogens disrupt specialized brain cells and their ability to regulate brain chemistry. All of the EEs tested changed the way cells released and reabsorbed dopamine, an important chemical messenger that governs movement and pleasure.
These changes may explain how EEs contribute to nervous system diseases, such as Parkinsons and schizophrenia, that are caused by abnormal dopamine responses. 3 March 2009. More...
A PCB mix altered reproductive hormones and organ growth in two generations of female rats that were never directly exposed to the chemicals themselves.
The abnormalities worsened in the granddaughters when compared to the daughters. The worst effects were seen at the mid -- not the highest or lowest -- level tested. Levels were within the range of human exposure. 27 February 2009. More...
Weather changes due to global climate change could substantially increase people's exposure to many pathogens and toxic agricultural contaminants, predicts a study from the United Kingdom.
The full health implications are uncertain. Managing the risks will require research as well as policy changes. 26 February 2009. More...
Children are at risk of eating more than they bargained for if they don't wash their hands before eating. Researchers have found that dust contaminated with chemical flame retardants called PBDEs can stick to skin and may be a significant source of human exposure to the widely used compounds.
The findings suggests that small children -- who had 10 times the levels of the chemicals on their hands as adults -- may be at a significant risk of accumulating the chemicals from dust. 13 February 2009. More...
Elevated levels of several toxic metals were found in red deer and wild boar that live in a region of Spain littered with abandoned mines, but now a hotbed for hunters.
None of the measured metals were at toxic levels, but the deer from the mining area had subtle changes in tissue biochemistry when compared to their neighbors from a non-mining area. 10 February 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...
Greenlandic Inuit with high levels of certain, long-lived industrial pollutants in their bodies also have DNA with altered function.
Inuit with higher blood levels of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) also had decreased methylation of their DNA. Although long-term health consequences are not known, altered methylation patterns have been associated with cancer. 5 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...
People in the Great Lakes region -- long known for its high levels of contamination -- are carrying around less of some of the most dangerous and harmful chemicals found there.
Three decades after the national bans on PCBs and DDT, researchers find lower concentrations, even in those who catch and eat sport fish. 13 January 2009. 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...
Scientists have shown for the first time that nanoparticles of titanium dioxide can travel from the nose to the brain and cause damage to brain cells in laboratory mice.
The nanocompound is a white pigment widely used in paints, coatings, plastics, cosmetics, sunscreens and other personal care products. These results suggest that short-term exposure to nano-sized titanium dioxide via breathing could lead to brain injuries. 17 November 2008. More...
Drinking coffee may benefit health by targeting and killing viruses such as herpes and poliovirus, according to new research from Japan.
Coffee both reduced herpes virus's ability to spread to other cells and halted their reproduction. With polio virus, the extracts stopped viral multiplication. 30 September 2008. More...
In a new study, scientists report that ground level mercury levels are increased by more than 30% in environments where the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide is also increased.
The cause is unexpected: Higher CO2 levels change soil chemistry in ways that increase its ability to retain or store mercury. 12 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...
Exposure to lead at concentrations below the US safe standard level decreases childhood intelligence, according to a study of children living in Rochester, New York.
The findings show a significant decline of 5 intelligence quotient (IQ) points in children with blood lead levels between 5 and 9.9 micrograms per deciliter (mcg/dL), which is lower than the Centers for Disease Control's safe limit of 10 mcg/dL. 27 February 2008. More...
New research confirms that estrogenic contaminants can seep into sediment after being carried by sewage into rivers.
Standard water treatment doesn't remove them from waste water effluent, so they pass from treatment plants into rivers. Once in river waters, they move into river sediments and thus potentially reach groundwater, contaminating sources of drinking water. 8 October 2007. More...
Two recently published reports using data from the long running and large Normative Aging Study link elevated bone lead levels with increased heart disease in aging men.
Men with the highest lead levels suffered more heart attacks than those with lower levels. High levels of stress compounded the impact of lead to increase risk of higher blood pressure. 20 June 2007. More...
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