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The human immune system is constantly exposed to chemical contaminants, whether from food, water or air. Some chemicals directly elicit an immune response, while others indirectly activate or deactivate components within the immune system. Thus when tracking or predicting the effect of a chemical on the immune system, many different pathways and modes of action need to be considered. Following an introduction to the various pathways and toxicity mechanisms from a systemic perspective, the main part of this comprehensive reference surveys individual molecular mechanisms of important immunotoxicants, from PAHs to biopharmaceuticals, and from receptor-mediated toxicity to nanoparticle toxicity, using analyses based on molecular effects rather than on animal models. Taken together, the knowledge presented here provides an up-to-date overview of this hot topic that can be directly applied to the prediction and characterization of immunotoxic effects in drugs, chemicals, and environmental contaminants.

A host of books and films in recent years have documented the dangers of our current food system, from chemical runoff to soaring rates of diet-related illness to inhumane treatment of workers and animals. But advice on what to do about it largely begins and ends with the admonition to "eat local or "eat organic." Fair Food is an enlightening and inspiring guide to changing not only what we eat, but how food is grown, packaged, delivered, marketed, and sold. Oran B. Hesterman shows how our system's dysfunctions are unintended consequences of our emphasis on efficiency, centralization, higher yields, profit, and convenience -- and defines the new principles, as well as the concrete steps, necessary to restructuring it. Along the way, he introduces people and organizations across the country who are already doing this work in a number of creative ways, from bringing fresh food to inner cities to fighting for farm workers' rights to putting cows back on the pastures where they belong. He provides a wealth of practical information for readers who want to get more involved.

This book serves as a timely and comprehensive overview of the latest science for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs), covering the development of methods for assessing PFASs in biological fluids and tissues as well as the current knowledge regarding their toxicity to vertebrate organisms. This book includes chapters on human and wildlife exposure/body burdens, reviews of metabolism and toxicological effects by organ system/developmental stage and aspects of PFAS toxicity that are driving PFAS research and regulatory oversight. Toxicological Effects of Perfluoroalkyl and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances provide critical assessments of the most controversial topics surrounding toxicological evaluation of PFASs to give readers an expert perspective on the issues. Emphasis is placed on the integration of modes and mechanisms of action with functional endpoints that are relevant to human and wildlife health. This book will be a useful resource for toxicologists, environmental chemists, risk assessors and researchers with an interest in the class of compounds known as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances.