Scientific Frontiers in Developmental Toxicology and Risk Assessment reviews advances made during the last 10-15 years in fields such as developmental biology, molecular biology, and genetics. It describes a novel approach for how these advances might be used in combination with existing methodologies to further the understanding of mechanisms of developmental toxicity, to improve the assessment of chemicals for their ability to cause developmental toxicity, and to improve risk assessment for developmental defects. For example, based on the recent advances, even the smallest, simplest laboratory animals such as the fruit fly, roundworm, and zebrafish might be able to serve as developmental toxicological models for human biological systems. Use of such organisms might allow for rapid and inexpensive testing of large numbers of chemicals for their potential to cause developmental toxicity; presently, there are little or no developmental toxicity data available for the majority of natural and manufactured chemicals in use. This new approach to developmental toxicology and risk assessment will require simultaneous research on several fronts by experts from multiple scientific disciplines, including developmental toxicologists, developmental biologists, geneticists, epidemiologists, and biostatisticians.

There is growing enthusiasm in the scientific community about the prospect of mapping and sequencing the human genome, a monumental project that will have far-reaching consequences for medicine, biology, technology, and other fields. But how will such an effort be organized and funded? How will we develop the new technologies that are needed? What new legal, social, and ethical questions will be raised? Mapping and Sequencing the Human Genome is a blueprint for this proposed project. The authors offer a highly readable explanation of the technical aspects of genetic mapping and sequencing, and they recommend specific interim and long-range research goals, organizational strategies, and funding levels. They also outline some of the legal and social questions that might arise and urge their early consideration by policymakers.

One Health (OH) is the conceptual and operational framework that links environment, food-producing organisms and human health. OH is a developing field, that deals with the multifaceted web of feed-backs and interactions among its components. In order to avoid “drowning into complexity”, priority issues should be identified, either for research and for risk analysis. To date OH approaches have frequently pivoted on infectious agents shared among animals and humans and the related problems, such as antibiotic resistance. Nevertheless, the OH scenarios include, and should increasingly include, environment-and-health problems. Food and environment do interact. Environment influences the living organisms that produce human food and, in the meanwhile, food production outputs influence the environmental quality; as for foods of animal origin, feed materials and practices are driving components of the environment-food interactions. In this book, we aimed at highlighting the importance of environment, chemical exposures and toxicological issues in the field of OH, as well as the need for multidisciplinary integration in order to support OH approaches into diseases prevention and health promotion.

Advances in molecular biology and toxicology are paving the way for major improvements in the evaluation of the hazards posed by the large number of chemicals found at low levels in the environment. The National Research Council was asked by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to review the state of the science and create a far-reaching vision for the future of toxicity testing. The book finds that developing, improving, and validating new laboratory tools based on recent scientific advances could significantly improve our ability to understand the hazards and risks posed by chemicals. This new knowledge would lead to much more informed environmental regulations and dramatically reduce the need for animal testing because the new tests would be based on human cells and cell components. Substantial scientific efforts and resources will be required to leverage these new technologies to realize the vision, but the result will be a more efficient, informative and less costly system for assessing the hazards posed by industrial chemicals and pesticides.

Despite the many benefits of energy, most of which are reflected in energy market prices, the production, distribution, and use of energy causes negative effects. Many of these negative effects are not reflected in energy market prices. When market failures like this occur, there may be a case for government interventions in the form of regulations, taxes, fees, tradable permits, or other instruments that will motivate recognition of these external or hidden costs. The Hidden Costs of Energy defines and evaluates key external costs and benefits that are associated with the production, distribution, and use of energy, but are not reflected in market prices. The damage estimates presented are substantial and reflect damages from air pollution associated with electricity generation, motor vehicle transportation, and heat generation. The book also considers other effects not quantified in dollar amounts, such as damages from climate change, effects of some air pollutants such as mercury, and risks to national security. While not a comprehensive guide to policy, this analysis indicates that major initiatives to further reduce other emissions, improve energy efficiency, or shift to a cleaner electricity generating mix could substantially reduce the damages of external effects. A first step in minimizing the adverse consequences of new energy technologies is to better understand these external effects and damages. The Hidden Costs of Energy will therefore be a vital informational tool for government policy makers, scientists, and economists in even the earliest stages of research and development on energy technologies.

Toxicology – the study of the adverse effects of chemicals on living organisms is the cornerstone to all aspects of chemical safety and knowledge of the subject is needed in a wide spectrum of fields from the chemical industry to medicine, emergency services, forensics, and regulatory science. Toxicology involves the study of symptoms, mechanisms, treatments and detection of poisoning ... especially the poisoning of people. The many problems arising from a poor understanding of toxicology and its applications in hazard communication and chemical safety motivated the author's training courses and webinars, leading to this valuable book. Providing a practical and accessible guide, A Practical Guide to Toxicology and Human Health Risk Assessment enables readers to quickly build up knowledge and understanding of toxicology and its use in hazard identification, which is a fundamental part of chemical risk assessment. The book also covers current toxicological testing strategies and the use of physicochemical test data in hazard identification and exposure assessment. Examples are provided throughout the book to highlight important issues along with a summary of the key points that have been covered in each of the respective chapters. The book concludes with a listing of online resources on toxicology and risk assessment.

Between 1973 and 2016, the ways to manipulate DNA to endow new characteristics in an organism (that is, biotechnology) have advanced, enabling the development of products that were not previously possible. What will the likely future products of biotechnology be over the next 5â€"10 years? What scientific capabilities, tools, and/or expertise may be needed by the regulatory agencies to ensure they make efficient and sound evaluations of the likely future products of biotechnology? Preparing for Future Products of Biotechnology analyzes the future landscape of biotechnology products and seeks to inform forthcoming policy making. This report identifies potential new risks and frameworks for risk assessment and areas in which the risks or lack of risks relating to the products of biotechnology are well understood.