Basics of Toxicology Designing good ecotoxicology studies 17 Nov 2021November 17, 2021 Featured image: A conceptual model to explain how monarch butterflies could be exposed to insecticides used in Midwest agriculture. Figure obtained from Krishnan et al. (2021). As an insect toxicologist,…
Basics of Toxicology Estimating risk to non-humans 28 Dec 2018December 29, 2021 Featured image: Due to their pollination services and declining numbers, bees are often tested for their susceptibility to pesticides. Photo source: Maciej A. Czyzewski [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY-SA 4.0…
Basics of Toxicology Estimating risk to humans 25 Dec 2018December 29, 2021 Featured image: The difference between hazard and risk. Image source: European Food Safety Authority, 2016 We all know sharks can be dangerous. But most of us don't spend our waking…
Basics of Toxicology Testing for toxicity 21 Dec 2018December 29, 2021 Featured image: A lot of toxicity testing takes place in the lab (Yakuzakorat [CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)], from Wikimedia Commons) Before I explain why and how scientists test the toxicity…
Basics of Toxicology How pollutants harm us 3 Dec 2018February 9, 2020 If you read the news regularly, you will know that journalists love talking about how x, y and z chemicals are bad for humans and/or the environment. These articles talk…
Basics of Toxicology Exposure to pollutants 19 Apr 2018February 24, 2022 Featured image: The three ways humans can get exposed to environmental pollutants. Image source: Damalas and Koutroubas et al., 2016 The concept of exposure is well-grained in our psyche. We…
Basics of Toxicology Tracking pollutants indirectly 2 Mar 2018December 29, 2021 Featured image: Sherlock Holmes - It is elementary, my dear scientist. Image source: Employee(s) of Universal Studios [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons Imagine you are Sherlock Holmes. You have a…
Basics of Toxicology How pollutants move through us 3 Feb 2018February 24, 2022 Feature image: Movement of xenobiotics in our body First, let's learn a new term -- xenobiotic. A xenobiotic is a compound that is foreign to an organism, i.e., it does…
Basics of Toxicology How pollutants move through the environment 28 Jan 2018October 29, 2021 Feature image: Structure of DDT. Chemical structures help determine how a chemical would move in the environment Toxicologists love chemical structures because structures tell a lot about a chemical, just…
Basics of Toxicology Major environmental pollutants 21 Jan 2018December 11, 2021 Feature image: Smogs due to air pollutants were more common in the U.S. prior to passage of environmental laws (Photo source: U.S. National Archives and Records Administration) I use the…
Basics of Toxicology What’s environmental toxicology? 2 Jan 2018October 29, 2021 Feature image: Paracelsus is considered the Father of Toxicology {{PD-old}} Environmental toxicology is the study of the harmful effects of substances on humans and other organisms in the environment. To…
Basics of Toxicology What this section (basics of toxicology) hopes to achieve 1 Jan 2018November 17, 2021 Feature image: One of the more picturesque photos taken by me; environmental protection laws have played an important role in preserving nature's beauty As a student researcher in environmental toxicology,…
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