Special Topics Discovery of a novel neonicotinoid insecticide effect 30 Jan 2021December 29, 2021 Featured image was taken from Wikimedia commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lepidoptera_Diversity.jpg This article (slightly edited below) was published in Department of Entomology newsletter at Iowa State University: https://www.ent.iastate.edu/department-entomology-alumni-news-2021 Niranjana Krishnan writes: I started…
NAS reports Science and Decisions 2 Nov 2019February 9, 2020 The “Science and Decisions: Advancing Risk Assessment” National Academy Sciences (NAS) report was released in 2009. The report can be read or downloaded here for free: https://www.nap.edu/catalog/12209/science-and-decisions-advancing-risk-assessment. All images used…
Recent News How hormones in lakes harm aquatic life 13 May 2019November 3, 2019 This post was originally published in Envirobites Article: Kidd KA, Paterson MJ, Rennie MD, Podemski CL, Findlay DL, Blanchfield PJ, Liber K. 2014 Direct and indirect responses of a freshwater…
Recent News How climate change can alter the toxicity of chemicals 10 Jan 2019November 3, 2019 This post was originally published in Envirobites Introduction We know climate change can affect our health in a multitude of ways— like by increasing rates of many diseases and temperature-related…
Tox21 Why toxicology needs to change 7 Jan 2019December 29, 2021 Featured image: Chemicals and drugs are often tested on rats and mice. Photo source: NIH National Cancer Institute Like most people, you may have suffered from a common cold, headache…
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…
Special Topics Precision Pesticides 13 Nov 2018November 3, 2019 This post was originally published in ICM Blog Pesticides are substances that are designed to control pests. Every year, nearly six billion pounds of pesticides are applied worldwide. In agricultural…
Special Topics Mapping the sensitivity of multiple species 3 Aug 2018March 13, 2020 Coffee, chocolates and alcohol..how I cherish them. But a dog probably doesn't feel the same -- all these three items are poisonous to them! And this difference is the basis…
Special Topics Biological scaling 15 Apr 2018December 29, 2021 Featured image: The brain and heart grow at different rates relative to the human body. [Image source: Shingleton, A. (2010) Allometry: The Study of Biological Scaling. Nature Education Knowledge 3(10):2. (Adapted from Moore 1983; Data from…
Special Topics Genetic resistance 24 Mar 2018December 29, 2021 Featured image: A monarch butterfly caterpillar eating milkweed plant. Milkweeds contain a toxin that only a few species, like monarchs, can consume safely. (Photo taken by me at Iowa State…
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…
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