International conference on environmental arsenic: an overview (original) (raw)
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Environmental Contamination of Arsenic and its Toxicological Impact on Humans
Environmental Chemistry, 2005
Environmental Context. Tens of millions of people in developing countries are being exposed to excessive levels of arsenic in their drinking water, and this contamination is widely regarded as the largest current calamity of chemical poisoning in the world. However, arsenic can exist in many chemical forms, and these vary widely in solubility, toxicity, and in bioavailability. Therefore, it is critical to be able to measure arsenic speciation accurately and reliably in order to understand its toxicity and design effective measures of remedial action. . Inorganic arsenic compounds are known carcinogens. The human epidemiologic evidence of arsenic-induced skin, lung, and bladder cancers is strong. However, the evidence of arsenic carcinogenicity in animals is very limited. Lack of a suitable animal model until recent years has inhibited studies of the mechanism of arsenic carcinogenesis. The toxicity and bioavailability of arsenic depend on its solubility and chemical forms. Therefore...
Arsenic in the environment: a global perspective
Heavy Metals in the …, 2002
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Arsenic toxicity is an important worldwide health problem of humans and animals due to environmental and occupational exposure through arsenic polluted water, air, soil and food items. It has a multifaceted health impact on animals, human beings, and the environment. Therefore, various experimental and clinical studies were undertaken and had been undergoing to understand its pathogenesis, identify the key biomarkers, medical and economic impact on the affected populations, timely detection and amelioration. However, despite these long-investigated studies, no conclusive information is available for prevention and control of arsenic toxicity, mainly due to complex epidemiology, scattered approach, and repetitive work. Hence, there is a need for literature that exclusively brings information on epidemiology, pathogenesis, and ameliorative measures of arsenic toxicity, which can help researchers and policymakers for effective future planning research and community control programs. In...
Arsenic in the environment: effects on human health and possible prevention
Journal of environmental biology / Academy of Environmental Biology, India, 2007
Arsenic is a major environmental pollutant and exposure occurs through environmental, occupational and medicinal sources. The contaminated drinking water is the main source of exposure and affected countries are India (West Bengal), Bangladesh, China, Taiwan, Thailand, Chile, Argentina and Romania. Concentrations of arsenic in affected areas are several times higher than the maximum contamination level (MCL) (10 microg/l). Arsenic exposure to human results in degenerative, inflammatory and neoplastic changes of skin, respiratory system, blood, lymphatic system, nervous system and reproductive system. There is no particular remedial action for chronic arsenic poisoning. Low socioeconomic status and malnutrition may increase the risk of chronic toxicity. Early intervention and prevention can give the relief to the affected population.
2017 Environ Chem Lett Bibha-Vikas Arsenic review.pdf
Arsenic (As) is found in waters such as seawater, warm springs, groundwater, rivers, and lakes. In aquatic environments, As occurs as a mixture of arsenate and arsenite, with arsenate usually predominating. The unrestricted application of As pesticides, industrial activities, and mining operations has led to the global occurrence of soluble As above permissible levels of 0.010 mg/L. Continuous exposure of freshwater organisms including fish to low concentrations of As results in bioaccumulation, notably in liver and kidney. As a consequence As induces hyperglycemia, depletion of enzymatic activities, various acute and chronic toxicity, and immune system dysfunction. Here we review arsenic chemistry, the occurrence of arsenic in aquatic system, the transformation and metabolism of arsenic; arsenic bioaccumulation and bioconcentration; behavioral changes; and acute and other effects such as biochemical, immunotoxic, and cytogenotoxic effects on fish.
European Journal of Soil Science, 2007
The increasing concern about arsenic in the environment and its detrimental effects on human health has resulted in a prolific increase in research on the topic in recent years. The large number of books published recently on environmental arsenic reflects this wide interest. This also means that this new book is entering an already crowded field and hence a degree of overlap with previous publications is inevitable. Provided with such a title, you could be forgiven for taking the book as a practical manual on remediation of arsenic in the environment. It is actually much more, ranging in scope from practical to theoretical and from case study to review. It consists of 38 chapters written by a large number of authors from numerous countries and continents. It is divided into 10 sections. These cover the regional occurrence of arsenic-rich groundwaters including some overviews for whole countries, as well as analytical tools, arsenic biogeochemical processes in groundwater and soil, arsenic in food, effects on human health and remediation of arsenicaffected waters and soils. The book includes several helpful and timely review chapters. One considers solid-phase speciation of arsenic, including recent findings from synchrotron-based XAFS spectroscopy. Others deal with the uptake of arsenic in plants, phytotoxicity, exposure from food and the pathology and effects of arsenic on health. The coverage in several chapters of recent developments in remediation techniques, including photo-oxidation of aqueous arsenic and electrokinetic remediation of soils and sediments, is also thorough and well-written. Several chapters discuss the complex interacting processes that control the behaviour of arsenic in water, soil and aquifers. These reiterate the importance of redox speciation, sorption and microbial interactions. The book also discusses recent research. It notes the potential significance of food as a source of arsenic in the human body, though it stresses the dominance of exposure from drinking water in most countries where arsenic is recognized as a cause of ill health. Despite the broad scope of the book, it has the look of a conference proceedings rather than a comprehensive textbook on environmental arsenic. This means repetition in some areas and lack of coverage in others. As you might expect, the research Book reviews 519
Workshop overview: Arsenic research and risk assessment
Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology, 2007
The chronic exposure of humans through consumption of high levels of inorganic arsenic (iAs)-contaminated drinking water is associated with skin lesions, peripheral vascular disease, hypertension, and cancers. Additionally, humans are exposed to organic arsenicals when used as pesticides and herbicides (e.g., monomethylarsonic acid, dimethylarsinic acid (DMAV) also known as cacodylic acid). Extensive research has been conducted to characterize the adverse health effects that result from exposure to iAs and its metabolites to describe the biological pathway(s) that lead to adverse health effects. To further this effort, on May 31, 2006, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) sponsored a meeting entitled “Workshop on Arsenic Research and Risk Assessment”. The invited participants from government agencies, academia, independent research organizations and consultants were asked to present their current research. The overall focus of these research efforts has been to determine the potential human health risks due to environmental exposures to arsenicals. Pursuant in these efforts is the elucidation of a mode of action for arsenicals. This paper provides a brief overview of the workshop goals, regulatory context for arsenical research, mode of action (MOA) analysis in human health risk assessment, and the application of MOA analysis for iAs and DMAV. Subsequent papers within this issue will present the research discussed at the workshop, ensuing discussions, and conclusions of the workshop.
Arsenic Exposures, Poisoning, and Threat to Human Health
Environmental Exposures and Human Health Challenges, 2019
Arsenic (As) is a naturally occurring metalloid which induces high toxicity to both human and animal health. Although As has some applications in industrial, medicinal and agricultural fields, the increasing concentrations of As in drinking water sources had made it a potential threat to living organisms. Inorganic As is naturally present in groundwater and is adsorbed by plants and crops through the irrigation system. This leads to its accumulation in crops and translocation to humans and animals through food. Increased levels of As can cause various health disorders through acute and chronic exposures such as gastrointestinal, hepatic, respiratory, cardiovascular, integumentary, renal, neurological, and reproductive disorders including stillbirth and infant mortality. Arsenic is also capable of inducing epigenetic changes, thereby causing gene mutations. This chapter focuses on the possible sources of As, leading to environmental contamination and followed by its hazardous effects...
As series editors we are actually planning the preparation of new books in this series, and would like to ask you whether you or any of your colleagues would be interested to contribute a volume in the area of your expertise. The volume may be an authored or edited book and it may be a collection of selected and peer-reviewed papers from congresses and other scientific events as well.
Arsenic round the world: a review
Talanta, 2002
This review deals with environmental origin, occurrence, episodes, and impact on human health of arsenic. Arsenic, a metalloid occurs naturally, being the 20th most abundant element in the earth's crust, and is a component of more than 245 minerals. These are mostly ores containing sulfide, along with copper, nickel, lead, cobalt, or other metals. Arsenic and its compounds are mobile in the environment. Weathering of rocks converts arsenic sulfides to arsenic trioxide, which enters the arsenic cycle as dust or by dissolution in rain, rivers, or groundwater. So, groundwater contamination by arsenic is a serious threat to mankind all over the world. It can also enter food chain causing wide spread distribution throughout the plant and animal kingdoms. However, fish, fruits, and vegetables primarily contain organic arsenic, less than 10% of the arsenic in these foods exists in the inorganic form, although the arsenic content of many foods (i.e. milk and dairy products, beef and pork, poultry, and cereals) is mainly inorganic, typically 65-75%. A few recent studies report 85-95% inorganic arsenic in rice and vegetables, which suggest more studies for standardisation. Humans are exposed to this toxic arsenic primarily from air, food, and water. Thousands and thousands of people are suffering from the toxic effects of arsenicals in many countries all over the world due to natural groundwater contamination as well as industrial effluent and drainage problems. Arsenic, being a normal component of human body is transported by the blood to different organs in the body, mainly in the form of MMA after ingestion. It causes a variety of adverse health effects to humans after acute and chronic exposures such as dermal changes (pigmentation, hyperkeratoses, and ulceration), respiratory, pulmonary, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, hematological, hepatic, renal, neurological, developmental, reproductive, immunologic, genotoxic, mutagenetic, and carcinogenic effects. Key research studies are needed for improving arsenic risk assessment at low exposure levels urgently among all the arsenic research groups.