Introduction-Brief History and Some Definitions

Question 1

Toxikon

Answer 1

a poisonous substance into which arrowheads were dipped

Question 2

toxicology

Answer 2

the study of the harmful interactions between chemicals and biological systems

Question 3

how do we detect toxins?

Answer 3

taste and smell

Question 4

earliest written medical document

Answer 4

Ebers papyrus

Question 5

origins of toxicology are from..

Answer 5

the use of poisons in murder and suicides

Question 6

Paracelsus

Answer 6

• 1500s

- formulated views that remain part of modern toxicology, pharmacology, and therapeutics

Question 7

Paracelsus principals

Answer 7

• experimentation is essential
• distinction between the therapeutic and toxic properties of chemicals
• properties are not always distinguishable
• ascertain a degree of specificity of chemicals and their therapeutic or toxic effects

Question 8

Dose-response relationships

Answer 8

doses can change effects from therapeutic to toxic

Question 9

Mathieu Ofilia

Answer 9

• 1800s
• Used autopsy material and chemical analysis to provide legal proof of poisoning
• father of forensic toxicology

Question 10

rise of chemical industry

Answer 10

• 20th century
• number of chemicals produced by industry exploded
• chemicals used without toxicity testing or environmental impact assessments

Question 11

DDT

Answer 11

• insecticide
• 1940s
• persistent in the environment
• travels long distances in the atmosphere

Question 12

Rachel Carson

Answer 12

• 1900s
• wrote “Silent spring” on dangers of pesticides
• egg-shell thinning in birds from industrially synthesized pesticides

Question 13

Cuyahoga River

Answer 13

-dumping of chemical wastes into the waterways

Question 14

externality

Answer 14

cost of production is externalized by the company to be carried by society

Question 15

Endocrine Disrupting Compounds (EDCs)

Answer 15

mimic or disrupt hormone function

Question 16

Nanoparticles

Answer 16

found in commercial products including medical equipment, textiles, fuel additives, cosmetics, plastics

Question 17

Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs)

Answer 17

drugs we take and smells we put on our bodies

Question 18

Microplastics

Answer 18

found everywhere

Question 19

Mechanistic toxicology

Answer 19

understanding specific chemical, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms by which toxicants have their effects

Question 20

Adverse outcome pathways

Answer 20

trying to connect individual responses to a compound to figure out how they will effect all elements of the environment

Question 21

descriptive toxicology

Answer 21

• testing of chemicals
• information for safety evaluation and regulatory requirements
• acute lethal toxicity, bioassays, animal testing

Question 22

clinical toxicology

Answer 22

diseases caused by or uniquely associated with toxicants

Question 23

forensic toxicology

Answer 23

medical and legal aspects of toxicants on humans and animals

Question 24

reproductive toxicology

Answer 24

occurrence of adverse effects of toxicant exposure on the male or female reproductive system

Question 25

developmental toxicology

Answer 25

effects of toxicants arising from exposure:

• before conception
• during prenatal development
• postnatal to puberty

Question 26

occupational toxicology

Answer 26

toxicological hazards occurring in workplace, with objective of preventing adverse effects in workers

Question 27

occupational toxicology example

Answer 27

Percival potts

• 1770s
• chimney sweeps had higher incidences of cancer from exposure to soot

Question 28

environment toxicology

Answer 28

detecting compounds and impacts in the natural environment

Question 29

ecotoxicology

Answer 29

impacts on animals and populations in a natural ecosystem

Question 30

regulatory toxicology

Answer 30

• risk decision-making based on data from mechanistic and descriptive toxicology
• set standards for “safe” exposure

Question 31

toxicant

Answer 31

a substance capable of producing a toxic effect when in contact with a living organism at a sufficiently high concentration

Question 32

contaminant

Answer 32

substance that pollutes, spoils or poisons something

Question 33

toxin

Answer 33

a toxicant produced by a living organism

Question 34

poisonous vs venomous animal

Answer 34

• touch

- inject

Question 35

teratogen

Answer 35

substance capable of causing malformation during the development of the fetus

Question 36

mutagens

Answer 36

physical or chemical agents that changes the genetic material of an organism and thus increases the frequency of mutations above the natural background level

Question 37

carcinogen

Answer 37

substance, radionuclide, or radiation that is an agent directly involved in causing cancer

Question 38

hydrophilic

Answer 38

• water loving
• dissolve in water
• polar

Question 39

hydrophobic

Answer 39

• water hating
• do not dissolve in water
• non-polar
• lipophilic=stored in fat tissue

Question 40

xenobiotics

Answer 40

• substances foreign to life

- human made substances

Question 41

arenes

Answer 41

• three pairs of doubly bonded atoms bonded together in a planar hexagon
• smelly
• “aromatic”
• polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons=more than one benzene ring

Question 42

biphenyls

Answer 42

-2 benzene rings attached

Question 43

polychlorinated biphenyls

Answer 43

• chlorines attached to biphenyls

- harm developing fetus and infant, interfere with body’s natural hormones, decrease fertility, increase cancer risk

Question 44

polybrominated biphenyls

Answer 44

bromines attached to biphenyls

Question 45

diphenyl ethers

Answer 45

benzene rings attached by an oxygen

Question 46

Persistent organic pollutants

Answer 46

• stable in the environment
• lipophilic
• may still be in use today

Question 47

legacy pollutants

Answer 47

• persistent in the environment
• use has been banned
• still show up in nature and in wild animals