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Background: Exposure to inorganic and organic arsenic compounds is a major public health problem that affects hundreds of millions of people worldwide. Exposure to arsenic is associated with cancer and noncancer effects in nearly every organ in the body, and evidence is mounting for health effects at lower levels of arsenic exposure than previously thought. Building from a tremendous knowledge base with > 1,000 scientific papers published annually with “arsenic” in the title, the question becomes, what questions would best drive future research directions? Objectives: The objective is to discuss emerging issues in arsenic research and identify data gaps across disciplines. Methods: The National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Superfund Research Program convened a workshop to identify emerging issues and research needs to address the multi-faceted challenges related to arsenic and environmental health. This review summarizes information captured during the workshop. Discussion: More information about aggregate exposure to arsenic is needed, including the amount and forms of arsenic found in foods. New strategies for mitigating arsenic exposures and related health effects range from engineered filtering systems to phytogenetics and nutritional interventions. Furthermore, integration of omics data with mechanistic and epidemiological data is a key step toward the goal of linking biomarkers of exposure and susceptibility to disease mechanisms and outcomes. Conclusions: Promising research strategies and technologies for arsenic exposure and adverse health effect mitigation are being pursued, and future research is moving toward deeper collaborations and integration of information across disciplines to address data gaps. Citation: Carlin DJ, Naujokas MF, Bradham KD, Cowden J, Heacock M, Henry HF, Lee JS, Thomas DJ, Thompson C, Tokar EJ, Waalkes MP, Birnbaum LS, Suk WA. 2016. Arsenic and environmental health: state of the science and future research opportunities. Environ Health Perspect 124:890–899; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1510209

As the demand for electronics steadily increases throughout the world, the amount of electronic waste (e-waste) accumulates at a rapid pace. Countries such as India, Ghana, China, and Thailand are ...

Background: The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Superfund Basic Research and Training Program (SRP) funds a wide range of transdisciplinary research projects spanning the biomedical and environmental sciences and engineering, supporting and promoting the application of that research to solving real-world problems. Objectives: We used a case study approach to identify the economic and societal benefits of SRP-funded research, focusing on the use of potentially hazardous substance remediation and site monitoring tools. We also identified successes and challenges involved in translating SRP grantees’ research findings and advances into application. Discussion: We identified remediation and detection research projects supported by the SRP with the most potential for economic and societal benefits and selected 36 for analysis. To examine the benefits of these applied technologies, we interviewed 28 SRP-supported researchers and 41 partners. Five case studies emerged with the most complete information on cost savings—total savings estimated at >$100 million. Our analysis identified added societal benefits such as creation of small businesses, land and water reuse, sustainable technologies, exposure reduction, and university–industry partnerships. Conclusions: Research funded by the SRP has yielded significant cost savings while providing additional societal benefits. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP3534

Background Chronic diseases are increasing among children in Latin America. Objective and Methods To examine environmental risk factors for chronic disease in Latin American children and to develop a strategic initiative for control of these exposures, the World Health Organization (WHO) including the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the Collegium Ramazzini, and Latin American scientists reviewed regional and relevant global data. Results Industrial development and urbanization are proceeding rapidly in Latin America, and environmental pollution has become widespread. Environmental threats to children’s health include traditional hazards such as indoor air pollution and drinking-water contamination; the newer hazards of urban air pollution; toxic chemicals such as lead, asbestos, mercury, arsenic, and pesticides; hazardous and electronic waste; and climate change. The mix of traditional and modern hazards varies greatly across and within countries reflecting industrialization, urbanization, and socioeconomic forces. Conclusions To control environmental threats to children’s health in Latin America, WHO, including PAHO, will focus on the most highly prevalent and serious hazards—indoor and outdoor air pollution, water pollution, and toxic chemicals. Strategies for controlling these hazards include developing tracking data on regional trends in children’s environmental health (CEH), building a network of Collaborating Centres, promoting biomedical research in CEH, building regional capacity, supporting development of evidence-based prevention policies, studying the economic costs of chronic diseases in children, and developing platforms for dialogue with relevant stakeholders. Citation Laborde A, Tomasina F, Bianchi F, Bruné MN, Buka I, Comba P, Corra L, Cori L, Duffert CM, Harari R, Iavarone I, McDiarmid MA, Gray KA, Sly PD, Soares A, Suk WA, Landrigan PJ. 2015. Children’s health in Latin America: the influence of environmental exposures. Environ Health Perspect 123:201–209; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1408292

Background: The paradigm of human risk assessment includes many variables that must be viewed collectively in order to improve human health and prevent chronic disease. The pathology of chronic diseases is complex, however, and may be influenced by exposure to environmental pollu-tants, a sedentary lifestyle, and poor dietary habits. Much of the emerging evidence suggests that nutrition can modulate the toxicity of environmental pollutants, which may alter human risks associated with toxicant exposures. Objectives: In this commentary, we discuss the basis for recommending that nutrition be considered a critical variable in disease outcomes associated with exposure to environmental pollutants, thus establishing the importance of incorporating nutrition within the context of cumulative risk assessment. Discussion: A convincing body of research indicates that nutrition is a modulator of vulnerability to environmental insults; thus, it is timely to consider nutrition as a vital component of human risk assessment. Nutrition may serve as either an agonist or an antagonist (e.g., high-fat foods or foods rich in antioxidants, respectively) of the health impacts associated with exposure to environmental pollutants. Dietary practices and food choices may help explain the large variability observed in human risk assessment. Conclusion: We recommend that nutrition and dietary practices be incorporated into future environmental research and the development of risk assessment paradigms. Healthful nutrition interventions might be a powerful approach to reduce disease risks associated with many environmental toxic insults and should be considered a variable within the context of cumulative risk assessment and, where appropriate, a potential tool for subsequent risk reduction.

The 2006–2011 National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences’ (NIEHS) Strategic Plan New Frontiers in Environmental Sciences and Human Health (NIEHS 2006c) seeks to “challeng[e] and energiz[e] the scientific community to use environmental health sciences to understand the causes of disease and to improve human health” (National Institutes of Health 2006). The strategic plan emphasizes, among other things, integrative research, community-linked research, and prioritizing environmental factors that are most likely contributing to human disease. Consistent with the goals of the strategic plan, new technologies in information systems, data federation, grid systems, and spatial analytics all hold great promise of enabling integrated science teamwork while helping to disentangle genetic, environmental, and other factors that contribute to the complex etiology of common human diseases. Such systems will provide effective means of knowledge and data sharing among scientists, as well as rapid and efficient approaches for sorting through and analyzing large data sets; thus, these systems will support both the scientific and policy processes while accelerating the rate of knowledge production and discovery. The need for such systems to address environmental health concerns was made especially apparent when a series of devastating hurricanes ripped across the Gulf Coast of the United States during 2005 (Schwartz 2005). The effects of Hurricane Katrina were especially severe: The human and environmental health impacts on New Orleans, Louisiana, and other Gulf Coast communities will be felt for many decades to come [Daniels et al. 2006; Nates and Moyer 2005; Pastor et al. 2006; Pezzoli et al. 2006; U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 2006]. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) estimates that Katrina’s destruction (exacerbated by the chronic loss of wetlands, land subsidence, and inadequate infrastructure) disrupted the lives of roughly 650,000 Americans (U.S. Department of Commerce 2006). Over 1,300 people died. The projected economic costs for recovery and reconstruction are unprecedented—likely to exceed $125 billion (Pastor et al. 2006). The density of industrial operations in New Orleans and the Mississippi Delta before the Katrina disaster combined with the release of contaminants into floodwaters and their transport throughout urbanized areas to give rise to many significant environmental health concerns. At the same time, the flooding of thousands of homes and > 100 schools may have created indoor environments that threaten human respiratory and neurologic health through the growth of mold and other bioaeroallergens. All of these potential exposures took place within the context of high psychosocial stress and, for many, low socioeconomic status—conditions that often exacerbate the effects of adverse environmental exposures (Berube and Katz 2005). Health disparities that result from poverty and inadequate infrastructure raise serious concerns about environmental justice (Pellow and Brulle 2005; Thomson et al. 2006). The scale and complexity of the ensuing environmental health issues made tracking environmental hazards and focusing medical and environmental response and recovery resources in areas of greatest need an obvious priority. A unique opportunity arose to deploy a system to meet these needs, while also creating a test bed for technologies that will help advance environmental health sciences research into the modern scientific and computing era.

We need to critically assess the present quality of the marine ecosystem, especially the connection between ecosystem change and threats to human health. In this article we review the current state of indicators to link changes in marine organisms with eventual effects to human health, identify research opportunities in the use of indicators of ocean and human health, and discuss how to establish collaborations between national and international governmental and private sector groups. We present a synthesis of the present state of understanding of the connection between ocean health and human health, a discussion of areas where resources are required, and a discussion of critical research needs and a template for future work in this field. To understand fully the interactions between ocean health and human health, programs should be organized around a "models-based" approach focusing on critical themes and attributes of marine environmental and public health risks. Given the extent and complex nature of ocean and human health issues, a program networking across geographic and disciplinary boundaries is essential. The overall goal of this approach would be the early detection of potential marine-based contaminants, the protection of marine ecosystems, the prevention of associated human illness, and by implication, the development of products to enhance human well-being. The tight connection between research and monitoring is essential to develop such an indicator-based effort.

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Superfund Research Program (SRP) funds a wide range of university-based research to address public health concerns arising from hazar...

989 Environmental Threats to the Health of Children: The Asian Perspective David O. Carpenter,1 Fook Tim Chew,2 Terri Damstra,3 Le Hung Lam,4 Philip J. Landrigan,5 Irma Makalinao,6 Genandrialine L. Peralta,7 and William A. Suk 8 1School of Public Health, University at Albany, Rensselaer, New York, USA; 2Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Republic of Singapore; 3WHO-IPCS/IRRU, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA; 4Hanoi School of Public Health, Hanoi, Vietnam; 5Center for Childrens’ Health and the Environment, Department of Community and Preventive Medicine, Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York, USA; 6National Poison Controls and Information Service, Philippine General Hospital, University of the Philippines College of Medicine, Manila, Republic of the Philippines; 7 Environmental Engineering, National Engineering Center, University of the Philippines, Quezon City, Republic of the Philippines; 8Division of Extramural Research and Training, Office of Program Development, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA

The discovery in the mid-1970s that occupational exposures to pesticides could diminish or destroy the fertility of workers sparked concern about the effects of hazardous substances on male reproductive health. More recently, there is evidence that sperm quantity and quality may have declined worldwide, that the incidence of testicular cancer has progressively increased in many countries, and that other disorders of the male reproductive tract such as hypospadias and cryptorchidism may have also increased. There is growing concern that occupational factors and environmental chemical exposures, including in utero and childhood exposures to compounds with estrogenic activity, may be correlated with these observed changes in male reproductive health and fertility. We review the evidence and methodologies that have contributed to our current understanding of environmental effects on male reproductive health and fertility and discuss the methodologic issues which confront investigators in this area. One of the greatest challenges confronting researchers in this area is assessing and comparing results from existing studies. We elaborate recommendations for future research. Researchers in the field of male reproductive health should continue working to prioritize hazardous substances; elucidate the magnitude of male reproductive health effects, particularly in the areas of testicular cancer, hypospadias, and cryptorchidism; develop biomarkers of exposure to reproductive toxins and of reproductive health effects for research and clinical use; foster collaborative interdisciplinary research; and recognize the importance of standardized laboratory methods and sample archiving.

Background Nutrition and lifestyle are well-defined modulators of chronic diseases. Poor dietary habits (such as high intake of processed foods rich in fat and low intake of fruits and vegetables), as well as a sedentary lifestyle clearly contribute to today’s compromised quality of life in the United States. It is becoming increasingly clear that nutrition can modulate the toxicity of environmental pollutants. Objectives Our goal in this commentary is to discuss the recommendation that nutrition should be considered a necessary variable in the study of human disease associated with exposure to environmental pollutants. Discussion Certain diets can contribute to compromised health by being a source of exposure to environmental toxic pollutants. Many of these pollutants are fat soluble, and thus fatty foods often contain higher levels of persistent organics than does vegetable matter. Nutrition can dictate the lipid milieu, oxidative stress, and antioxidant status within cells. The modulation of these parameters by an individual’s nutritional status may have profound affects on biological processes, and in turn influence the effects of environmental pollutants to cause disease or dysfunction. For example, potential adverse health effects associated with exposure to polychlorinated biphenyls may increase as a result of ingestion of certain dietary fats, whereas ingestion of fruits and vegetables, rich in antioxidant and anti-inflammatory nutrients or bioactive compounds, may provide protection. Conclusions We recommend that future directions in environmental health research explore this nutritional paradigm that incorporates a consideration of the relationships between nutrition and lifestyle, exposure to environmental toxicants, and disease. Nutritional interventions may provide the most sensible means to develop primary prevention strategies of diseases associated with many environmental toxic insults.

Environmental health and environmental quality issues along the U.S.-Mexico border have been of concern for several years. The enactment of the North American Free Trade Agreement and the presence ...

The countries of Eastern and Central Europe have emerged from a political system which for decades has ignored protection of human health from hazardous wastes. While the economies of the countries...

Participants at the Napa Conference on Genetic and Molecular Ecotoxicology assessed the status of this field in light of heightened concerns about the genetic effects of exposure to hazardous substances and recent advancements in our capabilities to measure those effects. We present here a synthesis of the ideas discussed throughout the conference, including definitions of important concepts in the field and critical research needs and opportunities. While there were many opinions expressed on these topics, there was general agreement that there are substantive new opportunities to improve the impact of genetic and molecular ecotoxicology on prediction of sublethal effects of exposure to hazardous substances. Future studies should emphasize integration of genetic ecotoxicology, ecological genetics, and molecular biology and should be directed toward improving our understanding of the ecological implications of genotoxic responses. Ecological implications may be assessed at either the population or ecosystem level; however, a population-level focus may be most pragmatic. Recent technical advancements in measuring genetic and molecular responses to toxicant exposure will spur rapid progress. These new techniques have considerable promise for increasing our understanding of both mechanisms of toxicity on genes or gene products and the relevance of detrimental effects to individual fitness. — Environ Health Perspect 102(Suppl 12):3–8 (1994)

Assessing human exposure to chemicals from Superfund sites requires knowledge of basic physical, chemical, and biological processes occurring in the environment and specific information about the local environment and population in the vicinity of sites of interest. Although progress is being made in both areas, there is still a tremendous amount to be done. Participants at this meeting have identified several of the areas in need of greater understanding, and they are listed below. Movement of dissolved and volatile organics, especially NAPLs, in the subsurface environment. This includes study of the partitioning of compounds between NAPLs, air, water, and soil. Partitioning of volatilized chemicals between gaseous and aerosol components of the atmosphere. This includes understanding how these components influence both wet and dry deposition. Long-term movement from sediments into biota and how these affect chronic toxicity to sediment biota. Broad validation of PBPK models describing partitioning of compounds from sediment and water into fish. Reactions of chemicals sorbed to atmospheric particles. This includes application of laboratory models to real and varied atmospheric conditions. Interactions between biotic and abiotic transformations in soil and sediment. Applicability of physiological pharmacokinetic models developed in laboratory studies of experimental animals and clinical investigations of humans to environmental chemicals, concentrations, and routes of exposure in humans. Use of human and wildlife behavioral and biomonitoring information to estimate exposure. This includes better understanding of human variability and the applicability of information gathered from particular wildlife species. To successfully address these gaps in our knowledge, much more analytical data must be collected.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The study of chemical mixtures is an important area of research because of its potential impact on how risk is assessed in popuiations exposed to multiple environmental agents. Clearly, individuals are exposed to myriad chemical agents during their lifetime. Low-dose chronic exposure to environmental agents and the additional lifestyle factors that may affect health are extremely difficult to assess by conventional approaches. Classic scientific approaches, while serving the research community well in assessing the impact of single chemicals on the functioning of biological systems, may be inadequate to address aggregate and cumulative exposures of multiple chemicals in lrving systems. Over the past decades, there have been extraordinary scientific and computational technology advances. Through the incorporation of technological advances in microarrays, laser capture microdissection, imaging, and high through-put technologies, we can now study in greater detail the properties of mixtures and begin to define those characteristics that are sufficiendy similar to allow extrapolation of data frorn one mixture to another. Bioinformatics and other computational approaches would also be integrated into this research scheme, not only for data analysis but also to develop predictive models that could be used for risk assessment. Integrated approaches that address these issues will be necessary to advance our understanding of the health relevance of exposure to mixtures.

Issues of hazardous waste management are major concerns in the countries of eastern and central Europe. A National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences-supported conference was held in Prague, Czech Republic, as a part of a continuing effort to provide information and promote discussion among the countries of eastern and central Europe on issues related to hazardous wastes. The focus was on incineration as a means of disposal of hazardous wastes, with discussions on both engineering methods for safe incineration, and possible human health effects from incineration by-products. Representatives from government agencies, academic institutions, and local industries from 14 countries in the region participated along with a few U.S. and western European experts in this field. A series of 12 country reports documented national issues relating to the environment, with a focus on use of incineration for hazardous waste disposal. A particularly valuable contribution was made by junior scientists from the region, who described results of environmental issues in their countries.

Formulating health policy without a thorough understanding of the implications of the environment’s influence on health can be compared to building an airplane without an understanding of basic physics: though it may appear to have all the appropriate parts in the appropriate places, without the underlying engineering required for flight, it will never get off the ground. Or worse, it will manage to take off but be unable to sustain itself in flight, with sometimes devastating consequences. Currently, many health policies, including those in the environmental health arena, are formulated and implemented with only a limited foundation in understanding the role of the environment in causing or modulating the disease process. The responsibility can be shared by those in the scientific community who have focused on the science without adequate consideration of its translation, and by public health officials and medical professionals who, perhaps daunted by the technicality of science, have not wholeheartedly sought a complete understanding of the relevant science, or simply haven’t known the right questions to ask. In either case, the result is the same—health decisions don’t always effectively use sound science to guide policy. The need to fill this gap in improving policy through improved research translation should be a priority for all concerned. The problems of modern society only become more complex over time; similarly, the science required to address these problems, particularly in the area of human health and disease, is increasingly complex. A response to this critical need might be found in a bi-directional approach that trains scientists to effectively translate technical research into understandable components useful to regulators, medical professionals, and public health officials, who, in turn, may use their better understanding of science to direct the scientific community toward the most needed and valuable research. The eventual goal of a program in health policy training is to improve the overall utility of scientific discoveries in environmental health to local, state, national, and international health policies. The scientific community would benefit from a training program to provide those from an applied, basic, or clinical research background with the knowledge and skills to participate effectively in the larger context of environmental health policy. Examples of such knowledge and skills would include the abilities to estimate health risks from environmental exposures; use environmental factors to define and modify clinical management of a disease; use emerging science to identify and quantify uncertainty in avenues for mitigating health risks in both the clinical arena and the population health arena; use risk assessment to set priorities for managing environmental health hazards; evaluate the impact of environmental exposures on disease etiology; enhance capacity to assess new biomedical technologies for their application to environmental health problems; and use knowledge of the internal structure and function of government, academic, corporate, and advocacy institutions to provide scientific guidance in effecting health policy. The scientific community would benefit from a training program to provide those from an applied, basic, or clinical research background with the knowledge and skills to participate effectively in the larger context of environmental health policy. Health policy experts at institutions such as research-intensive universities, hospitals, managed health care systems, health advocacy groups, corporate medical departments, health and environmental consulting firms, state and local health departments, legislative committees, federal regulatory agencies, and international agencies should consider investing time and effort to better understand the scientific community, and to invent new mechanisms to interface science with policy decisions. They should also be prepared to apprise the scientific community of gaps in knowledge that affect the development and delivery of effective policies to help guide the allocation of research resources. Creation of a training program that encourages scientists to actively participate in health policy discussions by enabling them to more effectively bring what they know to the table would yield multiple benefits. It would provide scientists with a means of quantifying the applicability of their research and guide their future efforts. It would greatly enhance the scientific foundation of public health policy. Such a program would create a cadre of scientists who fully comprehend how health policy decision making can be better informed using information from research in basic, applied, and clinical sciences, and who can utilize the tools available in both environmental health science and the science of health policy to further decision making with regard to environmentally related diseases and health practices. By focusing knowledge, efforts, and resources on solving environmental health and human disease problems, environmental health policy training would allow public health to soar.