engleski

Acute and Chronic Effects of Emerging Contaminants

Acute or chronic toxicity profiling represents one of the critical elements for scientifically reliable characterization and prioritization of potentially hazardous contaminants. The very same is true for so-called emerging contaminants, regardless of the definition used in defining various aspects of "emerging" , including substances that belong to new chemical classes, new types of use, new effects, mechanism of action, source, or exposure route. From the (eco)toxicological perspective, however, there are two essential drawbacks which prevent that prevents efficient characterization of risk posed to humans and the environment by the presence of emerging contaminants. First is related to the fact that the potential of analytical chemistry to measure contaminants currently exceeds our understanding of their potential environmental effects. Secondly, for most emerging contaminants there is currently little information regarding their potential toxicological significance in ecosystems, particularly the effects from long-term, low-level environmental exposures. Based on these facts in this chapter a brief overview of acute and chronic toxic effects on to human and wildlife, reported for various classes of emerging contaminants, is presented in this chapter. The most demanding research un-knowns, methodological drawbacks, and priorities will be highlighted, and finally, future strategies needed for efficient (eco)toxicological characterization of emerging contaminants will be suggested.

Acute and chronic toxicity ; (Eco)toxicological characterization ; Emerging contaminants

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