Toxicology of the Human Environment

The human environment is filled with potentially toxic chemical substances. This book discusses methods of detecting free radicals namely spin-trapping with ESR. Covers toxic action of airborne particles and free-radicals in the diet.
The environment in which human beings live is complex and we may encounter many different potentially toxic chemical substances during the course of our lives. These xenobiotic agents many invade the living system in the form of environmental pollutants, in the diet, as pharamaceutically administered compounds or even as chemical weapons and it is becoming widely recognized that free radicals are often involved in this toxicity. This book begins with the principle methods for the detection of free radicals - namely spin-trapping combined with ESR spectroscopy. The specific application of spin-trapping to real biological systems is discussed, including how to avoid artefacts of the biological media, and maximize sensitivity in detection. There follows a section on nitroxides, which are relatively stable free radicals and which can be used as probes of cellular metabolism and to measure the oxygen concentration in cells. The potential toxic effects of nitroxides in skin, when used clinically, is also covered. The toxic action of specific agents is discussed in the next section. These include: airborne particles such as asbestos, coal dust, cigarette smoke, diesel fumes and dusts foun