Environmental toxicology, also known as
entox, is a
multidisciplinaryMultidisciplinarity is a non-integrative mixture of disciplines in that each discipline retains its methodologies and assumptions without change or development from other disciplines within the multidisciplinary relationship....
field of science concerned with the study of the harmful effects of various chemical, biological and physical
agentsA biological agent — also called bio-agent or biological threat agent — is a bacterium, virus, prion, or fungus which may cause infection, allergy, toxicity or otherwise create a hazard to human health. They can be used as a biological weapon in bioterrorism or biological warfare...
on individual living organisms. It is not to be confused with
ecotoxicologyEcotoxicology is the study of the effects of toxic chemicals on biological organisms, especially at the population, community, ecosystem level. Ecotoxicology is a multidisciplinary field, which integrates toxicology and ecology....
which is concerned on studying the harmful effects at the
populationPopulation biology is a study of populations of organisms, especially the regulation of population size, life history traits such as clutch size, and extinction...
and
ecosystemAn ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
levels.
Rachel CarsonRachel Louise Carson was an American marine biologist and conservationist whose writings are credited with advancing the global environmental movement....
is considered to have established environmental toxicology as a distinct field within
toxicologyToxicology is a branch of biology, chemistry, and medicine concerned with the study of the adverse effects of chemicals on living organisms...
in 1962, with the publication of her book
Silent SpringSilent Spring is a book written by Rachel Carson and published by Houghton Mifflin on 27 September 1962. The book is widely credited with helping launch the environmental movement....
, which covered the effects of uncontrolled
pesticidePesticides are substances or mixture of substances intended for preventing, destroying, repelling or mitigating any pest.A pesticide may be a chemical unicycle, biological agent , antimicrobial, disinfectant or device used against any pest...
use.
Societies
- American College of Toxicology (ACT)
- Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC)
- Society of Toxicology
The Society of Toxicology is a learned society based in the United States that supports scientific inquiry in the field of toxicology. Its definition of toxicology is...
(SOT)
Journals
- Environmental Health Perspectives
Environmental Health Perspectives is a peer-reviewed open-access medical journal published monthly by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. According to the Journal Citation Reports, the journal has a 2009 impact factor of 6.191....
- Environmental Toxicology
- Environmental Toxicology & Pharmacology
- Journal of Environmental Science and Health
- Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health
- Toxicological & Environmental Chemistry
See also
- Ecotoxicology
Ecotoxicology is the study of the effects of toxic chemicals on biological organisms, especially at the population, community, ecosystem level. Ecotoxicology is a multidisciplinary field, which integrates toxicology and ecology....
- Environmental chemistry
Environmental chemistry is the scientific study of the chemical and biochemical phenomena that occur in natural places. It should not be confused with green chemistry, which seeks to reduce potential pollution at its source...
- Environmental science
Environmental science is an interdisciplinary academic field that integrates physical and biological sciences, to the study of the environment, and the solution of environmental problems...
- Toxicology
Toxicology is a branch of biology, chemistry, and medicine concerned with the study of the adverse effects of chemicals on living organisms...
External links