What Are the Health Risks of Eating Red Meat,and How Should We Assess Them?

This paper discusses possible mechanisms that might lead to misinterpretations of collected data and makes new evidence-based medicine (EBM) recommendations to oppose the previously accepted preventive measures, or treatment options. It is focused on the danger of the “red meat” consumption, and the question whether eating pungent food is good or bad for our health and finally whether the “bad luck” concept of getting several cancer types is valid or not. These three topics got and still have significant media attention. Several mechanisms are proposed as possible causes of these apparent conflicts. Some of them have already been recognized but sadly remained less known to medical readers and also to the general population. Also see the video abstract here https://youtu.be/owjoRXrNShA .     

Bisphenol A and Risk Management Ethics

It is widely recognized that endocrine disrupting compounds, such as Bisphenol A, pose challenges for traditional paradigms in toxicology, insofar as these substances appear to have a wider range of low‐dose effects than previously recognized. These compounds also pose challenges for ethics and policymaking. When a chemical does not have significant low‐dose effects, regulators can allow it to be introduced into commerce or the environment, provided that procedures and rules are in place to keep exposures below an acceptable level. This option allows society to maximize the benefits from the use of the chemical while minimizing risks to human health or the environment, and it represents a compromise between competing values. When it is not possible to establish acceptable exposure levels for chemicals that pose significant health or environmental risks, the most reasonable options for risk management may be to enact either partial or complete bans on their use. These options create greater moral conflict than other risk management strategies, leaving policymakers difficult choices between competing values.     

The impact of hybrids between genetically modified crop plants and their related species: general considerations

Factors influencing the fate and impact of hybrids between crop plants and their related species operate from the early zygote, through to plant establishment in different habitats, to their ability to form self-sustaining populations. Many of the classes of genes being introduced by modern methods of genetic modification are similar to those manipulated by conventional plant breeding. In assessing the impact of transgenes in hybrids between crops and related species, therefore, it is important to be informed about the consequences of hybridization between conventionally bred varieties and their relatives. Some transgenes will have novel effects (e.g. production of pharmaceutical substances or certain fatty acids) on plants, and are likely to need specific assessment studies to determine their impact on hybrids. This will be particularly important if there is the possibility of these transgenes becoming established in wild populations. Some recommendations for further research are outlined.     

Geochemical baseline establishment and ecological risk evaluation of heavy metals in greenhouse soils from Dongtai,China

Currently, heavy metal (HM) contamination in greenhouse soils is a significant concern due to the rapid expansion of greenhouse agriculture. However, it is difficult to accurately assess HM pollution in greenhouse soils in China due to the lack of local geochemical baseline concentrations (GBCs) or corresponding background values. In the present study, the GBCs of HMs in Dongtai, a representative greenhouse area of China, were established from subsoils using cumulative frequency distribution (CFD) curves. The pollution levels of HMs and potential ecological risks were investigated using different quantitative indices, such as geo-accumulation index (I_geo), pollution index (PI), pollution load index (PLI) and ecological risk index (RI), based on these regional GBCs. The total concentrations of six metals (Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) in surface soils were determined and shown to be lower than the concentrations reported in other greenhouse regions of China. The GBCs of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn were 0.059–0.092, 39.20–54.50, 12.52–15.57, 20.63–23.26, 13.43–16.62 and 43.02–52.65 mg kg⁻¹, respectively. Based on this baseline criterion, Cd, Pb and Zn accumulated in the surface soils because they were present at concentrations higher than their baseline values. The soils were moderately polluted by Cd according to the I_geo values, and the PI results indicated that moderate Cd contamination was present in this area. The large variation of I_geo value of Cd revealed that Cd in this area was likely influenced by agricultural activities. The PLI showed that most of the study area was moderately polluted. However, an analysis of the RI showed that the investigated HMs had low ecological risks. Correlation analysis and principle component analysis suggested that the Cd, Pb and Zn in the greenhouse soils mainly originated from anthropogenic sources (agricultural activities, atmospheric deposition etc.), while Cr, Cu, and Ni originated from natural sources. The findings of this study illustrated the necessity of GBC establishment at the local scale to facilitate more accurate HM evaluation of greenhouse soils. It is advisable to pay more attention to Cd, which could cause environmental problems in the greenhouse system.     

The fifteenth- and twentieth-century colonization of the Basin of Mexico by the Great-tailed Grackle (Quiscalus mexicanus)

Historical evidence indicates that Great‐tailed Grackles colonized the Basin of Mexico from the Gulf Coast lowlands in the fifteenth century. They were probably assisted by an intentional introduction, but colonization succeeded because of anthropogenic habitat alterations over the previous two centuries. During the Colonial period, grackles withdrew from the Basin, only to recolonize it in recent decades. This withdrawal was also due probably to changes in land use, including drainage of much of the water from the Basin's lakes.