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From: Tebay, Wendy on Thu, Apr 17, 1997 11:56 AM Subject: Toxicology testing To: Jonathon and Lianne; PD Listserv Postings Cc: Annet G. Kirschner; E. Sterling Tebay; Fred Zeiss; Halling/SST; Jason Taylor; Kirsten Halling; Margaret Tuchman; Pat Schark; Pesticide Action Network I saw something interesting on CNN this morning, which may have some direct/indirect interest to those involved with PD. The news segment was about some research techniques being developed/studied at the University of Windsor in Ontario. There were two men who initiated this study and who were interviewed by CNN. I think one was a toxicologist, and one was an environmental health researcher. (One of the guy's names was Kroshow Adeli, altho' I don't recall which one of the two he was). They were trying to develop methods of using human liver cells, rather than animal tests, to determine the potential toxicity of various chemicals. Typically the EPA now requires that all new chemicals undergo toxicity testing on animals in order to determine their potential health effects on humans. Supposedly, if this method can be shown to be a viable alternative to current testing methods, the major benefit would be that it would be faster and cheaper, not to mention the fact that animal testing is not always a reliable indicator of a substances effect on humans due to different physiologies. I thought that this was interesting to those involved with PD for a couple reasons. As is known, pesticides, heavy metals, and other substances are thought to play a role in triggering the disease for some people. Also, current thinking is that the genetic factor for PD may be related to an inability of the livers of those prone to getting PD to produce the required enzymes which would allow the body to process these toxins efficiently and thus remove them. Perhaps as these techniques are developed, it will lead to a better understanding of the effects of these chemicals on HUMAN bodies and livers, and also possibly therefore to a better understanding of the role they play in PD, and at the same time, reduce the suffering of other creatures in order to save us from those very things which we have ourselves created. Wendy Tebay