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Related Concept Videos

Effects of Chemicals: Overview01:27

Effects of Chemicals: Overview

Drugs, encompassing various chemical compounds from natural sources, lab synthesis, or genetic engineering, elicit different biological responses in living organisms. Some of these responses are desirable or therapeutic, while others are undesirable. The primary goal of administering a drug is to achieve a therapeutic effect, that is, to address a specific disease or health condition. Any concurrent effects outside of this therapeutic outcome are considered undesirable. These undesirable...
Toxic Reactions: Overview01:26

Toxic Reactions: Overview

When toxic substances penetrate the human body, they disseminate to various tissues, undergoing metabolic changes. This process yields reactive metabolites that may covalently bind with specific target molecules, resulting in toxicity.
Toxicity falls into two primary categories: local and systemic.
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In contrast, systemic toxicity requires the toxic agent's absorption and distribution,...
Types of Toxins01:36

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Humans continually engage with an environment rich in potentially harmful chemicals. These are introduced to our bodies through inhalation, ingestion, or skin contact. These chemicals exist in various forms, such as air and environmental pollutants, agricultural chemicals, organic solvents, and heavy metals.
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iChip

The cultivation of environmental microorganisms has long been hindered by the inability to replicate complex native conditions in vitro. The isolation chip (iChip) addresses this limitation by facilitating the growth of previously uncultivable microorganisms through in situ incubation. Designed for high-throughput microbial cultivation, the iChip comprises hundreds of microchambers, each capable of housing a single microbial cell. These microchambers are loaded with a mixture of molten agar and...
Toxicity Testing in Animals01:23

Toxicity Testing in Animals

Toxicity tests in animals are grounded on two main assumptions: first, the effects observed in laboratory animals can be extrapolated to humans, especially when adjusted for body surface area; second, high-dose exposure in animals is essential to identify potential human hazards from lower doses. This is based on the quantal dose-response concept, which faces the challenge of extrapolating results from relatively few test animals to much larger human populations. For example, a 0.01% incidence...
Inductive Effects on Chemical Shift: Overview01:27

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The protons in unsubstituted alkanes are strongly shielded with chemical shifts below 1.8 ppm. Methine, methylene, and methyl protons appear at approximately 1.7, 1.2 and 0.7 ppm, while the proton signal from methane appears at 0.23 ppm. An electronegative substituent, such as chlorine, withdraws the electron density from the protons, increasing their chemical shift. Progressive substitution of the hydrogens in methane by chlorine shifts the proton signals increasingly downfield, to 3.05 ppm in...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 4, 2026

A Fish-feeding Laboratory Bioassay to Assess the Antipredatory Activity of Secondary Metabolites from the Tissues of Marine Organisms
16:03

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Published on: January 11, 2015

The infochemical effect-a new chapter in ecotoxicology.

Ursula Klaschka1

  • 1University of Applied Sciences Ulm, Prittwitzstr. 10, 89075 Ulm, Germany. klaschka@hs-ulm.de

Environmental Science and Pollution Research International
|June 25, 2008
PubMed
Summary

Anthropogenic substances can disrupt natural chemical communication in ecosystems by interfering with infochemicals, which are vital for organism interactions. This discovery highlights the need for new ecotoxicological tests to assess these subtle but significant environmental impacts.

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Area of Science:

  • Ecotoxicology
  • Chemical Ecology
  • Environmental Science

Background:

  • Organisms rely on chemical cues, or infochemicals, for information about their environment.
  • Knowledge from chemical ecology is being applied to ecotoxicology to understand infochemical roles.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To transfer knowledge on infochemicals from chemical ecology to ecotoxicology.
  • To compare infochemical effects with standard ecotoxicological tests and sublethal effects.
  • To deduce consequences for the legal regulation of environmental chemicals.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review on natural infochemical structures and functions.
  • Analysis of anthropogenic substances (e.g., fragrances) influencing chemical communication.
  • Comparison of ecotoxicological standard tests with infochemical effects.

Main Results:

  • Infochemicals operate at low concentrations (nano- to micromolar) and lack common structural features.
  • Environmental chemical communication is complex, dynamic, and crucial for survival (e.g., mating, food uptake).
  • Anthropogenic substances can interfere with infochemicals, potentially increasing population vulnerability.

Conclusions:

  • Current understanding of ecosystem interactions is simplified; anthropogenic impacts on chemical communication are significant.
  • The 'infochemical effect' represents a new area in ecotoxicology, comparable to endocrine disruption.
  • Further research and new testing strategies are needed to evaluate infochemical effects and potentially adjust environmental regulations.