Toxicant-nutrient interaction as a veritable host resistance against chemical toxicity in the rapidly industrializing developing nations

Growing evidence indicates that chemical utilization including toxic waste in the developing countries is on the increase. These nations have limited facilities for sound chemical management involving production, use and disposal of chemicals with minimal adverse effects on human and environmental health. Though concerns are important to all nations, they appear particularly salient to the industrializing countries under pressures to achieve development and eradicate poverty yet with limited capacity for sound chemical management. This increases the risk of chemical toxicity, with consequences such as genotoxicity, cancer and teratogenicity. The growing chemical burden implies the need for an efficient and effective means of xenobiotic metabolism and host resistance. Relevant literature on nutrients and toxicants interaction in various search engines were reviewed. The possible role of host resistance, essentially involving nutritional modulation has been ignored. Nutrient-toxicant response pathways could be affordable strategies against excessive chemical exposure. Zinc, a prime micronutrient is an antioxidant [Cu-Zn superoxide dismutase (SOD)], component of p53, guardian of the genome; active in the repair of DNA damage and apoptosis; protective against carcinogenesis. Zinc also plays an important role in vitamin A metabolism, in turn important in differentiation and central to retinoids involved in gene expression. Zinc is important in all the stages of the cell cycle, derangement of which may be a pathway to carcinogenesis. Use of this and other protective nutrients including folate and selenium, among others, appears a veritable approach to improving host resistance against chemical toxicity and should be considered promising in developing nations

Criminal Liability: Negligence and Environmental Health

Lack of compliance to effluent discharge standards in the waste water treatment industry lead to the discharge of poor quality effluents which cause increased levels of health risks in South Africa. No case law exists in South Africa to serve as precedent to enforce the criminal liability of individuals and water treatment entities. The author utilises the Bloemhof Municipality case study to illustrate the possible application of criminal action concerning the negligence in waste water treatment which; in turn; has been tested and instituted successfully in terms of environmental transgressions against both corporate structures and individuals in the mining industry. South African courts have to give consideration to the prospect of criminal action in the waste water treatment industry to deter sustained inadequate purification of raw water and inadequate treated effluent discharges in our water resources

Dechets toxiques deverses a Abidjan (Cote-d'Ivoire) et consequences sanitaire

La pollution accidentelle par des produits chimiques peut avoir de graves consequences pour les populations humaines. En 2006; le navire Probo Koala decharge plusieurs centaines de tonnes de dechets toxiques dans plusieurs sites de la ville d'Abidjan (Cote d'Ivoire). Dans les jours et semaines qui suivent; des milliers de personnes presen- tent des signes d'intoxication. Les expertises realisees sur les dechets revelent la presence de produits toxiques comme lesmercaptans et l'hydrogene sulfure. Le bilan sanitaire fait etat de huit deces; plusieurs dizaines de personnes hospitalisees et environ 100 000 consultations medicales. Cet episode rappelle qu'a l'instar des deplacements internationaux des personnes; les transfertsmondiaux de dechets industriels peuvent avoir de graves consequences sur le plan sanitaire; en particulier dans les pays du sud

The problem of toxic chemical wastes and their deposition in Developing Countries

This paper examines the nature and origin of toxic wastes that eventually find themselves in the environment - the land; sea; acean and the atmosphere. It discusses the problems of waste accumulation; waste treatment and waste disposal in both the industrialised and the developing countries and highlights the adverse effects on plants; animals and human lives of these toxic chemicals. The socio-economic and other factors; which make developing countries targets for the dumping exercises; are highlighted and strategies for combatting such activities are proposed. In conclusion the paper makes general recommendations on environmental issues; stressing the seriousness of the specific hazardous effects of selected types of toxic chemicals and also of substances which on their own; can decompose to yield toxic principles when subjected to atmosphere or microbial interactions