The process of taking in. For a
person or an animal, absorption is the process of a substance getting into the
body through the eyes, skin, stomach, intestines, or lungs.
(Source:
ATSDR
Glossary of Terms
Adjustment in natural or human systems to a new or changing environment.
Various types of adaptation can be distinguished, including anticipatory and
reactive adaptation, private and public adaptation, and autonomous and planned
adaptation.
(Source:
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
Bacteria are a major group of micro-organisms that live in soil, water, plants, organic matter, or the bodies of animals or people. They are microscopic and mostly unicellular, with a relatively simple cell structure.
Some bacteria cause diseases such as tetanus, typhoid fever, pneumonia, syphilis, cholera, and tuberculosis.
Bacteria play a role in the decomposition of organic matter and other chemical processes. (Source: GreenFacts)
Bioaccumulation is used to describe the increase in concentration of a substance in an organism over time.
Bioaccumulative substances tend to be fat soluble and not to be broken down by the organism. (Source: GreenFacts )
A substance, factor or situation that causes or induces cancer. (Source: GreenFacts )
The process of growing and maintaining cells under laboratory conditions, commonly on a glass surface immersed in nutrient fluid. (Source: GreenFacts)
Occurring over a long period of time, either continuously or intermittently;
used to describe ongoing exposures and
effects that develop only after a long exposure.
(Source:
US EPA
Thesaurus
A biological endpoint is a direct marker of disease progression - e.g. disease symptoms or death - used to describe a health effect (or a probability of that health effect) resulting from exposure to a chemical. (Source: GreenFacts)
"ECHA is the driving force among regulatory authorities in implementing the
EU's groundbreaking chemicals legislation for the benefit of human health and
the environment as well as for innovation and competitiveness. ECHA helps
companies to comply with the legislation, advances the safe use of chemicals,
provides information on chemicals and addresses chemicals of concern."
(Source:
https://echa.europa.eu/home
The functional and physical unit of heredity passed from parent to offspring.
Genes are pieces of DNA, and most genes contain the information for making a
specific protein.
(Source:
NHGRI
Talking Glossary of Genetic
Terms
The study of genes and their function.
(Source:
US EPA
Computational Toxicology Research
Glossary
Toxic (damaging) to DNA. Substances that are genotoxic may bind directly to DNA or act indirectly leading to DNA damage by affecting enzymes involved in DNA replication, thereby causing mutations which may or may not lead to cancer or birth defects (inheritable damage). Genotoxic substances are not necessarily carcinogenic. (Source: GreenFacts)
A state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
The health of a whole community or population is reflected in measurements of
disease incidence and prevalence, age-specific death rates, and life expectancy.
(Source:
MA
Glossary
In an artificial environment outside a living organism or body. For example,
some toxicity testing is done on cell
cultures or slices of tissue grown in the laboratory, rather than on a living
animal.
(Source:
ATSDR
Glossary of Terms
Within a living organism or body. For example, some toxicity testing is done on whole animals, such as rats or mice.
(Source:
ATSDR
Glossary of Terms
The liver is a big reddish-brow organ lying beneath the diaphragm on the right side. The liver is made up for a great part of liver cells which absorb nutrients and detoxify and remove harmful substances from the blood such as drugs and alcohol. The liver has many other vital functions and there is currently no way to compensate for the absence of liver.
Other liver functions include:
The conversion or breakdown of a substance from one form to another by an
enzyme.
(Source: GreenFacts, based on ATSDR
Glossary of
Terms
Study of the biological, chemical and physical activities and processes that underlie the functioning of living organisms (cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems) and their parts. (Source: GreenFacts)
Results of conception and ensuing pregnancy, such as sex ratio, birth weight, spontaneous abortion, congenital malformations, lower birth weight, preterm delivery or stillbirth. (Source: GreenFacts)
The study of the structure and function of proteins, including the way they
work and interact with each other inside cells.
(Source:
JNCI Cancer
Spectrum;
In the context of allergies, sensitization is the process by which a person becomes, over time, increasingly allergic to a substance (sensitiser) through repeated exposure to that substance (Source: GreenFacts)
The Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection (GESAMP) is an advisory body, established in 1969, that advises the United Nations (UN) system on the scientific aspects of marine environmental protection.
At present GESAMP is jointly sponsored by nine UN organizations with responsibilities relating to the marine environment, and they utilize GESAMP as a mechanism for coordination and collaboration among them. GESAMP functions are to conduct and support marine environmental assessments, to undertake in-depth studies, analyses, and reviews of specific topics, and to identify emerging issues regarding the state of the marine environment. GESAMP itself today consists of 16 experts, drawn from a wide range of relevant disciplines, who act in an independent and individual capacity. Studies and assessments are usually carried out by dedicated working groups, most of whose members are not sitting members of GESAMP but part of the broader GESAMP network.
GESAMP's UN sponsors: IMO, FAO, UNESCO-IOC, WMO, IAEA, UN, UNEP, UNIDO, UNDP.GESAMP
Source:
(Source:
www.gesamp.org/about
The capacity or property of a substance to cause adverse effects. (Source: GreenFacts)
The study of the harmful effects of substances on humans or animals.
(Source:
ATSDR
Glossary of Terms
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