Molecular architecture and function of the bacterial stressosome.

The bacterial stressosome is a supramolecular multiprotein complex that acts as a critical signal integration and transduction hub, orchestrating cellular responses to environmental stimuli. Recent studies have resolved near-atomic stressosome structures from various bacterial species, revealing assemblies that should be capable of altering their configuration in response to external changes. Further genetic, biochemical, and cell biology research has elucidated interactions and phosphorylation status within the stressosome complex as well as its subcellular localization and mobility within living cells.

Linking pesticide exposure to neurodegenerative diseases: An in vitro investigation with human neuroblastoma cells.

Although many organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) have been banned or restricted because of their persistence and linkage to neurodegenerative diseases, there is evidence of continued human exposure. In contrast, registered herbicides are reported to have a moderate to low level of toxicity; however, there is little information regarding their toxicity to humans or their combined effects with OCPs. This study aimed to characterize the mechanism of toxicity of banned OCP insecticides (aldrin, dieldrin, heptachlor, and lindane) and registered herbicides (trifluralin, triallate, and clopyralid) detected at a legacy contaminated pesticide manufacturing and packing site using SH-SY5Y cells.

Herbicides and pesticides synergistically interact at low concentrations in complex mixtures.

Assessing a complex mixture of pesticides at the impacted sites has been challenging for risk assessors for 50 years. The default assumption is that at low concentrations, pesticides interact additively with one another; thus, the risk posed by each component of a complex mixture could be simply added up. The EPA interaction-based hazard index (HI) modifies this assumption using a binary weight-of-evidence (BINWOE).

Correlation between in vitro toxicity of pesticides and in vivo risk guidelines in support of complex operating site risk management: A meta-analysis.

In vitro cell systems can support hazard characterization and identify mechanisms involved in toxicity; however, using in vitro data for risk assessment still is challenging. As part of an effort to develop approaches for a complex operating site used for biocide packaging and distribution, we evaluated in vitro assays that could be used in a site management format. Across 66 studies, 108 pesticides were assessed on ten human-derived cell types at four endpoints.