A scoping review of the health and toxicological activity of bisphenol A (BPA) structural analogues and functional alternatives.

Recent studies report widespread usage or exposure to a variety of chemicals with structural or functional similarity to bisphenol A (BPA), referred to as BPA analogues or derivatives. These have been detected in foodstuffs, house dust, environmental samples, human urine or blood, and consumer products. Compared to BPA, relatively little is known about potential toxicity of these compounds.

Genetic toxicology in silico protocol.

In silico toxicology (IST) approaches to rapidly assess chemical hazard, and usage of such methods is increasing in all applications but especially for regulatory submissions, such as for assessing chemicals under REACH as well as the ICH M7 guideline for drug impurities. There are a number of obstacles to performing an IST assessment, including uncertainty in how such an assessment and associated expert review should be performed or what is fit for purpose, as well as a lack of confidence that the results will be accepted by colleagues, collaborators and regulatory authorities. To address this, a project to develop a series of IST protocols for different hazard endpoints has been initiated and this paper describes the genetic toxicity in silico (GIST) protocol.

In silico toxicology protocols.

The present publication surveys several applications of in silico (i.e., computational) toxicology approaches across different industries and institutions.

Evaluation of 4-methylcyclohexanemethanol (MCHM) in a combined irritancy and Local Lymph Node Assay (LLNA) in mice.

4-Methylcyclohexanemethanol (MCHM) is a flotation reagent used in fine coal beneficiation. On January 9, 2014, crude MCHM, a mixture containing predominantly MCHM, was inadvertently released into the Elk River, a municipal water source that serves about 300,000 people in the Charleston, WV area, resulting in temporary contamination of 15 percent of the state's tap water and causing significant dermal exposure. The current studies were undertaken to determine whether crude MCHM or MCHM has the potential to produce dermal irritancy and/or sensitization.

Consensus Report of the 2015 Weinman International Conference on Mesothelioma.

On November 9 and 10, 2015, the International Conference on Mesothelioma in Populations Exposed to Naturally Occurring Asbestiform Fibers was held at the University of Hawaii Cancer Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. The meeting was cosponsored by the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer, and the agenda was designed with significant input from staff at the U.S.

Integrating Health Research into Disaster Response: The New NIH Disaster Research Response Program.

The need for high quality and timely disaster research has been a topic of great discussion over the past several years. Recent high profile incidents have exposed gaps in knowledge about the health impacts of disasters or the benefits of specific interventions-such was the case with the 2010 Gulf Oil Spill and recent events associated with lead-contaminated drinking water in Flint, Michigan, and the evolving health crisis related to Zika virus disease. Our inability to perform timely research to inform the community about health and safety risks or address specific concerns further heightens anxiety and distrust.

Crash and traffic violation rates before and after licensure for novice California drivers subject to different driver licensing requirements.

Introduction: How do crash and traffic violation rates for novice 16-17-year-old drivers change over the months before and after licensure under a graduated driver licensing (GDL) program relative to those for older novices who are not subject to GDL?

Method: Plots and Poisson regression comparing overall rates and subtypes of crashes and traffic violations among California novice drivers ages 16 to 35 years over time before and after unsupervised licensure.

Results: Majorities of 16-year-olds (57%) and 17-year-olds (73%) actually hold their learner permits longer than the required 6 months; majorities (67%-81%) of age 18 or older novices hold their learner permits less than 6 months. Crash rates of novice 16- and 17-year-olds-as well as most other age groups-are highest almost immediately after they are licensed to drive unsupervised, after which their rates decline quickly during their first year of licensure and at a slower rate for the second and third years.

Changes in driver cannabinoid prevalence in 12 U.S. states after implementing medical marijuana laws.

Objective: To determine if cannabinoid prevalence increased among fatal-crash-involved drivers in 12 U.S. states after implementing medical marijuana laws.

Non-compliance with graduated driver licensing (GDL) requirements: changes in GDL-related conviction rates over time among 16-17-year-old California drivers.

Introduction: Self-reports by novice teen drivers in California and elsewhere suggest that many violate graduated driver licensing (GDL) nighttime and passenger restrictions, and to a lesser extent, drive on learner permits without being supervised. Is this corroborated by their traffic conviction records?

Method: We examined historical aggregated conviction rates for GDL-related violations before and after GDL, and Poisson regressions of conviction rates over time among 16-17-year-old California novices.

Results: During the year before they received their provisional licenses, <1% of 16-year-old novices and <2% of 17-year-old novices were convicted of driving unlicensed or unsupervised on their learner permits.

The problem of suspended and revoked drivers who avoid detection at checkpoints.

Objective: Although driver license suspension and revocation have been shown to improve traffic safety, suspended or revoked (SR) drivers who continue to drive-which appears to be the majority-are about 3 times more likely to be involved in crashes and to cause a fatal crash. In California and many other U.S.

Graduated driver licensing program component calibrations and their association with fatal crash involvement.

Graduated driver licensing (GDL) programs are specialized licensing systems for beginner drivers adopted in all U.S. states, Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.

Supervised hours requirements in graduated driver licensing: Effectiveness and parental awareness.

Most states require teens to complete a certain number of hours of supervised driving practice to obtain a license to drive unsupervised. Although widely implemented, the effect of requiring supervised practice is largely unknown. Using auto-regressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) interrupted time-series analysis, we found no change in fatal and injury crash involvement of 16-17-year-old drivers in Minnesota following enactment of a 30h supervised driving requirement.

Graduated driver licensing and fatal crashes involving 16- to 19-year-old drivers.

Context: In the United States, graduated driver licensing (GDL) systems allow full, unrestricted licensure for drivers younger than 18 years only after an initial period of supervised driving and an intermediate period of unsupervised driving that limits driving at night, transporting multiple young passengers, or both.

Objective: To estimate the association of GDL programs with involvement in fatal crashes among 16- to 19-year-old drivers.

Design, Setting, And Participants: Pooled cross-sectional time series analysis of quarterly 1986-2007 incidence of fatal crashes involving drivers aged 16 to 19 years for all 50 states and the District of Columbia combined.

Meeting report: mode(s) of action of asbestos and related mineral fibers.

Background: Although asbestos in general is well known to cause a range of neoplastic and non-neoplastic human health effects, not all asbestos fiber types have the same disease-causing potential, and the mode of action (MOA) of specific types of asbestos and related fibers for various health outcomes are not well understood.

Objectives: A workshop was held to discuss the state of the science of the MOA for asbestos-related disease. The objective was to review the range of asbestos-induced health effects (including those at sites remote to the respiratory tract).

Long-term effect of the North Carolina graduated driver licensing system on licensed driver crash incidence: a 5-year survival analysis.

Several studies document the success of graduated driver licensing (GDL) systems in reducing young teen crash rates, but it is not yet clear whether any portion of the crash reduction is achieved by producing more capable drivers. The purpose of this study was to determine whether young teen drivers licensed under the North Carolina GDL system remain crash-free longer than those licensed prior to GDL, independent of the crude reductions in exposure (i.e.

Do states upgrading to primary enforcement of safety belt laws experience increased daytime and nighttime belt use?

As of 1 January 2007, 26 states and the District of Columbia have enacted primary enforcement of their safety belt laws, which allows law enforcement to stop motorists and cite them solely when they observe a vehicle occupant who is not wearing a safety belt. Interrupted time series analyses were used to determine whether six states which upgraded to primary enforcement laws experienced changes in nighttime (9:00 p.m.

The effects of graduated driver licensing on hospitalization rates and charges for 16-and 17-year-olds in North Carolina.

Objective: To mitigate the high risk of motor vehicle crashes for young beginning drivers, over 40 states and the District of Columbia have implemented graduated driver licensing (GDL) systems that gradually and systematically ease teen drivers into higher risk driving conditions. Evaluations of GDL programs using motor vehicle crash data have demonstrated marked declines in crashes. The objective of this study is to examine the association between the implementation of the North Carolina GDL program and the rate of hospitalization, as well as hospital charges, for 16-and 17-year-old drivers.

CYP1A1 and CYP1B1 genotypes, haplotypes, and TCDD-induced gene expression in subjects from Seveso, Italy.

2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) is highly toxic in experimental animals, and is known to induce cytochrome P450 (CYP) gene expression. We investigated the effect of CYP1A1 and CYP1B1 variant genotypes and haplotypes on CYP1A1 and CYP1B1 mRNA expression and ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) activity in lymphocytes from 121 subjects from the Seveso population, Italy, accidentally exposed to TCDD in 1976. The 3'UTR 3801T>C and I462V variants of CYP1A1 were present in 16% and 6% of the subjects, respectively.

Evaluation of California's graduated driver licensing program.

Problem: California's graduated driver licensing (GDL) program was implemented to reduce the high crash risk of teenage drivers. The program enhancements made in 1998 were evaluated in this study using methods that rule out the noticeable downward trend in California teen's fatal/injury crash rates as a possible explanation for any observed crash reductions that could otherwise be mistaken for program effects.

Method: Monthly per capita fatal/injury crash rates for 15-to-17-year-olds and proportional representations of 16-17-year-olds' nighttime and passenger crashes were analyzed using intervention time series analysis.

Problem driver remediation: a meta-analysis of the driver improvement literature.

Problem: Given the public safety risk posed by violation and crash repeaters and the substantial costs for state driver improvement programs, it is important that their effectiveness be scientifically demonstrated and that intervention programs are based on sound research findings.

Method: Crash and traffic violation standardized effect sizes (d) representing 106 individual interventions were coded from 35 methodologically sound studies and analyzed using meta-analysis.

Results: Driver improvement intervention in general was associated with small but significant reductions in both crashes (dw = 0.