Editorial pubs.acs.org/crt
Chemical Toxicology in China: A Special Issue
C
Gui-Bin Jiang, Director of Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the leading scientist in analytical and environmental toxicology in China, and Dr. Steve Hecht, the journal’s Editor-in-Chief, during his visit to Beijing in June 2014. The main theme of this special issue is Chemical Toxicology in China. With this issue, we wish to provide a venue for the presentation of research relevant to all aspects of the chemical basis for the responses to environmental toxins currently occurring in China. All of the manuscripts published here have undergone the standard peer review process. We are happy to present our readers with this special issue highlighting research in chemical toxicology in China. This issue contains 20 research articles, 4 perspectives, 2 reviews, 1 rapid report, and 1 perspective on statistical trends (POST); a total of twenty-eight papers. The invited four perspectives and two reviews provide excellent summaries of the authors’ recent contributions to the field on such interesting topics as the chemical and toxicological characterizations of halobenzoquinones, an emerging class of disinfectant byproducts; ROS-triggered signaling pathways initiated by the wood preservative pentachlorophenol and its major carcinogenic quinoid metabolite; enantioselective environmental toxicology of chiral pesticides; the importance of thiomethylation for arsenical toxicities; reprogramming cellular signaling machinery using surface-modified carbon nanotubes; and culture medium-associated physicochemical insights on the cytotoxicity of carbon nanomaterials. All of the primary research articles in this special issue are concerned with advancing our understanding of the impact of chemical and biological agents on human health. They can be divided into three categories: (1) Studies on the molecular mechanisms of cellular responses to toxic agents at the molecular, cellular, intact organism, and whole animal levels. Toxic agent is broadly defined as any molecule or aggregate of molecules that causes cellular damage. In this issue, a wide range of toxic agents are studied: from classic carcinogens (such as arsenic, lead, sulfur mustard, 1,3-butadiene, and pentachlorophenol), newly emerging chemicals (such as the disinfectant byproduct halobenzoquinones; persistent organic substances (POPs) like brominated diphenyl ethers and perfluorooctanesulfonate), to new man-made advanced materials (carbon nanotubes, titanium-, iron-, and silica-nanoparticles), and the complex mixtures (air particulate matter, PM2.5, and PM10). (2) Investigations of the interactions of biologically derived agents with cellular constituents (DNA, proteins, and lipids) and living systems. These include: studies on N-acetyl lysine/ glutathione-derived pyrroles as potential ex vivo biomarkers of bioactivated furan-containing compounds; thiazolidine-4-carboxylic acid, a cysteine-conjugated metabolite of formaldehyde, as a potential biomarker of exposure to oxidative stress and disease risk; nitration of tyrosine in Aβ1−40 and Aβ aggregation; mechanisms of DNA damage by synthetic
hinese economic reforms in the past three decades have led to outstanding economic growth; however, this rapid economic development has been a double-edged sword: while it has greatly improved the health and quality of life of the general population, the associated industrialization has also led to increasing energy use and industrial waste, which has rendered the air quality in China’s cities among the worst in the world and has resulted in widespread industrial water pollution. As the incidents related to environmental pollution (air, water, soil, and food) increase, the awareness and concern by the general public for the environment and its impact on health grow (Figure 1). Its large population (with approximately 1.3
Figure 1. Yin and yang: from opposites and inter-conversions to harmonious balance.
billion inhabitants, the Chinese population accounts for onefifth of humanity) and booming economy (the world’s second largest) mean that China’s domestic challenges, with respect to the environment and its impact on health, are also challenges for our world. The idea of toxicology in China can be traced back to the antediluvian legend of Shen-Nong, the mythical herbal medicine master of ancient China, who tasted hundreds of herbs. Modern research in chemical toxicology was launched in China only in the 1950s. Representative of that period, Chinese scholars reported in 1957 that the consumption of oil extracted from cottonseed gave rise to male infertility, which was later found to be caused by the effects of gossypol on the germ cells of the testis; however, rapid development and significant progress in modern chemical toxicology in China did not occur until the 1980s. One of the representative findings from that period is the combined synergistic toxic effects of arsenic and fluorine on human nervous and circulatory systems. The idea for a special issue focused on toxicological research in China in Chemical Research in Toxicology was initiated by Dr. © 2015 American Chemical Society
Special Issue: Chemical Toxicology in China Published: March 16, 2015 279
DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrestox.5b00062 Chem. Res. Toxicol. 2015, 28, 279−280
Chemical Research in Toxicology
Editorial
Notes
quinoxaline 1,4-dioxide drugs; and DNA protection by natural and synthetic antioxidants such as oxyresveratrol, ferrocenylappended aurone and flavone. (3) Computational investigations on transformation pathways of isomeric perfluorooctanesulfonate precursors catalyzed by the P450 enzymes and a systematic analysis of the mechanisms responsible for the toxicity of proton pump inhibitors. Finally, this issue contains a POST, a relatively new manuscript type for Chemical Research in Toxicology, on increasing air pollution in China and the potential use of exposure and biomarker data for disease prevention. Needless to say, a single issue cannot cover all of the research in chemical toxicology that is currently taking place in China; however, we have tried to provide our readers with an indication of the great breadth and depth of chemical toxicology research currently being performed in China. It should be noted that chemical toxicology research in China is still in its early stages, as can be clearly seen from the relatively few publications (only 39 papers from 2009 to 2013) in Chemical Research in Toxicology by investigators in China in the past few years. We believe, however, that this will now change relatively quickly since there is not only an urgent need to understand the impact of chemical and biological agents on human health with a special emphasis on the underlying molecular mechanisms of toxicity but also as importantly as a result of the strong financial support from a number of Chinese government funding agencies, such as the National Science Foundation of China (NSFC). The final driver of this change is the fact that the number of research institutes and investigators engaged in chemistry, toxicology, and environmental health research is increasing rapidly, as demonstrated clearly in this special issue. During the organization of this special issue, we have received great support and kind cooperation from Dr. Steve Hecht and Ms. Maggie Martyr. Our gratitude goes to the whole editorial team of Chemical Research in Toxicology for their enthusiastic support and professional editing. The guest editor wishes to express his sincere appreciation for the efforts of all his colleagues in China who have made important contributions to this special issue, and all the reviewers who helped us to adhere to the highest quality standards of peer review for all of the manuscripts accepted. It should be noted that the authors are not only from mainland China but also from Taiwan and Hong Kong, which reflects the true joint effort and multidisciplinary approach of chemical toxicology research in China. We sincerely hope that the readers of Chemical Research in Toxicology will enjoy this special issue, and it is our expectation that China will achieve even greater success in research on all aspects of chemical toxicology in the future.
Views expressed in this editorial are those of the authors and not necessarily the views of the ACS.
Ben-Zhan Zhu,*,† Guest Editor Paul F. Hollenberg‡ †
■
State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Eco-toxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences (RCEES), The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China ‡ Department of Pharmacology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, United States
AUTHOR INFORMATION
Corresponding Author
*E-mail: [email protected]. 280
DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrestox.5b00062 Chem. Res. Toxicol. 2015, 28, 279−280
Chemical Toxicology in China: A Special Issue
C
Gui-Bin Jiang, Director of Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the leading scientist in analytical and environmental toxicology in China, and Dr. Steve Hecht, the journal’s Editor-in-Chief, during his visit to Beijing in June 2014. The main theme of this special issue is Chemical Toxicology in China. With this issue, we wish to provide a venue for the presentation of research relevant to all aspects of the chemical basis for the responses to environmental toxins currently occurring in China. All of the manuscripts published here have undergone the standard peer review process. We are happy to present our readers with this special issue highlighting research in chemical toxicology in China. This issue contains 20 research articles, 4 perspectives, 2 reviews, 1 rapid report, and 1 perspective on statistical trends (POST); a total of twenty-eight papers. The invited four perspectives and two reviews provide excellent summaries of the authors’ recent contributions to the field on such interesting topics as the chemical and toxicological characterizations of halobenzoquinones, an emerging class of disinfectant byproducts; ROS-triggered signaling pathways initiated by the wood preservative pentachlorophenol and its major carcinogenic quinoid metabolite; enantioselective environmental toxicology of chiral pesticides; the importance of thiomethylation for arsenical toxicities; reprogramming cellular signaling machinery using surface-modified carbon nanotubes; and culture medium-associated physicochemical insights on the cytotoxicity of carbon nanomaterials. All of the primary research articles in this special issue are concerned with advancing our understanding of the impact of chemical and biological agents on human health. They can be divided into three categories: (1) Studies on the molecular mechanisms of cellular responses to toxic agents at the molecular, cellular, intact organism, and whole animal levels. Toxic agent is broadly defined as any molecule or aggregate of molecules that causes cellular damage. In this issue, a wide range of toxic agents are studied: from classic carcinogens (such as arsenic, lead, sulfur mustard, 1,3-butadiene, and pentachlorophenol), newly emerging chemicals (such as the disinfectant byproduct halobenzoquinones; persistent organic substances (POPs) like brominated diphenyl ethers and perfluorooctanesulfonate), to new man-made advanced materials (carbon nanotubes, titanium-, iron-, and silica-nanoparticles), and the complex mixtures (air particulate matter, PM2.5, and PM10). (2) Investigations of the interactions of biologically derived agents with cellular constituents (DNA, proteins, and lipids) and living systems. These include: studies on N-acetyl lysine/ glutathione-derived pyrroles as potential ex vivo biomarkers of bioactivated furan-containing compounds; thiazolidine-4-carboxylic acid, a cysteine-conjugated metabolite of formaldehyde, as a potential biomarker of exposure to oxidative stress and disease risk; nitration of tyrosine in Aβ1−40 and Aβ aggregation; mechanisms of DNA damage by synthetic
hinese economic reforms in the past three decades have led to outstanding economic growth; however, this rapid economic development has been a double-edged sword: while it has greatly improved the health and quality of life of the general population, the associated industrialization has also led to increasing energy use and industrial waste, which has rendered the air quality in China’s cities among the worst in the world and has resulted in widespread industrial water pollution. As the incidents related to environmental pollution (air, water, soil, and food) increase, the awareness and concern by the general public for the environment and its impact on health grow (Figure 1). Its large population (with approximately 1.3
Figure 1. Yin and yang: from opposites and inter-conversions to harmonious balance.
billion inhabitants, the Chinese population accounts for onefifth of humanity) and booming economy (the world’s second largest) mean that China’s domestic challenges, with respect to the environment and its impact on health, are also challenges for our world. The idea of toxicology in China can be traced back to the antediluvian legend of Shen-Nong, the mythical herbal medicine master of ancient China, who tasted hundreds of herbs. Modern research in chemical toxicology was launched in China only in the 1950s. Representative of that period, Chinese scholars reported in 1957 that the consumption of oil extracted from cottonseed gave rise to male infertility, which was later found to be caused by the effects of gossypol on the germ cells of the testis; however, rapid development and significant progress in modern chemical toxicology in China did not occur until the 1980s. One of the representative findings from that period is the combined synergistic toxic effects of arsenic and fluorine on human nervous and circulatory systems. The idea for a special issue focused on toxicological research in China in Chemical Research in Toxicology was initiated by Dr. © 2015 American Chemical Society
Special Issue: Chemical Toxicology in China Published: March 16, 2015 279
DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrestox.5b00062 Chem. Res. Toxicol. 2015, 28, 279−280
Chemical Research in Toxicology
Editorial
Notes
quinoxaline 1,4-dioxide drugs; and DNA protection by natural and synthetic antioxidants such as oxyresveratrol, ferrocenylappended aurone and flavone. (3) Computational investigations on transformation pathways of isomeric perfluorooctanesulfonate precursors catalyzed by the P450 enzymes and a systematic analysis of the mechanisms responsible for the toxicity of proton pump inhibitors. Finally, this issue contains a POST, a relatively new manuscript type for Chemical Research in Toxicology, on increasing air pollution in China and the potential use of exposure and biomarker data for disease prevention. Needless to say, a single issue cannot cover all of the research in chemical toxicology that is currently taking place in China; however, we have tried to provide our readers with an indication of the great breadth and depth of chemical toxicology research currently being performed in China. It should be noted that chemical toxicology research in China is still in its early stages, as can be clearly seen from the relatively few publications (only 39 papers from 2009 to 2013) in Chemical Research in Toxicology by investigators in China in the past few years. We believe, however, that this will now change relatively quickly since there is not only an urgent need to understand the impact of chemical and biological agents on human health with a special emphasis on the underlying molecular mechanisms of toxicity but also as importantly as a result of the strong financial support from a number of Chinese government funding agencies, such as the National Science Foundation of China (NSFC). The final driver of this change is the fact that the number of research institutes and investigators engaged in chemistry, toxicology, and environmental health research is increasing rapidly, as demonstrated clearly in this special issue. During the organization of this special issue, we have received great support and kind cooperation from Dr. Steve Hecht and Ms. Maggie Martyr. Our gratitude goes to the whole editorial team of Chemical Research in Toxicology for their enthusiastic support and professional editing. The guest editor wishes to express his sincere appreciation for the efforts of all his colleagues in China who have made important contributions to this special issue, and all the reviewers who helped us to adhere to the highest quality standards of peer review for all of the manuscripts accepted. It should be noted that the authors are not only from mainland China but also from Taiwan and Hong Kong, which reflects the true joint effort and multidisciplinary approach of chemical toxicology research in China. We sincerely hope that the readers of Chemical Research in Toxicology will enjoy this special issue, and it is our expectation that China will achieve even greater success in research on all aspects of chemical toxicology in the future.
Views expressed in this editorial are those of the authors and not necessarily the views of the ACS.
Ben-Zhan Zhu,*,† Guest Editor Paul F. Hollenberg‡ †
■
State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Eco-toxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences (RCEES), The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China ‡ Department of Pharmacology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109, United States
AUTHOR INFORMATION
Corresponding Author
*E-mail: [email protected]. 280
DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrestox.5b00062 Chem. Res. Toxicol. 2015, 28, 279−280
