Bees: Sulfoxaflor: Nicotine

 Sulfoxaflor is a systemic insecticide which acts as an insect neurotoxin. 

It is a derivative of Nicotine, which is highly poisonous: 

"Nicotine

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about the chemical. For other uses, see Nicotine (disambiguation).

Nicotine

Toxicology See also: Nicotine poisoning NFPA 704 1 4 0 The LD50 of nicotine is 50 mg/kg for rats and 3 mg/kg for mice. 30–60 mg (0.5–1.0 mg/kg) can be a lethal dosage for adult humans.[5][62] However the widely used human LD50 estimate of 0.5–1.0 mg/kg was questioned in a 2013 review, in light of several documented cases of humans surviving much higher doses; the 2013 review suggests that the lower limit causing fatal out-comes is 500–1000 mg of ingested nicotine, corresponding to an oral lD50 of 6.5–13 mg/kg .[7] Nevertheless nicotine has a relatively high toxicity in comparison to many other alkaloids such as cocaine, which has an LD50of 95.1 mg/kg when administered to mice. It is unlikely that a person would overdose on nicotine through smoking alone, although overdose can occur through combined use of nicotine patches or nicotine gum and cigarettes at the same time.[6][unreliable source?] Spilling a high concentration of nicotine onto the skin can cause intoxication or even death, since nicotine readily passes into the bloodstream following dermal contact.[63] Historically, nicotine has not been regarded as a carcinogen and the IARC has not evaluated nicotine in its standalone form or assigned it to an official carcinogen group. While no epidemiological evidence supports that nicotine alone acts as a carcinogen in the formation of human cancer, research over the last decade has identified nicotine's carcinogenic potential in animal models and cell culture.[64][65] Nicotine has been noted to directly cause cancer through a number of different mechanisms such as the activation of MAP Kinases.[66] Indirectly, nicotine increases cholinergic signalling (and adrenergic signalling in the case of colon cancer[67]), thereby impeding apoptosis (programmed cell death), promoting tumor growth, and activating growth factors and cellular mitogenic factors such as 5-LOX, and EGF. Nicotine also promotes cancer growth by stimulating angiogenesis and neovascularization.[68][69] In one study, nicotine administered to mice with tumors caused increases in tumor size (twofold increase), metastasis (nine-fold increase), and tumor recurrence (threefold increase).[70] N-Nitrosonornicotine (NNN), classified by the IARC as a Group 1 carcinogen, is produced endogenously from nitrite in saliva and nicotine. The teratogenic properties of nicotine has been investigated. According to a study of ca. 77,000 pregnant women in Denmark,[citation needed] women who used nicotine gum and patches during the early stages of pregnancy were found to face an increased risk of having babies with birth defects. The study showed that women who used nicotine-replacement therapy in the first 12 weeks of pregnancy had a 60% greater risk of having babies with birth defects compared to women who were non-smokers.[citation needed] Tobacco use among pregnant women has also been correlated to increased frequency of ADHD. Children born to mothers who used tobacco were two and a half times more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD.[71] Froelich estimated that "exposure to higher levels of lead and prenatal tobacco each accounted for 500,000 additional cases of ADHD in U.S. children".[72] Effective April 1, 1990, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) of the California Environmental Protection Agency added nicotine to the list of chemicals known to cause developmental toxicity.[73] In the Central Nervous System Effect of nicotine on dopaminergic neurons. By binding to nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, nicotine increases the levels of several neurotransmitters – acting as a sort of "volume control". It is thought that increased levels of dopamine in the reward circuits of the brain one of the major contributors of the apparent euphoria and relaxation, and addiction caused by nicotine consumption. This release of Dopamine induced by Nicotine is thought to occur via a cholinergic–dopaminergic link, mediated by a neuropeptide, ghrelin, in the ventral tegmentum.[88] Nicotine has a higher affinity for acetylcholine receptors in the brain than those in skeletal muscle, though at toxic doses it can induce contractions and respiratory paralysis.[89] Nicotine's selectivity is thought to be due to a particular amino acid difference on these receptor subtypes.[90] Tobacco smoke contains anabasine, anatabine, and nornicotine. It also contains the monoamine oxidase inhibitors harman and norharman.[91] These beta-carboline compounds significantly decrease MAO activity in smokers.[91][92] MAO enzymes break down monoaminergic neurotransmitters such as dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin. It is thought that the powerful interaction between the MAOIs and the nicotine is responsible for most of the addictive properties of tobacco smoking.[93] The addition of five minor tobacco alkaloids increases nicotine-induced hyperactivity, sensitization and intravenous self-administration in rats.[94] Chronic nicotine exposure via tobacco smoking up-regulates alpha4beta2* nAChR in cerebellum and brainstem regions[95][96] but not habenulopeduncular structures.[97] Alpha4beta2 and alpha6beta2 receptors, present in the ventral tegmental area, play a crucial role in mediating the reinforcement effects of nicotine.[98] In the sympathetic nervous system Nicotine also activates the sympathetic nervous system,[99] acting via splanchnic nerves to the adrenal medulla, stimulates the release of epinephrine. Acetylcholine released by preganglionic sympathetic fibers of these nerves acts on nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, causing the release of epinephrine (and noradrenaline) into the bloodstream. Nicotine also has an affinity for melanin-containing tissues due to its precursor function in melanin synthesis or due to the irreversible binding of melanin and nicotine. This has been suggested to underlie the increased nicotine dependence and lower smoking cessation rates in darker pigmented individuals. However, further research is warranted before a definite conclusive link can be inferred.[100] In adrenal medulla Chemical Identification Nicotine was first isolated from the tobacco plant in 1828 by physician Wilhelm Heinrich Posselt and chemist Karl Ludwig Reimann of Germany, who considered it a poison.[103][104] Its chemical empirical formula was described by Melsens in 1843,[105] its structure was discovered by Adolf Pinner and Richard Wolffenstein in 1893,[106][107][108][clarification needed] and it was first synthesized by Amé Pictet and A. Rotschy in 1904.[109] As an Insecticide Tobacco was introduced to Europe in 1559, and by the late 17th century, it was used not only for smoking but also as an insecticide. After World War II, over 2,500 tons of nicotine insecticide (waste from the tobacco industry) were used worldwide, but by the 1980s the use of nicotine insecticide had declined below 200 tons. This was due to the availability of other insecticides that are cheaper and less harmful to mammals.[4] Currently, nicotine, even in the form of tobacco dust, is prohibited as a pesticide for organic farming.[110][111] In 2008, the EPA received a request, from the registrant, to cancel the registration of the last nicotine pesticide registered in the United States.[112] This request was granted, and after 1 January 2014, this pesticide will not be available for sale." Read the Eentire article at:   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicotine

If You're Not Outraged, You Are NOT Paying Attention

No. 561, April 21, 2011 Gulf Disaster, One Year Later -- New Drilling Must Stop Now Lawsuit Launched to Defend Wildlife From Toxic Oil Dispersants Legal Counterattack Filed to Protect 120 Million Acres for Polar Bears -- Thank You Suit Seeks 70,000 Square Miles for Leatherbacks Center Back in Court to Earn Habitat for Florida Panther Suit Launched to Protect Plains Bison Center Steps in for Disappearing Miami Blue Butterfly Fracking Under Fire, Causes Disastrous Penn. Spill Wild and Weird -- Alien Plants: Totally Goth

Donate today to support the Center's work. Take action now.

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Gulf Disaster, One Year Later -- New Drilling Must Stop Now

This week marked a grim anniversary: It's been a year since BP's oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico, eventually leaking more than 200 million gallons of oil and unleashing the worst environmental disaster in U.S. history. Thousands of birds, sea turtles and dolphins died -- and some are still washing up. Yet there have been no meaningful reforms to guarantee a similar spill will never happen again.

That's why the Center for Biological Diversity marked the spill anniversary by calling for an end to all new offshore drilling -- before it's too late -- and pressing forward with our newest lawsuit to regulate toxic oil dispersants.

Further, we just released a report analyzing the spill's true toll on wildlife, estimating that about 6,000 sea turtles, 26,000 dolphins and whales, and a staggering 82,000 birds were likely harmed by the spill. We also released a report outlining 10 critical reforms that have gone unaddressed since the Gulf crisis.

In the wake of the spill, the Center has launched nine lawsuits and petitioned to protect two species harmed by oil in the Gulf, the Atlantic bluefin tuna and the dwarf seahorse. This disaster isn't over, and neither is our fight to stop the next one.

Read more in our press release, visit our revamped Gulf Disaster website (where you can watch our new One Year Later video statement on the disaster) and see an interview with Center Executive Director Kierán Suckling on Democracy Now!

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Lawsuit to Defend Wildlife From Toxic Oil Dispersants

A year after the ocean was polluted with more than 2 million gallons of toxic oil dispersants to break up oil from BP's devastating Deepwater Horizon spill, the Center for Biological Diversity on Monday filed a notice of intent to sue the Environmental Protection Agency for authorizing the use of dispersants without analyzing their effects on endangered species and habitat. In fact, the dispersant most used by BP to combat the catastrophic Gulf spill is actually banned in England and much of Europe, but was used liberally in our waters without environmental analysis.

Dispersants -- chemicals used to break up oil into tiny droplets -- can allow toxins to build up in the marine food web, with potentially devastating consequences for wildlife, including sea turtles, fish, whales, piping plovers and corals.

Read more in the Summit County Citizens' Voice.

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Legal Counterattack filed to Protect 120 Million Acres for Polar Bears -- Thank You

As we've been telling you over the past couple months, the Center for Biological Diversity is in an all-out fight against oil companies' attack on our hard-won legal victory to protect 120 million acres of "critical habitat" for the polar bear. Thanks to the generous support of more than 2,200 members, we were able to raise the funds to take the next critical step and keep the momentum going to protect these majestic animals and their habitat.

This week, the Center and allies intervened in the companies' suit to defend the bear's much-needed habitat safeguards. Those protections, secured by the Center in late 2010, constituted the largest swath of critical habitat in history, and we're not about to let them be turned into an industrial zone for oil and gas companies.

Top Center attorneys were back in court last week arguing for additional polar bear protections. We were encouraged by a federal judge who said he's considering making the Obama administration revisit the controversial Bush-era rule that denies the bear protections from its greatest threat: global warming. That rule -- part of the Center-won decision in 2008 to protect the polar bear under the Endangered Species Act -- exempted greenhouse gases from regulation under the Act.

In an all-day hearing last Wednesday, at which the Center's Brendan Cummings argued in the polar bear's favor, the judge indicated he may throw the rule out for further environmental review. We'll keep you updated as our polar bear protection campaign moves forward. Thank you again to all those who stepped up to fund this critical work.

Get details on the court case from E & E News and read more on the critical habitat suit in The Bristol Bay Times.

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Suit Seeks 70,000 Square Miles for Leatherbacks

To help save one of the most magnificent sea turtles on Earth, the Center for Biological Diversity and allies this week sued the feds for failing to protect "critical habitat" for the Pacific leatherback. In response to a legal petition by the Center and partners, last year the National Marine Fisheries Service proposed to protect about 70,000 square miles (45 million acres) of ocean off California, Oregon and Washington for the sea turtle -- but missed its deadline to finalize the proposal. Meanwhile, leatherbacks continue to die on their epic 12,000-mile journey from Indonesia to the West Coast -- tangled in commercial fishing gear, poisoned by pollution, killed by poaching and facing many other threats.

While in U.S. waters, leatherbacks eat almost a third of their weight in jellyfish a day -- and they need those waters to be protected.

Read more in the San Francisco Chronicle.

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Center Back in Court to Earn Habitat for Florida Panther

Florida is on the verge of losing its last large, wild feline and the Southeast's only remaining large, wild cat: the stealthy, majestic Florida panther. To make sure this powerful hunter gets the roaming room it needs to survive, the Center for Biological Diversity this Wednesday appealed a court decision denying federal protections for the species' habitat. The cat's habitat has been under assault for decades, shrinking rapidly in the face of growing human population and sprawling development in South Florida.

That's why we're heading back to court in our challenge to a district judge's decision that said the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service did not have to designate protected "critical habitat" for the panther. Only about 120 individual Florida panthers survive in the wild, clinging to less than 5 percent of their original habitat.

Read more in the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.

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Suit Launched to Protect Plains Bison

In defense of one of North America's most iconic animals, last Wednesday the Center for Biological Diversity and Western Watersheds Project filed a notice of intent to sue the feds for not protecting the imperiled plains bison. This species once roamed a wide swath of the continent by the millions, but slaughter, disease, habitat loss and other threats have reduced it to a fraction of what it once was. Today just a few conservation herds remain. Despite that, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in deciding whether the plains bison needs federal protection, is only considering the species' current range -- and not the fact that it's gone from most of its historic range. That's not good enough and won't give this shaggy beast the help it desperately needs to survive and recover.

Read more in the Chicago Tribune.

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Center Steps in for Disappearing Miami Blue Butterfly

The Miami blue butterfly has waited 27 years for Endangered Species Act protection. That's far too long. So last week the Center for Biological Diversity filed a notice of intent to sue to help this fast-declining insect. Though the species is on the brink of extinction due to urban sprawl, fire suppression, pesticides, severe weather and other threats, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service denied it a place on the endangered species list when the Center petitioned for emergency protection after it disappeared from Florida's Bahia State Park in January. Instead of protection, the feds granted the bright blue, inch-long butterfly a place on the "candidate list," which now includes 260 imperiled species whose protections have been put off indefinitely.

Read more in The Miami Herald and check out the latest on the Center's work to win protection for "candidate list" species.

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Fracking Under Fire, Causes Disastrous Penn. Spill

There was more troubling news this week about hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking," which is a process where chemicals, water and sand are blasted into the earth to pry natural gas and oil from rock. On Tuesday night, a natural-gas well blew out in Bradford County, Penn., leaking thousands and thousands of gallons of fracking fluid through fields and farms and into a stream.

It's the latest in a string of worrisome reports about this destructive practice. It destroys habitat, harms species and injects a chemical cocktail underground, possibly contaminating drinking-water sources. A congressional report put out last week shows that between 2005 and 2009, fracking companies used 93.6 millions of gallons of 279 unidentified "off the shelf" chemical products -- all to extract resources that exacerbate global warming.

The Center for Biological Diversity has scored wins in the fight against fracking, including last year when we helped save West Virginias' Monongahela National Forest from an oil and gas plan that could have allowed fracking on up to 4,400 acres. Now the Environmental Protection Agency is starting to study fracking's impacts -- the first step toward regulation -- and people nationwide are mobilizing against the practice. But the natural-gas industry will fight back, so we'll need all hands on deck to make sure EPA does the right thing. Stay tuned for the next action you can take.

Read more in Huffington Post.

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Wild and Weird -- Alien Plants: Totally Goth

Would you laze in the shade of a black elm tree? Eat black lettuce in your salad or play soccer on black grass? New astrobiological research suggests that on a different world, green plants might not exist at all. They might even be black.

That's because Earth gets its light from a unique star -- one whose color, temperature and distance from us makes photosynthetic plants absorb all wavelengths of light except infrared and green (the green is reflected back for our eyes to see). Most stars in the Milky Way aren't like our sun at all -- in fact, about 80 percent are red dwarfs. Photosynthetic plants absorbing the light of these kinds of "suns" could reflect hues of red, blue, yellow, purple or even grayish-black. And according to the new study, plants on planets with two red dwarfs in the sky, which are pretty common, would probably look plain old black.

So there's another reason to take care of this colorful world. Happy early Earth Day.

Read more in National Geographic.

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Kierán Suckling Executive Director

Senate Kills EPA: Give OK to Mega-Corporations to Pollute

     

On February 19, 2011, the U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation that would prohibit EPA from enforcing the Clean Air Act with regard to greenhouse gas pollution.  This would decimate a major responsibility of the EPA – to protect the public from greenhouse gases that endanger our health and welfare.  Legislation has also been introduced in the Senate which would significantly impede the ability of the Federal government and States to combat global warming. 

Senate & Congress Want to Ignore EPA Standards: The newest bill will allow Huge Corporations to ignore current laws & to pollute the land and air where you live without any type of recrimination or clean-up.

Protecting the Clean Air Act



The Clean Air Act is one of the most successful environmental laws ever passed anywhere in the world.


What you need to know


1.The Clean Air Act is threatened by the same opponents to climate action.


2.The act has a proven track record of pollution cuts and economic benefits.


3.Polluter's claims of economic doom from cleaner air never come to pass.


4.Clean air enjoys popular support and has been a bipartisan success.


5.We need to unite against the coordinated attacks ahead.


The air you are breathing right now is cleaner and healthier thanks to the Clean Air Act, which has prevented hundreds of thousands of premature deaths, millions of asthma attacks, tens of millions of child respiratory illnesses, and countless sick days.

Equally remarkable, these health benefits have come with a net profit to the American economy. Our environmental technologies industry has exploded and currently generates nearly $300 billion per year in revenue, producing $40 billion in exports, and employing 1.6 million Americans.

But, instead of celebrating this landmark law, the big polluters and their allies in Congress are are planning to put our clean air health standards on trial and undermine our environmental health.


That's why we have launched this campaign — to mobilize online environmental advocates to stand up for cleaner air.


Environmental Defense Fund: Email - URGENT APPEAL: Big Fight Looming Over Key Air Toxics Rule


http://support.edf.org/     http://www.edf.org/page.cfm?tagID=60778


Find out what you can do to help the environment. See which issues decision-makers need to hear about urgently, and send emails.
 
 

Who Will Speak for Those Without a Human Voice?

		Take Action to Stop More Drilling Disasters   The Obama administration has proposed a 5-year plan for offshore oil and gas drilling that would open up huge swaths of our coasts to dangerous drilling – risking the lives of countless sea turtles, endangered whales, sea birds, polar bears and other wildlife. Take action! Tell Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and the Obama administration that you oppose dangerous new offshore drilling off our coasts. Help us send 60,000 messages by Wednesday's deadline for public comments. Take action now and forward this message to at least 3 friends. Dear Auntie- Nanuuq, At a time when millions of gallons of oil are still spewing into the Gulf of Mexico, wreaking havoc on sea turtles, brown pelicans, sperm whales and irreplaceable coastal and marine ecosystems, it seems inconceivable that the Obama administration would consider more dirty, dangerous offshore drilling. Yet, incredibly, that’s exactly what’s happening. Take a stand for imperiled sea turtles and other marine wildlife. Urge the Obama administration to reject calls for offshore drilling off the coasts of Florida, Alaska, Virginia, North Carolina and other coastal states. As of yesterday, more than 1,000 birds, 400 sea turtles and 40 marine mammals are already confirmed dead due to the Gulf oil disaster. Far more birds, sea turtles, whales, dolphins and other wildlife are likely dead or dying as a result of the ongoing oil leak in the Gulf. The scale of this ecological catastrophe is massive. Yet drilling proponents persist in their calls to industrialize our coasts and sacrifice our marine wildlife at the altar of Big Oil’s profit margins. The Obama administration had announced a six-month moratorium on new deepwater drilling, temporarily blocked planned drilling in the fragile Chukchi Sea and deployed thousands of federal workers to respond to the disaster in Gulf. On Tuesday, however, a federal judge in Houston – with a history of significant financial investment in oil companies drilling the Gulf -- overturned the six-month ban on deepwater offshore drilling. The Obama administration plans to appeal the ruling and take administrative action to uphold the ban. Ironically, the administration itself is also considering a 5-year leasing plan for offshore drilling that would approve new oil and gas drilling along the Mid-Atlantic and South-Atlantic coasts, on Florida’s Gulf Coast, and in the Arctic Ocean – risking the lives of countless sea turtles, endangered whales, sea birds, polar bears and other wildlife. Speak out for our coastal wildlife and communities. Send your comments to the Obama Administration now. In the face of the tragedy in the Gulf, we must make our voices heard. All comments are due by Wednesday (June 30th), so please take action now, forward this message and help us reach our 60,000-message goal. With Gratitude, Richard Charter Senior Policy Advisor, Marine Programs Defenders of Wildlife Defending Wildlife Tomorrow, Defenders of Wildlife will join groups from across America, participating in Hands Across the Sand events to oppose dangerous new drilling. To find an event near you, visit http://www.handsacrossthesand.com/organize-join-a-beach/ This week, Defenders of Wildlife’s legal team moved to stop Big Oil’s attempt to block a temporary moratorium on deepwater offshore drilling, opposing the oil industry in federal court in Houston. Incredibly, a judge who has had significant financial ties to the oil industry ruled to lift the ban. However, the Obama administration plans to appeal the decision – a move supported by Defenders. So far, Defenders has mobilized more than 61,000 caring people like you in support of additional protections for loggerhead sea turtles. Loggerheads – already in trouble before the Gulf oil disaster – are particularly vulnerable to oil and can drown or be poisoned when they become oiled. Defenders has also mobilized to prevent threatened and endangered sea turtles from being burned to death as part of the controlled oil burns occurring in the desperate attempt to reduce oil from the ongoing Deepwater Horizon oil leak in the Gulf.  Last week, more than 31,000 Defenders supporters urged Senate Democrats to pass comprehensive legislation to reduce America’s dependence on fossil fuels and address the impacts of climate change without opening additional coastal areas to offshore drilling.