Mode of Action, Metabolism and Toxicology

Book excerpt: Pesticide Chemistry: Human Welfare and the Environment, Volume 3: Mode of Action, Metabolism and Toxicology covers the proceeding of the Fifth International Congress of Pesticide Chemistry. This book is organized into three parts that tackle relevant issues regarding the use of pesticide. The opening part tackles topics relevant to the biochemistry of pests and mode of action of pesticides, such as influence of chlorinated and parathyroid insecticide on cellular calcium regulatory mechanisms; behavioral and lethal actions of amidines on invertebrates; and insect chitin synthetase as biochemical probe for insecticidal compounds. The second part encompasses metabolism and degradation of pesticides and xenobiotics and includes topics on propesticides; selective toxicity conferred by activation; and comparative biochemistry of animal, plant, and microorganism oxidases. The last part covers the toxicology of pesticides and xenobiotics, including the role of biochemical studies in modern toxicological assessment of pesticides; neurophysiological and behavioral assessment of pesticide toxicity; and genetic toxicology applied to the assessment of mutagenic, carcinogenic, and teratogenic action of pesticides and related compounds. This book will be of great interest to chemists, biologists, botanists, and entomologists or professionals whose line of work involves the use of pesticides and who are concerned with pesticide side-effects to the users and the environment.