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Congener descriptors give a shorthand notation for geometry and substituent positions. The twelve congeners that display all four of the descriptors are referred to as being "dioxin-like", referring both to their toxicity and structural features which make them similar to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (2378-TCDD). [1]
The PCB congener pattern suggested the contamination was from a mixture of Aroclor 1260 and 1254. Over 9 million chickens, and 60,000 pigs were destroyed because of the contamination. The extent of human health effects has been debated, in part because of the use of differing risk assessment methods.
There are 209 PCB compounds. Analogously to PCDDs at least two lateral chlorines in each ring in positions 3,4, and/or 5 are needed for dioxin-like activity. Because the AH receptor requires a planar (flat) structure, only PCB congeners that can rotate freely along the C—C axis between the rings can attach the receptor.
A group of carcinogenic organic compounds, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), is an example of a congener grouping. The number and locations of Cl groups can vary. In chemistry, congeners are chemical substances "related to each other by origin, structure, or function". [1]
The toxicity of the individual congeners may vary by orders of magnitude. With the TEFs, the toxicity of a mixture of dioxins and dioxin-like compounds can be expressed in a single number – the toxic equivalency (TEQ). It is a single figure resulting from the product of the concentration and individual TEF values of each congener. [1]
General chemical structure of PCDFs, where 1 ≤ n+m ≤ 8 Structures of the ten 2,3,7,8-substituted PCDF congeners that are toxicologically of most relevance. Polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) are a family of organic compounds with one or several of the hydrogens in the dibenzofuran structure replaced by chlorines.
Exposure to the coplanar stereoisomer 3,3',4,4',5,5'-hexabromobiphenyl (but not the non-coplanar stereoisomer) in genetically susceptible mice is known to cause immunotoxicity and disorders related to the central nervous system, and even at doses as low as 2.5 mg/kg, excess neonatal fatalities are observed (LD 50 is from 5–10 mg/kg). [1]
TCDD and dioxin-like compounds act via a specific receptor present in all cells: the aryl hydrocarbon (AH) receptor. [6] [7] [8] This receptor is a transcription factor which is involved in the expression of genes; it has been shown that high doses of TCDD either increase or decrease the expression of several hundred genes in rats. [9]