Marc Saner

State of Academic Knowledge on Toxicity and Biological Fate of Quantum Dots

Quantum dots (QDs), an important class of emerging nanomaterial, are widely anticipated to find application in many consumer and clinical products in the near future. Premarket regulatory scrutiny is, thus, an issue gaining considerable attention. Previous review papers have focused primarily on the toxicity of QDs. From the point of view of product regulation, however, parameters that determine exposure (e.g., dosage, transformation, transportation, and persistence) are just as important as inherent toxicity. We have structured our review paper according to regulatory risk assessment practices, in order to improve the utility of existing knowledge in a regulatory context. Herein, we summarize the state of academic knowledge on QDs pertaining not only to toxicity, but also their physicochemical properties, and their biological and environmental fate. We conclude this review with recommendations on how to tailor future research efforts to address the specific needs of regulators.

Interaction among two biological control agents and the developmental stage of their target weed, dalmatian toadflax, Linaria dalmatica (L.) Mill. (Scrophulariaceae)

An experiment with potted Linaria dalmatica (L.) Mill. was set up to test the effects of root‐feeding by Eteobalea (syn. Stagmatophora) intermediella Riedl (Lep. Cosmopterigidae) and stem‐mining by Mecinus janthinus Germar (Col. Curculionidae), as well as the interaction among the insects and the developmental stage of the host plant. During the summer season, mining by M. janthinus decreased the stem biomass substantially, while E. intermediella did not produce statistically significant effects on the performance of host plant individuals (the experimental conditions represented the effect of the univoltine M. janthinus adequately, but the potentially important effect of mining by the second generation of E. intermediella, at the beginning of the growing season, was not assessed). M. janthinus survived almost exclusively on plants in the flowering stage, although adult females readily used vegetative (younger) plants for oviposition. E. intermediella had a higher chance of survival on vegetative plants. ...

Commercial, Societal and Administrative Benefits from the Analysis and Clarification of Definitions: The Case of Nanomaterials

The managerial, policy, technical and ethical decisions centred on emerging technologies are often hampered by a lack of consensus on what falls within the remit of such decisions. A lack of clarity and agreement on definitions is especially the case for nanotechnology. Given the potential of nanotechnology to underpin the next Schumpeterian economic cycle, this limitation on decision making needs to be taken seriously. Here we add to the literature by providing a pathway for decision makers to understand the nature and value of differing definitions in the important case of nanomaterials. We identified 65 relevant sources, of which 27 provided a definition of the term ‘nanomaterial’. Based on the analysis of the content of these 27 definitions, we generated an analytical taxonomy of definitions of ‘nanomaterials’ from which we constructed seven logical categories. Our analysis provides decision makers with a taxonomy to more precisely understand the diversity of definitions, thereby assisting them in their decision‐making processes.

A geography-based critique of new US biofuels regulations

The new renewable fuels standard (RFS 2) aims to distinguish corn‐ethanol that achieves a 20% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions compared with gasoline. Field data from Kim et al. (2009) and from our own study suggest that geographic variability in the GHG emissions arising from corn production casts considerable doubt on the approach used in the RFS 2 to measure compliance with the 20% target. If regulators wish to require compliance of fuels with specific GHG emission reduction thresholds, then data from growing biomass should be disaggregated to a level that captures the level of variability in grain corn production and the application of life cycle assessment to biofuels should be modified to capture this variability.

Ethics as problem and ethics as solution

I argue that both the magnitude of the problem that introduction of ethics into the debate over modern biotechnology may cause and the potential of ethics to serve as a tool are commonly underestimated. I then use this clarification in support of the argument that (a) the consideration of ethics is unavoidable, (b) the ethical analysis of the problem is crucially important for the complete understanding of the issues, and (c) defensible constraints on debate derived from ethical analysis can play an important role in a consensus building process.

Ethics, Governance and Regulation

Black chose a humble title – the environmental aspects of aquaculture – but actually provides more. In the introduction, he alludes to his plan to take on more. He touches on the concept of the sustainability of aquaculture (a concept which encompasses issues beyond environmental aspects) and also points out that well-designed regulations (a governance instrument) are of central importance in addressing the results of his survey. Black follows through on these three different topics. First and foremost, his survey encompasses the main impacts of aquaculture on the physical environment (qualitatively and occasionally quantitatively). Second, it addresses the broader impacts of aquaculture on society and the economy, as one would expect in a paper that touches on the sustainability of aquaculture. Third, Black puts forward a proposition for a regulatory approach – the “limiting factor approach” – which focuses on regulation for the control of the impacts of aquaculture on the physical environment. Such a broad scope is beyond what can be fully addressed in a single paper, but this perspective provides us with a thread, that goes from a strong focus on the

A Primer on Scientific Risk Assessment at Health Canada

This Primer provides an introduction to how science is used at Health Canada to assess and manage health risks, particularly risks that may be associated with products regulated by Health Canada. Corporate, ethics, legal and economic risks are not covered in this Primer. The focus of the Primer is on the use of the natural sciences in decision making. The main purpose of this Primer is to introduce these concepts in the context of their use. The scientific assessments carried out at Health Canada require sophisticated technical skills and a complex system of cooperation between players in the public and private sectors. The Primer addresses three fundamental questions that represent the basic elements of a risk management system. The question “Who is at risk?” is addressed first. It is followed by the questions “What causes the risks?” and “How does Health Canada deal with the risks?”

A life-cycle approach to biotechnology ethics

Increasingly, government officials are asked to take ethical considerations into account during regulatory decision-making and especially in the case of biotechnology products. It is also clear, however, that ethical issues arise throughout the planning, production and use of these products (i.e. the entire product life cycle) rather than just during the regulatory step. In this paper it is argued that the ethical issues should be considered throughout the product life cycle.