Copper is an essential trace element, yet concerns regarding its toxic potential have gained increasing attention, particularly with regard to nanoparticulate forms of copper oxides. Both CuO and Cu 2 O are currently authorised in the EU for use in agriculture, biocides, and animal nutrition, but regulatory clarity regarding their nanoforms remains limited. This comprehensive review—combining narrative, bibliometric, and syste...

This review comprehensively examines the variability and uncertainty associated with test guideline (TG)-conform genotoxicity data and explores the respective implications for the integration of non-animal-methods (NAMs) into regulatory frameworks. Historical amendments to OECD TGs are mapped to reveal the method’s evolution that improves the scientific quality of the data but also explains data heterogeneity within available...

Enniatins (ENNs) and beauvericin (BEA) are cyclic hexadepsipeptide fungal metabolites which have demonstrated antibiotic, antimycotic, and insecticidal activities. The substantial toxic potentials of these mycotoxins are associated with their ionophoric molecular properties and relatively high lipophilicities. ENNs occur extensively in grain and grain-derived products and are considered a food safety issue by the European Food...

Fungi of the genus Alternaria are ubiquitous plant pathogens and saprophytes which are able to grow under varying temperature and moisture conditions as well as on a large range of substrates. A spectrum of structurally diverse secondary metabolites with toxic potential has been identified, but occurrence and relative proportion of the different metabolites in complex mixtures depend on strain, substrate, and growth conditions...

Summary Hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH)‐degrading bacteria are believed to mediate natural attenuation of HCH contamination and have potential for active bioremediation processes. This study addressed the very limited understanding of the distribution, diversity and substrate specificity of such bacteria from 13 soil samples, varying in levels of HCH contamination, from four sites in Spain. Hexachlorocyclohexane removal occurred i...

Summary In the past decades, large amounts of non‐insecticidal hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) isomers (α‐, β‐, δ‐ and ɛ‐HCH) have been dumped as side‐products of the insecticide γ‐HCH (lindane). This study investigates the effect of HCH isomers on methane oxidation, an important soil function performed by methanotrophic bacteria. Both activity and structure of the methanotrophic community were assessed, using methane oxidation as...