«ALMA's discovery
of organohalogens in the interstellar medium also tells us something about the starting conditions for organic chemistry on planets.
«We can have pounds of these in
organohalogens in our consumer products in our homes»
However, in recent years, over 5,000 naturally - occurring
organohalogen compounds have been identified, and evidence suggests that the cycling of halogens e.g. chlorine, bromine in soils is largely driven by microbial processes.
«Additional searches for
organohalogens around other protostars and comets need to be undertaken to help find the answer.»
Volatile
organohalogens like chloromethane strongly influence atmospheric chemistry and thereby Earth's climate by causing ozone depletion when released into the atmosphere.
The new ALMA observation is the first detection ever of a
stable organohalogen in interstellar space.
Organohalogens consist of halogens, such as chlorine and fluorine, bonded with carbon and sometimes other elements.
«The great abundance of these enzymes and of
natural organohalogens, respectively, has an important impact,» says Andreas Kappler.
Production of
organohalogens by microorganisms has to be taken into account for the study of halogen cycling in atmospheric chemistry as well.
Assumptions that halogens are inert and that most halogenated organic matter in soils is anthropogenic have been challenged by findings of naturally
formed organohalogens.
Specifically, Blum worries about the health impacts of
new organohalogens (like Firemaster 550, a popular alternative to pentaPBDE) because its compositional specifics are hidden behind patent laws.
Kristin Møller Gabrielsen of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim and colleagues report in the journal Environmental Research that they examined the liver, muscle and kidney tissues taken from seven polar bears killed by Inuit hunters in East Greenland in 2011 and analysed the effect of more than 50 contaminants in plasma samples from Ursus maritimus, to see what
effect organohalogen compounds could have on the bears» thyroid systems.
Tagged contaminants, Davis Strait, diet, East Greenland, harp seals, hooded seals, movements, PBSG, PCBs, persistent organic pollutants,
Persistent organohalogen contaminants, POC, polar bears, pollutants, POP, population assessments, seal pups, threatened, toxins, West Ice
Some well - known (and very hazardous) examples of
organohalogens include PCBs, DDT, and CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons)-- all of which are now globally banned by the United Nation's Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) treaty.
The undiminished increase of the fluxes of
many organohalogens into the sediment of Lake Oberaar does not yet prefigure an exhaust of the glacial inventory of these contaminants.
Organohalogens like perchloroethene and trichloroethene are prominent groundwater pollutants due to their industrial use as dry cleaning and degreasing agents and their widespread release into the environment.
Although specific microbial halogenation reactions have been recognized for decades and the link between the dehalogenation of anthropogenic halogenated contaminants in laboratory cultures and contaminated field sites has been well established, only a few studies specifically looked at pristine ecosystems and the genetic potential for microbial degradation of naturally
occurring organohalogens, Kappler says.
«Our results shows that we still have more to learn about the formation
of organohalogens,» concludes Fayolle.
This suggests that astronomers may have had things around the wrong way; rather than indicating the presence of existing life,
organohalogens may be an important element in the little - understood chemistry involved in the origin of life.
«Finding
the organohalogen Freon - 40 near these young, Sun - like stars was surprising,» said Edith Fayolle, a researcher with the Harvard - Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Massachusetts in the USA, and lead author of the new paper.
This supports the idea that a young planetary system can inherit the chemical composition of its parent star - forming cloud and opens up the possibility that
organohalogens could arrive on planets in young systems during planet formation or via comet impacts.
«Based on our discovery,
organohalogens are likely to be a constituent of the so - called «primordial soup», both on the young Earth and on nascent rocky exoplanets.»
Xorg:
organohalogen; Xin inorganic halogen, e.g. chlorine or bromine.
Mostly it refers to
organohalogens — compounds like DDT that incorporate halogens such as chlorine or bromine into organic molecules — that are naturally nearly nonexistent in mammals.
Original Journal Source: E. Roze et al.Prenatal exposure to
organohalogens, including brominated flame retardants, influences motor, cognitive, and behavioral performance at school age.
BFRs and PVC are
both organohalogens.