Forum

case of monarchs,

traditional wintering sites in California

and Mexico have beenconverted by development,

deforestation,

or agriculture. Thus, tens of millions

of monarchs

are restricted to 10 sitesin Mexico

(5 of them unprotected

by regulations)

and only 7 remaining sites in California.

The butterflies

are not yet endangered,

but a major

part of their life cycle is in jeopardy. Outreach in elementary

schools has improved the public's

appreciation

of bats. And BCI is working

with miningcompanies to convert abandoned

mines intoroosts forhibernating

bats, creating a human-animal partnership

withmutual

benefits. "This is a very important part of bat ecology," says French."Weprotect [both] the bats and people with gates

at the mine entrances.

It gives a habitat forbats, and helps give mines

a more positive image." Pollinators

may also benefitfrom the

move toward more "natural" gardens in privatehomes

that demand

lesspesticide

use,
as well as a 1994 Executive Memorandum issued by President

Clinton that recommends the use of regional native plants, which often evolved

with their

pollinators in a mutually

beneficial relationship,

and integrated pest management,

which features reduced useof pesticides

on federal andfederallyfunded properties. And science is beginning to do its part

to protectpollinators, as well. In a paper

published

in the February 1998issue of Conservation

Biology, Nabhan, Bitner, Inouye, and 19 other

coauthors propose supporting

animal pollinator services by promoting

alternative

pollinators, encouraging

crop breeders to consider pollinator attraction in new varieties,

preserving pollinator

stocks,and researching ways of increasing

pollination

and creating pollinator habitats in agricultural

areas.



## Melanoma

Vaccines
Researchers

aremaking

significant

progress in developinginnovativetreatments for melanoma,

a form of malignant

skin cancer that is on the rise in the United States, according to the American

Cancer Society. Melanoma

begins in the melanocytes,

the cells that produce

the skin pigment

called melanin. Researchers

believe that exposure to ultraviolet

light damages

the DNA in these cells, which results in thedevelopment of melanoma. Scientists have been working for years to develop vaccines that treatmelanoma

by stimulating

the immunesystem

to attack

cancer cells.The body does not ordinarily attack melanoma

cells because such cells are case of monarchs,

traditional wintering sites in California

and Mexico have beenconverted by development,

deforestation,

or agriculture. Thus, tens of millions

of monarchs

are restricted to 10 sitesin Mexico

(5 of them unprotected

by regulations)

and only 7 remaining sites in California.

The butterflies

are not yet endangered,

but a major

part of their life cycle is in jeopardy. Outreach in elementary

schools has improved the public's

appreciation

of bats. And BCI is working

with miningcompanies to convert abandoned

mines intoroosts forhibernating

bats, creating a human-animal partnership

withmutual

benefits. "This is a very important part of bat ecology," says French."Weprotect [both] the bats and people with gates

at the mine entrances.

It gives a habitat forbats, and helps give mines

a more positive image." Pollinators

may also benefitfrom the

move toward more "natural" gardens in privatehomes

that demand

lesspesticide

use,
as well as a 1994 Executive Memorandum issued by President

Clinton that recommends the use of regional native plants, which often evolved

with their

pollinators in a mutually

beneficial relationship,

and integrated pest management,

which features reduced useof pesticides

on federal andfederallyfunded properties. And science is beginning to do its part

to protectpollinators, as well. In a paper

published

in the February 1998issue of Conservation

Biology, Nabhan, Bitner, Inouye, and 19 other

coauthors propose supporting

animal pollinator services by promoting

alternative

pollinators, encouraging

crop breeders to consider pollinator attraction in new varieties,

preserving pollinator

stocks,and researching ways of increasing

pollination

and creating pollinator habitats in agricultural

areas.



## Melanoma

Vaccines
Researchers

aremaking

significant

progress in developinginnovativetreatments for melanoma,

a form of malignant

skin cancer that is on the rise in the United States, according to the American

Cancer Society. Melanoma

begins in the melanocytes,

the cells that produce

the skin pigment

called melanin. Researchers

believe that exposure to ultraviolet

light damages

the DNA in these cells, which results in thedevelopment of melanoma. Scientists have been working for years to develop vaccines that treatmelanoma

by stimulating

the immunesystem

to attack

cancer cells.The body does not ordinarily attack melanoma

cells because such cells are case of monarchs,

traditional wintering sites in California

and Mexico have beenconverted by development,

deforestation,

or agriculture. Thus, tens of millions

of monarchs

are restricted to 10 sitesin Mexico

(5 of them unprotected

by regulations)

and only 7 remaining sites in California.

The butterflies

are not yet endangered,

but a major

part of their life cycle is in jeopardy. Outreach in elementary

schools has improved the public's

appreciation

of bats. And BCI is working

with miningcompanies to convert abandoned

mines intoroosts forhibernating

bats, creating a human-animal partnership

withmutual

benefits. "This is a very important part of bat ecology," says French."Weprotect [both] the bats and people with gates

at the mine entrances.

It gives a habitat forbats, and helps give mines

a more positive image." Pollinators

may also benefitfrom the

move toward more "natural" gardens in privatehomes

that demand

lesspesticide

use,
as well as a 1994 Executive Memorandum issued by President

Clinton that recommends the use of regional native plants, which often evolved

with their

pollinators in a mutually

beneficial relationship,

and integrated pest management,

which features reduced useof pesticides

on federal andfederallyfunded properties. And science is beginning to do its part

to protectpollinators, as well. In a paper

published

in the February 1998issue of Conservation

Biology, Nabhan, Bitner, Inouye, and 19 other

coauthors propose supporting

animal pollinator services by promoting

alternative

pollinators, encouraging

crop breeders to consider pollinator attraction in new varieties,

preserving pollinator

stocks,and researching ways of increasing

pollination

and creating pollinator habitats in agricultural

areas.



## Melanoma

Vaccines
Researchers

aremaking

significant

progress in developinginnovativetreatments for melanoma,

a form of malignant

skin cancer that is on the rise in the United States, according to the American

Cancer Society. Melanoma

begins in the melanocytes,

the cells that produce

the skin pigment

called melanin. Researchers

believe that exposure to ultraviolet

light damages

the DNA in these cells, which results in thedevelopment of melanoma. Scientists have been working for years to develop vaccines that treatmelanoma

by stimulating

the immunesystem

to attack

cancer cells.The body does not ordinarily attack melanoma

cells because such cells are roughly 99% normal, says Philip Livingston, head of the cancer vaccinology laboratory at Memorial Sloan-Kettering roughly 99% normal, says Philip Livingston, head of the cancer vaccinology laboratory at Memorial Sloan-Kettering roughly 99% normal, says Philip Livingston, head of the cancer vaccinology laboratory at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. Researchers

have sought to identify

the differences that explain

why some cells turn

cancerous.

"We've spent many years in the laboratory

trying to defineand isolate

the genetic elements and the genes that code for what is different

on a cancer

cell compared to a normal

cell that the immune

system
canrecognize,"

says Steven Rosenberg,

chief of surgery at the National

Cancer Institute (NCI). Livingston

refers to thesecharacteristic elements of cancer cells, which includeproteins and antigens, as "handles."

Researchers developingmelanoma

vaccinesreplicate these handles and combine them with immuneboosters,

or substances

that the immune system recognizes and attacks. Theoretically,

linking the handles

withsubstances known to elicit an immune

response willprompt

thebody to seek out allhandles and therewith

eliminate the cancer

cells. Although the practical

application

of such vaccines is years away, scientists are making significant

advances in the area.

"This is a mammoth

field," saysPaul Chapman,

an associate attending physician and head of the melanoma

section at Memorial

SloanKettering Cancer Center. "There aremany vaccines that are being tested,and all are equally promising." Researchers at Memorial SloanKettering are working

on melanoma

vaccines that containone of threereplicated chemicals-GM2,

GD2, or GD3-that are located on melanoma

cells and that have been found to be recognized by the immune system. The vaccines

combine the chemicals with QS21, an immune

booster from the South American soapbark tree, andKLH, an antigen produced by themollusk Megathura

crenulata. Early results how

an improvement

in survival

rates in some patients. Rosenberg

and colleagues

at the NCI havechosen

to work with cancer

cell peptides that theimmune

system can recognize. They havemodified

the peptides

so they
canbetter bindto the immune

cells-cytotoxic T lymphocytes-that attack melanoma

cells. The modified

peptides are then injectedinto the body. In a recent study published in the March

1998 issue of Nature Medicine, Rosenberg

and colleagues reportedthat, when administered with interleukin-2,

a medication

thatboosts

the immune system to help slowthe growth

of
cancer, the vaccine

caused an immune

systemresponse.

They also found that 13 of 31 patients showed at least partial tumor shrinkage in the lung or skin,among other sites. Cancer Center in New York City. Researchers

have sought to identify

the differences that explain

why some cells turn

cancerous.

"We've spent many years in the laboratory

trying to defineand isolate

the genetic elements and the genes that code for what is different

on a cancer

cell compared to a normal

cell that the immune

system
canrecognize,"

says Steven Rosenberg,

chief of surgery at the National

Cancer Institute (NCI). Livingston

refers to thesecharacteristic elements of cancer cells, which includeproteins and antigens, as "handles."

Researchers developingmelanoma

vaccinesreplicate these handles and combine them with immuneboosters,

or substances

that the immune system recognizes and attacks. Theoretically,

linking the handles

withsubstances known to elicit an immune

response willprompt

thebody to seek out allhandles and therewith

eliminate the cancer

cells. Although the practical

application

of such vaccines is years away, scientists are making significant

advances in the area.

"This is a mammoth

field," saysPaul Chapman,

an associate attending physician and head of the melanoma

section at Memorial

SloanKettering Cancer Center. "There aremany vaccines that are being tested,and all are equally promising." Researchers at Memorial SloanKettering are working

on melanoma

vaccines that containone of threereplicated chemicals-GM2,

GD2, or GD3-that are located on melanoma

cells and that have been found to be recognized by the immune system. The vaccines

combine the chemicals with QS21, an immune

booster from the South American soapbark tree, andKLH, an antigen produced by themollusk Megathura

crenulata. Early results how

an improvement

in survival

rates in some patients. Rosenberg

and colleagues

at the NCI havechosen

to work with cancer

cell peptides that theimmune

system can recognize. They havemodified

the peptides

so they
canbetter bindto the immune

cells-cytotoxic T lymphocytes-that attack melanoma

cells. The modified

peptides are then injectedinto the body. In a recent study published in the March

1998 issue of Nature Medicine, Rosenberg

and colleagues reportedthat, when administered with interleukin-2,

a medication

thatboosts

the immune system to help slowthe growth

of
cancer, the vaccine

caused an immune

systemresponse.

They also found that 13 of 31 patients showed at least partial tumor shrinkage in the lung or skin,among other sites. Cancer Center in New York City. Researchers

have sought to identify

the differences that explain

why some cells turn

cancerous.

"We've spent many years in the laboratory

trying to defineand isolate

the genetic elements and the genes that code for what is different

on a cancer

cell compared to a normal

cell that the immune

system
canrecognize,"

says Steven Rosenberg,

chief of surgery at the National

Cancer Institute (NCI). Livingston

refers to thesecharacteristic elements of cancer cells, which includeproteins and antigens, as "handles."

Researchers developingmelanoma

vaccinesreplicate these handles and combine them with immuneboosters,

or substances

that the immune system recognizes and attacks. Theoretically,

linking the handles

withsubstances known to elicit an immune

response willprompt

thebody to seek out allhandles and therewith

eliminate the cancer

cells. Although the practical

application

of such vaccines is years away, scientists are making significant

advances in the area.

"This is a mammoth

field," saysPaul Chapman,

an associate attending physician and head of the melanoma

section at Memorial

SloanKettering Cancer Center. "There aremany vaccines that are being tested,and all are equally promising." Researchers at Memorial SloanKettering are working

on melanoma

vaccines that containone of threereplicated chemicals-GM2,

GD2, or GD3-that are located on melanoma

cells and that have been found to be recognized by the immune system. The vaccines

combine the chemicals with QS21, an immune

booster from the South American soapbark tree, andKLH, an antigen produced by themollusk Megathura

crenulata. Early results how

an improvement

in survival

rates in some patients. Rosenberg

and colleagues

at the NCI havechosen

to work with cancer

cell peptides that theimmune

system can recognize. They havemodified

the peptides

so they
canbetter bindto the immune

cells-cytotoxic T lymphocytes-that attack melanoma

cells. The modified

peptides are then injectedinto the body. In a recent study published in the March

1998 issue of Nature Medicine, Rosenberg

and colleagues reportedthat, when administered with interleukin-2,

a medication

thatboosts

the immune system to help slowthe growth

of
cancer, the vaccine

caused an immune

systemresponse.

They also found that 13 of 31 patients showed at least partial tumor shrinkage in the lung or skin,among other sites. Anotherpromising

vaccine has been developed by Donald Morton and colAnotherpromising

vaccine has been developed by Donald Morton and colAnotherpromising

vaccine has been developed by Donald Morton and colleagues at the John Wayne Cancer Institute in Santa Monica,California.

Mortoncollected blood, tissue, and serum samples from melanoma

patients for many years. Study of these samples enabled himto identify three cancercell lines that provoke strong immune system responses. Morton is workingon a vaccine that uses radiated melanoma

cells containing

manydifferent handles combined with bacillus

CalmetteGuerin, a known immune booster. Morton is currently

conducting

worldwide

clinical trials on thevaccine.



## New Source of FishFears
In the Snook Nook bait shop in Jensen Beach, Florida, snapshots of anglers holding up their prize catches attest to the rich bounty forwhich the adjacent

Indian River is famous. A few yards

from the shop,in a cramped trailer owned by the Florida Department

of Environmental

Protection (DEP), is another

photographic

testament to the Indian

River's fish. These close-up shots show fish with bloody, open sores reminiscent

of those associated

with the toxic dinoflagellate

Pfiesteriapiscicida. The sickened

fish in the photosbegan appearing early this spring

on the hooks

of anglers fishing around the juncture of Florida'sIndian and St. Lucie rivers, a brackish region known as the St. Lucie Estuary. At least 33 species of fish were affected. Although the lesions

mimicthose associated with the Pfiesteria

outbreaks that have killed millions of fishin Maryland

and NorthCarolina,

the estuary

apparently

harborsa different

culprit; nearly all the sickened fish in theestuary

were found alive. Water samples revealed the presence

of Cryptoperidiniopsis

("crypto"),

oneof 10 recognized Pfiesteria-like

species of microalgae. Karen Steidinger,

a senior research scientist, and Jan Landsberg,

a research scientist, both of the DEP's Florida Marine Research Institute in St. Petersburg,

first identified crypto in 1997in water

samples taken from St. John's River nearJacksonville. Like Pfiesteria, crypto is a heterotrophic

dinoflagellate that feeds on microalgal

prey. Crypto coexistswith Pfiesteria

in Maryland

and North Carolina,

but appears

to live apart from any related species in Florida. Whether it'scausing

the ulcers in the St. Lucie fish, though, is not clear. Of the 2,000 known species of dinoflagellates, about 65 have beenshown

to produce

toxins. "There's

no evidence

[crypto] is toxic," leagues at the John Wayne Cancer Institute in Santa Monica,California.

Mortoncollected blood, tissue, and serum samples from melanoma

patients for many years. Study of these samples enabled himto identify three cancercell lines that provoke strong immune system responses. Morton is workingon a vaccine that uses radiated melanoma

cells containing

manydifferent handles combined with bacillus

CalmetteGuerin, a known immune booster. Morton is currently

conducting

worldwide

clinical trials on thevaccine.



## New Source of FishFears
In the Snook Nook bait shop in Jensen Beach, Florida, snapshots of anglers holding up their prize catches attest to the rich bounty forwhich the adjacent

Indian River is famous. A few yards

from the shop,in a cramped trailer owned by the Florida Department

of Environmental

Protection (DEP), is another

photographic

testament to the Indian

River's fish. These close-up shots show fish with bloody, open sores reminiscent

of those associated

with the toxic dinoflagellate

Pfiesteriapiscicida. The sickened

fish in the photosbegan appearing early this spring

on the hooks

of anglers fishing around the juncture of Florida'sIndian and St. Lucie rivers, a brackish region known as the St. Lucie Estuary. At least 33 species of fish were affected. Although the lesions

mimicthose associated with the Pfiesteria

outbreaks that have killed millions of fishin Maryland

and NorthCarolina,

the estuary

apparently

harborsa different

culprit; nearly all the sickened fish in theestuary

were found alive. Water samples revealed the presence

of Cryptoperidiniopsis

("crypto"),

oneof 10 recognized Pfiesteria-like

species of microalgae. Karen Steidinger,

a senior research scientist, and Jan Landsberg,

a research scientist, both of the DEP's Florida Marine Research Institute in St. Petersburg,

first identified crypto in 1997in water

samples taken from St. John's River nearJacksonville. Like Pfiesteria, crypto is a heterotrophic

dinoflagellate that feeds on microalgal

prey. Crypto coexistswith Pfiesteria

in Maryland

and North Carolina,

but appears

to live apart from any related species in Florida. Whether it'scausing

the ulcers in the St. Lucie fish, though, is not clear. Of the 2,000 known species of dinoflagellates, about 65 have beenshown

to produce

toxins. "There's

no evidence

[crypto] is toxic," leagues at the John Wayne Cancer Institute in Santa Monica,California.

Mortoncollected blood, tissue, and serum samples from melanoma

patients for many years. Study of these samples enabled himto identify three cancercell lines that provoke strong immune system responses. Morton is workingon a vaccine that uses radiated melanoma

cells containing

manydifferent handles combined with bacillus

CalmetteGuerin, a known immune booster. Morton is currently

conducting

worldwide

clinical trials on thevaccine.



## New Source of FishFears
In the Snook Nook bait shop in Jensen Beach, Florida, snapshots of anglers holding up their prize catches attest to the rich bounty forwhich the adjacent

Indian River is famous. A few yards

from the shop,in a cramped trailer owned by the Florida Department

of Environmental

Protection (DEP), is another

photographic

testament to the Indian

River's fish. These close-up shots show fish with bloody, open sores reminiscent

of those associated

with the toxic dinoflagellate

Pfiesteriapiscicida. The sickened

fish in the photosbegan appearing early this spring

on the hooks

of anglers fishing around the juncture of Florida'sIndian and St. Lucie rivers, a brackish region known as the St. Lucie Estuary. At least 33 species of fish were affected. Although the lesions

mimicthose associated with the Pfiesteria

outbreaks that have killed millions of fishin Maryland

and NorthCarolina,

the estuary

apparently

harborsa different

culprit; nearly all the sickened fish in theestuary

were found alive. Water samples revealed the presence

of Cryptoperidiniopsis

("crypto"),

oneof 10 recognized Pfiesteria-like

species of microalgae. Karen Steidinger,

a senior research scientist, and Jan Landsberg,

a research scientist, both of the DEP's Florida Marine Research Institute in St. Petersburg,

first identified crypto in 1997in water

samples taken from St. John's River nearJacksonville. Like Pfiesteria, crypto is a heterotrophic

dinoflagellate that feeds on microalgal

prey. Crypto coexistswith Pfiesteria

in Maryland

and North Carolina,

but appears

to live apart from any related species in Florida. Whether it'scausing

the ulcers in the St. Lucie fish, though, is not clear. Of the 2,000 known species of dinoflagellates, about 65 have beenshown

to produce

toxins. "There's

no evidence

[crypto] is toxic," says JoAnn Burkholder,

an associate

professorof botany

andaquatic

ecology at North Carolina State University

in Raleigh,

who in 1991 helped identify Pfiesteria. "We don't understand

much about toxin prosays JoAnn Burkholder,

an associate

professorof botany

andaquatic

ecology at North Carolina State University

in Raleigh,

who in 1991 helped identify Pfiesteria. "We don't understand

much about toxin prosays JoAnn Burkholder,

an associate

professorof botany

andaquatic

ecology at North Carolina State University

in Raleigh,

who in 1991 helped identify Pfiesteria. "We don't understand

much about toxin proEnvironmental

Health Perspectives

? Volume 106, Number 9, September

1998 Environmental Perspectives September Environmental Perspectives September A 425Forum

duction in dinoflagellates." Whatever

is plaguing the St. Lucie

fishappears

to act by destroying the protective mucous coat of the fish, inviting opportunistic

bacterial and fungal infections. Burkholder, Steidinger, and other researchers

are scrambling

to determine whether crypto is indeed toxic, and to solve the mystery of the sickened fish. "It's extremely important

from a publichealth perspective

to know what's out there, what

are its toxins and their effects," Steidinger says. Sometime this summer,researcher Peter Moeller, project leader for the marine biotoxins program at the NationalOcean Service in Charleston, South Carolina, expects to have preliminary resultsof bioassays he's conducting to determine crypto's toxins. His findings should aid in understandingboth cryptoand its cousins. According to Daniel Baden, director of the NIEHS Marine and Freshwater Biomedical Sciences Center at the University of Miami in Florida, three toxins have been associated with Pfiesteria-like dinoflagellates-a lipid-soluble lethal toxin, a water-soluble suspected neurotoxin, anda dermonecrotic

toxin. Badenspeculates that lesions found on fish killed by Pfiesteria may actually be caused by crypto. "Peoplehave been working with mixed cultures,"he says, "but because the organisms were differentiated only recently, we haven't had time to ascribe specific toxins
to specific organisms." Some researchers

hope to ward off future outbreaks by determining what caused an ancient species of microalgaeto strike here and now. "We believe cryptohas been here hundreds,

maybe thousands

of years,"says DEP marine biologist Ann Forstchen.

Four times over the last 20 years, the St. Lucie

Estuary hassuffered

outbreaks of fish disease.Each followed unusually high discharges

from the St. Lucie Canal into the St. Lucie

River, in which the South Florida Water Management

District flushed fresh water from Lake Okeechobee

through the canal to prevent

flooding. "There's an apparent causal relationship

betweenmassivedischarges

and the outbreak

of ulcers,"
says Dan Haunert,

a lead scientist with the South Florida Water Management

District. Nutrient runoffinto the canal is believedto promote microalgal

growth while the force of the discharges

is thought to push the growth up from the bottom sediment. Although studies are incomplete, crypto
appears to have little, if any, effect on humans. Two months into the St. Lucie outbreak, the Florida

Department

of Health had received

fewerthan two dozen complaints from people who suspected

they had duction in dinoflagellates." Whatever

is plaguing the St. Lucie

fishappears

to act by destroying the protective mucous coat of the fish, inviting opportunistic

bacterial and fungal infections. Burkholder, Steidinger, and other researchers

are scrambling

to determine whether crypto is indeed toxic, and to solve the mystery of the sickened fish. "It's extremely important

from a publichealth perspective

to know what's out there, what

are its toxins and their effects," Steidinger says. Sometime this summer,researcher Peter Moeller, project leader for the marine biotoxins program at the NationalOcean Service in Charleston, South Carolina, expects to have preliminary resultsof bioassays he's conducting to determine crypto's toxins. His findings should aid in understandingboth cryptoand its cousins. According to Daniel Baden, director of the NIEHS Marine and Freshwater Biomedical Sciences Center at the University of Miami in Florida, three toxins have been associated with Pfiesteria-like dinoflagellates-a lipid-soluble lethal toxin, a water-soluble suspected neurotoxin, anda dermonecrotic

toxin. Badenspeculates that lesions found on fish killed by Pfiesteria may actually be caused by crypto. "Peoplehave been working with mixed cultures,"he says, "but because the organisms were differentiated only recently, we haven't had time to ascribe specific toxins
to specific organisms." Some researchers

hope to ward off future outbreaks by determining what caused an ancient species of microalgaeto strike here and now. "We believe cryptohas been here hundreds,

maybe thousands

of years,"says DEP marine biologist Ann Forstchen.

Four times over the last 20 years, the St. Lucie

Estuary hassuffered

outbreaks of fish disease.Each followed unusually high discharges

from the St. Lucie Canal into the St. Lucie

River, in which the South Florida Water Management

District flushed fresh water from Lake Okeechobee

through the canal to prevent

flooding. "There's an apparent causal relationship

betweenmassivedischarges

and the outbreak

of ulcers,"
says Dan Haunert,

a lead scientist with the South Florida Water Management

District. Nutrient runoffinto the canal is believedto promote microalgal

growth while the force of the discharges

is thought to push the growth up from the bottom sediment. Although studies are incomplete, crypto
appears to have little, if any, effect on humans. Two months into the St. Lucie outbreak, the Florida

Department

of Health had received

fewerthan two dozen complaints from people who suspected

they had been harmed by contact with the river been harmed by contact water. "We haven't seen a clear association between
exposure and illness,"

says epidemiologist Alan Rowan. "[People are] reporting various symptoms and they've had a wide range of exposures, from one day to five years. New water worries. There may be alternative be causing sickfishexplanations." As freshwater

discharges dropped off in April, so did the number of diseased

fish broughtto the DEP's trailer outside the Snook Nook Scientists

believe the fish disease event may have run its course. But Forstchen expects it to return, just as she expects the periodic

return of unseasonably heavy rains. "I don't think we'll be in a position to stop [outbreaks],"

she says, "but we
may be able to predict when they'll happen." clear association between
exposure and illness,"

says epidemiologist Alan Rowan. "[People are] reporting various symptoms and they've had a wide range of exposures, from one day to five years. New water worries. There may be alternative be causing sickfishexplanations." As freshwater

discharges dropped off in April, so did the number of diseased

fish broughtto the DEP's trailer outside the Snook Nook Scientists

believe the fish disease event may have run its course. But Forstchen expects it to return, just as she expects the periodic

return of unseasonably heavy rains. "I don't think we'll be in a position to stop [outbreaks],"

she says, "but we
may be able to predict when they'll happen."



## Lasers for Lungs Lung cancer is one of the deadliest cancers in the United States, striking an estimated 190,000 people and killing 160,000 annually. Smoking is the major cause of lung

cancer worldwide, but asbestos, air pollution, and radon appear

to contributeto this disease. By the time cancers of the lung become visible through conventional diagnostics, they frequently

are too far advanced
to treat successfully. Now, Xillix Technologies Corporation of Richmond, British Columbia, has developed a technology that allows much earlier diagnosis of these dangerous

cancers, possiblyhelping to

save lives. The device was approvedby the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use on lung cancers on 20 September 1996. The lethal natureof non-small cell lung

cancer (NSCLC) lies largely in the fact that, by the time the tumor becomes visible to the oncologist, it has spread too widely to be successfully

surgically

removed or irradiated. Chemotherapy

also has had verylimited success against lung cancer. Sixty-five percent of stage I cancers,50-55% of stage II cancers,and 30% of stage III cancers are cured. But most lung cancers are not caught until stage 3 or 4, saysTracy Lee Weigel, an assistant professor of surgery

and director

of the LIFE-Lung Bronchoscopy Program at the University of Pittsburg School of Medicine in Pennsylvania. For all those 

## Lasers for Lungs Lung cancer is one of the deadliest cancers in the United States, striking an estimated 190,000 people and killing 160,000 annually. Smoking is the major cause of lung

cancer worldwide, but asbestos, air pollution, and radon appear

to contributeto this disease. By the time cancers of the lung become visible through conventional diagnostics, they frequently

are too far advanced
to treat successfully. Now, Xillix Technologies Corporation of Richmond, British Columbia, has developed a technology that allows much earlier diagnosis of these dangerous

cancers, possiblyhelping to

save lives. The device was approvedby the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use on lung cancers on 20 September 1996. The lethal natureof non-small cell lung

cancer (NSCLC) lies largely in the fact that, by the time the tumor becomes visible to the oncologist, it has spread too widely to be successfully

surgically

removed or irradiated. Chemotherapy

also has had verylimited success against lung cancer. Sixty-five percent of stage I cancers,50-55% of stage II cancers,and 30% of stage III cancers are cured. But most lung cancers are not caught until stage 3 or 4, saysTracy Lee Weigel, an assistant professor of surgery

and director

of the LIFE-Lung Bronchoscopy Program at the University of Pittsburg School of Medicine in Pennsylvania. For all those Cryptoperidiniopsis, a species of microalgae,

may -and concerns

for human health. Cryptoperidiniopsis,

a species of microalgae,

may -and concerns

for human health.

diagnosed with NSCLC, she says, the fiveyearsurvival

rateis about 13-14%. The new technology, which Xillix calls the Lung Imaging Fluorescence Endoscopy bronchoscopic

system, or LIFE-Lung,

helps doctors detect lung cancers 1-2 yearsearlier than standard bronchoscopy, says Weigel. This can make all the difference in catching the disease in time. "We can [detect lung cancers]before they've broken through the basement membrane [of the lung], before they've gained access to the lymphaticsand the bloodstream and develop the potential to metastasize,"

she says. The LIFE-Lung

works according

to simple principals. Tissue fluoresceswhen illuminatedwith laser

light, but the autofluorescent properties

of normal and malignanttissues differ.A physicianuses the LIFE-Lung bronchoscope-a laser hooked to a flexible fiberoptic endoscope-to shine light onto the lungs through the fiberoptic imaging bundle of the scope. The fluorescence given off by the illuminated tissue is relayed back through a second imaging bundle and observed directy by the physician. With the LIFE-Lung, healthy lung tissue appears green and abnormal tissue appears red. In clinical trials, the LIFE-Lung was "171%

more sensitive in picking up abnormalities than white light,"

saysHarvey

Pass,a professor of surgery

and oncology at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, and program director for the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit. A similardevice, which uses a computer algorithm to distinguish

between the subtle differences in the wavelengths of fluorescent light given off by normal and malignanttissues, is in development at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

in Tennessee. Differential fluorescence does not replace biopsy, says Bergein F. Overholt, president of GastrointestinalAssociates in Knoxville, Tennessee, a company involved in the development of the Oak Ridge diagnosed with NSCLC, she says, the fiveyearsurvival

rateis about 13-14%. The new technology, which Xillix calls the Lung Imaging Fluorescence Endoscopy bronchoscopic

system, or LIFE-Lung,

helps doctors detect lung cancers 1-2 yearsearlier than standard bronchoscopy, says Weigel. This can make all the difference in catching the disease in time. "We can [detect lung cancers]before they've broken through the basement membrane [of the lung], before they've gained access to the lymphaticsand the bloodstream and develop the potential to metastasize,"

she says. The LIFE-Lung

works according

to simple principals. Tissue fluoresceswhen illuminatedwith laser

light, but the autofluorescent properties

of normal and malignanttissues differ.A physicianuses the LIFE-Lung bronchoscope-a laser hooked to a flexible fiberoptic endoscope-to shine light onto the lungs through the fiberoptic imaging bundle of the scope. The fluorescence given off by the illuminated tissue is relayed back through a second imaging bundle and observed directy by the physician. With the LIFE-Lung, healthy lung tissue appears green and abnormal tissue appears red. In clinical trials, the LIFE-Lung was "171%

more sensitive in picking up abnormalities than white light,"

saysHarvey

Pass,a professor of surgery

and oncology at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, and program director for the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute in Detroit. A similardevice, which uses a computer algorithm to distinguish

between the subtle differences in the wavelengths of fluorescent light given off by normal and malignanttissues, is in development at Oak Ridge National Laboratory

in Tennessee. Differential fluorescence does not replace biopsy, says Bergein F. Overholt, president of GastrointestinalAssociates in Knoxville, Tennessee, a company involved in the development of the Oak Ridge

Volume 106, Number

9, September

1998 ? Environmental

Health Perspectives September Environmental Perspectives A 426