Document jgBr4aL2D9rXp9LywoxEDdYO9

R&S 112042 BIO-MEDICAL- RESEARCH ( DOCUMENT DESCRIPTION FORM j 63 gg gg 76 77 78 Duplicate in all cards: year as-1961- 100003 0 File number [Right justify [Numeric only] VO- I Sub-Index Code Author(s), as Last Name FS (No Punctuation) and coden for journal as JAMA preceeded by one blank space 1________ 20 21 ________________ 40 4160 'TW&FTatTZJ A&S 61 62 Title of Report; end with space-hyphen-hyphen-space. Follow with Index Terms, separated from each other with comma-space. Avoid other punctuation; do not abbreviate. 12 61 62 1: 21 22 23 24 Source (Journal, Vol., Number, Pages, Date) 12 .. // 61 62 31 32 Brief Summary 12 10 SUMMARY: 61 62 61 62 63 64 The Chemical World This Week 00 c fl UJ ]pqqrta DairiU n p\fs n r"'!'^T Lii^trJUud^ I 'far irUuuvt^i^y 7*? ber of the MCV team, says tT Date_ .3/3. 9/7V A9-THC does produce reversible bone marrow destruction in vitro. Gordon, H. L. Langner, R. R. Oelfke, K. H. Rausch, D. A. 2030 . 607 ^ Freeport 2020 l --5^ tfi r*'rtr*' & *. -: >; But the amount needed to produce 50% destruction is about 1000 times greater than is necessary for a 50% reduction in cancerous cell repro duction. R&S 112043 Roberts, D. J. 2030 The MCV findings and those of Columbia's Dr. Nahas. as well as results from other workers in can nabinoid chemistry, have stimulat ed much additional research. At least 10 papers dealing with canna binoids as potential therapeutics from: T. R. Torkelson, 9008 lana attracts additional research for a variety of disorders will be presented at the national meeting *lant--kidney. But 6-MP is of the American Chemical Society cers, and virus-induced leukemia in highly toxic even by drug standards in Atlantic City next month. mice and prolonged the lives of the and thus must be used with great The search for an effective cancer test animals by as much as 50%. caution. A9-THC, on the other therapeutic alone could produce The compound, and apparently hand, has an LDso in mice of about years of research work, since, as other members of the cannabinoid 1 gram per kg,, making it relatively MCV's Dr. Carchman points out, family, also acts as an immunosup nontoxic for a drug. there are hundreds of compounds pressant, heading off the host's nat THC is not without drawbacks. chemically related to THC that can ural defense mechanisms that tend Dr. Richard A. Carchman, a mem be studied for antitumor activity. to reject such things as organ trans plants and skin grafts. c The MCV team, headed -by-phar- - ACS "clarifies" stance on vinyl chlorid macology department chairman Louis S. Harris, became interested in cannabinoids following a report from Dr. Gabriel G. Nahas of Co lumbia University Medical Center, New York City, that habitual mari juana smoking suppresses the body's immune response and could make users unusually susceptible to disease. The MCV research scientists be lieve, as does Dr. Nahas, that the cannabinoids block tumor growth by inhibiting the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) synthesis necessary for ACS Executive Director Robert W. Cairns has forwarded to the Occu pational Safety and Health Ad ministration a "clarifying state ment" of the ACS position present ed at hearings early last month on the agency's proposed "no detecta ble level" work-place standard proposed for vinyl chloride. ACS's position was presented at the hear ings by Howard H. Fawcett, chair man of the ACS Committee on Chemical Safety, and Dr. Stephen T. Quigley, head of ACS's depart regard to the proposed standa^B At issue are two sentences in^ro ACS policy statement that Dr. Cairns says are "inseparable." To wit: "In the absence of data estab lishing a safe level of exposure to vinyl chloride and in the interests of public health and welfare, the Society endorses the proposed stan dard for the level of employee expo sure. However, the Society believes that the standard for employee ex posure would be clearer if set at a minimum practical level capable of cell reproduction. However, THC, ment of chemistry and public af detection by a recommended meth or any of the other cannabinoids for fairs. od rather than at no detectable that matter, does not destroy exist The ACS clarification is included level." ing cancerous growths. All of the test in a letter specifically responding to Dr. Cairns points out that "if ei animals in the MCV study eventu questions--such as requesting ther of these two sentences is taken ally died from their cancers. As far membership lists of the ACS Board out of context an erroneous conclu as immunosuppressant activity is of Directors and certain other com sion could be drawn relative to the concerned, the scientists believe mittees and a listing of human Society's position. It is clear from that cannabinoids decrease the re threshold limit values for several these two sentences that the Soci activity of the lymphocytes that chemicals--raised by the Labor De ety does not endorse a `no detecta combat disease. partment solicitor on ACS's testi ble level' standard for the level Because of its immunosuppres mony. of employee exposure." Therefore, sant activity, THC and other can In the midst of responding to Dr. Cairns adds, "we would like to nabinoids may be useful in promot these questions. Dr. Cairns points submit for the record the following ing the acceptance of organ trans out to OSHA administrative law clarifying statement as to what plants in humans. So far only one judge Gordon J. Myatt, who pre these two sentences were intended drug, 6-mercaptopurine (6-MP), sided over the hearings, that for the to state: In the absence of knowing has been found effective in prevent record, "there has been consider the tolerable limit for worker^te- ing rejection of a transplanted able misunderstanding about what posed to vinyl chloride, the organ, and only in one type of the Society's position actually is in dard should be set as low as canbe 8 C4EN August 26, 1974 'detected by a currently accepted ' reliable analytical procedure-- namely. 1 p.p.m. At the same time, work should continue to define a threshold value so that, when it is (. defined, the standard may be suit' - ably revised. Since development of ^^ie means to attain the recom^piended level may take time, we recommend a reasonable period for users of vinyl chloride to come into compliance." Inflation triggers accounting changes The recent rapid inflation in the price of just about everything is causing chemical companies to take a new look at their accounting pro cedures. Du Pont, for example, re veals that it will switch to full lastin-first-out (LIFO) accounting for its U.S. inventories for 1974, if the Internal Revenue Service approves. The* change will have the effect of reducing Du Pont's earnings for the first half of 1974 to $5.10 per share from the previously stated S6.27 and will result in pretax charges of about $300 million against full-year earnings. (Du Pont softens the news about its reduced paper earnings by r disclosing at the same time that it is boosting its quarterly dividend 20%, to $1.50.) With LIFO accounting, goods Id or used are valued at the cost if the most recently acquired like items. Using first-in-first-out (FIFO) accounting--which most chemical companies have done in recent years--swells inventory prof its in times of rapid price escala tion, but the growth is more appar ent than real. Du Pont says the switch to full LIFO will more real istically match current income to current revenues. The accounting change also will help conserve cash needed to replace inventories at higher prices and to finance capital programs, the company adds. Meanwhile, Dow Chemical says it is "actively considering and in vestigating" a change in accounting methods but won't speculate as to whether or when. Similarly, Mon santo says it is studying the advis ability of changing to LIFO ac counting but hasn't yet decided; however, it has applied for IRS per mission. Monsanto notes that if it had used LIFO, its net income for the first half of 1974 would have been reduced by about $34 million, or about $1.00 per common share. One company that doesn't plan to fhange is Union Carbide. It has ieen using LIFO since 1941. AEC, oth rs at odds on nuclear safety Chances that a person will be killed by a motor vehicle, falling, fire, drowning, Firearms, air travel, fall ing objects, electrocution, toxic chemical releases, dam failures, lightning, earthquakes, tornadoes, and--whew!--hurricanes are all far greater than chances that a person will be killed by a nuclear power plant accident. So says a draft report on a twoyear, $3 million study, "An Assess ment of Accident Risks in U.S. Commercial Nuclear Power Plants," (WASH 1400) funded by the Atomic Energy Commission. The "independent" study was di rected by Dr. Norman C. Rasmus sen of the department of nuclear engineering at Massachusetts Insti tute of Technology. And it at tempts to estimate the public risks --deaths, health effects, and prop erty damage--resulting from accidents that might befall the 100 nuclear plants of the type now in use or to be built by 1980. Sabotage was not considered. Although the study clearly con cludes that the risks to the public from accidents are "very small," AEC chairman Dixy Lee Ray notes that "there is no such thing as zero risk."" The major risk involved with a nuclear plant, according to the study, is the release of large amounts of radioactive material re sulting from a series of sequential failures of systems permitting the fuel to overheat. However, "it is impossible for nuclear power plants to explode like a nuclear weapon." With 100 reactors operating, the study estimates that one core melt accident would occur, on the aver age, every 175 years. And only about one in 10 potential core melt accidents, occurring on the average of once every 17 centuries, might produce measurable health effects. Namely, "some increase in the inci dence of diseases" and perhaps some deaths. Clearly, the study is not without its critics. Dr. Daniel Ford of the Union of Concerned Scientists tells C&EN that he doubts its overall credibility. He calls the estimates "fictionized." If accidents are as re mote as AEC says, he notes, then why won't companies or utilities accept the liability for paying dam ages in the event of an accident. And Jo Litman, speaking on be half of a Ralph Nader group--when asked his views of the AEC study-- yelled at the C&EN reporter; "What do you expect? You expect Ray: no such thing as aero risk AEC to say nuclear reactors are un safe? After all, they spent $3 mil lion funding this story. This study is in no way objective." AEC has asked for comments on the draft report of the. study by Nov. 1. It can expect a lot. The final version will be issued next year. Propylene supply crunch seems over The serious supply crunch for pro pylene for use in making chemicals in this country seems to be about over. Demand continues to grow about as expected, but supplies now are growing faster than they were last winter. As a result, out landish spot prices are about over. This improved situation may slip a little next year as domestic pro pylene falls temporarily behind de mand. But according to Patrick E. Draggett of DeWitt and Co., a Houston-based consulting firm that has just completed a worldwide propylene marketing study, any supply crunch in 1975 should not be hard to handle. The difference between a supply of 5.422 million metric tons and a demand of 5.449 million metric tons, about 0.5%, can be met through imports and a draw on in ventories. Quantities of imports will depend on prices in the U.S.. and could be well above estimated imports of 60,000 metric tons in 1974, if spot prices hold in the 14 to 15 cent-per-pound range in 1975. Prices for propylene for chemicals will continue to rise and reach the 9 to 11 cent-per-pound range two years from now on a volume con tract basis, up from 3 to 4 cents per pound a year ago, DeWitt says. Worldwide use of propylene in chemicals will grow slightly faster than will U.S. use--about 9.57o vs. 8% annually--according to DeWitt. * The company estimates worldwide chemical use at 14.2 million metric tons in 1974 and 17.1 million metric tons in 1976. R&S 112044 August 26. 1974 C&EN 7