Polybrominated flame retardants

Polybrominated Flame Retardants (PBFRs) have attracted interest internationally and nationally given the human health and environmental concerns posed by some chemicals within this group.

The PBFRs share one common characteristic - they all contain bromine. The bromine portion of the compound is responsible for the molecule's flame retardant activity.

An information sheet summarising current national and international activities regarding PBFRs is available on the NICNAS website <http://www.nicnas.gov.au/Media/Latest_News/PBFR_280605.asp>.

Triclosan

The National Industrial Chemicals Notification and Assessment Scheme (NICNAS) has commissioned the National Centre for Environmental Toxicology, at the University of Queensland, to undertake a project to determine triclosan in national breast milk samples. This data will supplement a study from Sweden that reported triclosan in three out of five randomly selected human breast milk samples in Stockholm.

The National Centre for Environmental Toxicology collected breast milk samples from volunteers between March 2002 and September 2003 as part of the National Dioxins Programme Breast Milk Study. The levels in these samples will be compared with 'historical' samples collected in 1993.

This project will determine triclosan levels in recent and 'historical' human breast milk samples and will not only show ranges/means of triclosan levels in samples in selected regions across Australia, but also indicate whether levels of this chemical have changed over the ten year time period between sample collections. It is anticipated that the project will be completed by September 2005.

The data from this research will contribute to the overall PEC (priority existing chemical) evaluation of the toxicokinetic profile of triclosan by providing key data to evaluate the potential for triclosan to bioaccumulate in humans, and, thus, assist NICNAS in assessing any potential occupational and public health risks for this chemical.

For more information, see the NICNAS website <http://www.nicnas.gov.au>.