Arsenic Rice

Rice is the staple food for half of the world’s population. Consumption of rice is the major exposure route globally to the class one, non-threshold carcinogen inorganic arsenic. This book explains the sources of arsenic to paddy soils and the biogeochemical processes and plant physiological attributes of paddy soil-rice ecosystems that lead to high concentrations of arsenic in rice grain. It presents the global pattern of arsenic concentration and speciation in rice, discusses human exposures to inorganic arsenic from rice and the resulting health risks. It also highlights particular populations that have the highest rice consumptions, which include Southern and South East Asians, weaning babies, gluten intolerance sufferers and those consuming rice milk. The book also presents the information of arsenic concentration and speciation in other major crops and outlines approaches for lowering arsenic in rice grain and in the human diet through agronomic management.

This book provides an overview to researchers, graduate, and undergraduate students, as well as academicians who are interested in arsenic. It covers human health risks and established cases of human ailments and sheds light on prospective control measures, both biological and physico-chemical. Arsenic (As) is a widely distributed element in the environment having no known useful physiological function in plants or animals. Historically, this metalloid has been known to be used widely as a poison. Effects of arsenic have come to light in the past few decades due to its increasing contamination in several parts of world, with the worst situation being in Bangladesh and West Bengal, India. The worrying issue is the ingestion of arsenic through water and food and associated health risks due to its carcinogenic and neurotoxic nature. The impact of the problem is widespread, and it has led to extensive research on finding both the causes and solutions. These attempts have allowed us to understand the various probable causes of arsenic contamination in the environment, and at the same time, have provided a number of possible solutions. It is reported that more than 200 mineral species contain As. Generally, As binds with iron and sulfur to form arsenopyrite. According to one estimate from the World Health Organization (WHO), contextual levels of As in soil ranges from 1 to 40 mg kg-1. Arsenic toxicity is related to its oxidation state which is present in the medium. As is a protoplastic toxin, due to its consequence on sulphydryl group it interferes in cell enzymes, cell respiration and in mitosis. Exposure of As may occur to humans via several industries, such as refining or smelting of metal ores, microelectronics, wood preservation, battery manufacturing, and also to those who work in power plants that burn arsenic-rich coal.

Exploring the presence of arsenic in our lives, from its occurrence in food to its use in medicine, this is a fascinating book for general readers.

The Congress "Arsenic in the Environment" offers an international, multi- and interdisciplinary discussion platform for research and innovation aimed towards a holistic solution to the problem posed by the environmental toxin arsenic, with considerable societal impact. The congress has focused on cutting edge and breakthrough research in physical, chemical, toxicological, medical, agricultural and other specific issues on arsenic across a broader environmental realm. The Congress "Arsenic in the Environment" was first organized in Mexico City (As2006) followed by As2008 in Valencia, Spain, As2010 in Tainan, Taiwan, As2012 in Cairns, Australia and As2014 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The 6th International Congress As2016 was held June 19-23, 2016 in Stockholm, Sweden and was entitled Arsenic Research and Global Sustainability. The Congress addressed the broader context of arsenic research along the following themes: Theme 1: Arsenic in Environmental Matrices and Interactions (Air, Water, Soil and Biological Matrices) Theme 2: Arsenic in Food Chain Theme 3: Arsenic and Health Theme 4: Clean Water Technology for Control of Arsenic Theme 5: Societal issues, Policy Studies, Mitigation and Management Long term exposure to low-to-medium levels of arsenic via contaminated food and drinking water can have a serious impact on human health and globally, more than 100 million people are at risk. Since the end of the 20th century, arsenic in drinking water (mainly groundwater) has emerged as a global health concern. In the past decade, the presence of arsenic in plant foods – especially rice – has gained increasing attention. In the Nordic countries in particular, the use of water-soluble inorganic arsenic chemicals (e.g. chromated copper arsenate, CCA) as wood preservatives and the mining of sulfidic ores have been flagged as health concern. The issue has been accentuated by discoveries of naturally occurring arsenic in groundwater, primarily in the private wells, in parts of the Fennoscandian Shield and in sedimentary formations, with potentially detrimental effects on public health. Sweden has been at the forefront of research on the health effects of arsenic, technological solutions for arsenic removal, and sustainable mitigation measures for developing countries. Hosting this Congress in Sweden was also relevant because historically Sweden has been one of the leading producer of As2O3 and its emission from the smelting industries in northern Sweden and has successfully implemented actions to reduce the industrial emissions of arsenic as well as minimizing the use of materials and products containing arsenic in since 1977. The Congress has gathered professionals involved in different segments of interdisciplinary research in an open forum, and strengthened relations between academia, industry, research laboratories, government agencies and the private sector to share an optimal atmosphere for exchange of knowledge, discoveries and discussions about the problem of arsenic in the environment and catalyze the knowledge generation and innovations at a policy context to achieve the goals for post 2015 Sustainable Development.

Exposure to arsenic and the use of arsenic-contaminated groundwater in agriculture causes serious health issues. Complete or partial contamination of groundwater is reported worldwide, especially in the Eastern Gangetic Basin (EGB). This study aims to create an overall assessment of arsenic contamination in the EGB based on existing literature, demarcate the extent of the affected area, highlight the impacts on the food chain and human health, and hopes the research will help in the better planning and management of groundwater. Although several studies have evaluated arsenic contamination of groundwater in the EGB, (a) there is no proper long-term monitoring being done in affected areas; (b) there is a debate to identify the exact source and transport processes of arsenic occurrence in this region; (c) there is no comprehensive method to estimate the level of arsenic contamination in soil, water and the food chain; and (d) Arsenic contamination in Bihar and Nepal is not evaluated systematically, especially arsenic accumulation in the food chain and human health issues. Data scarcity and accessibility are the major challenges in this region. Thus, this review recommends systematic monitoring and analysis of arsenic contamination in groundwater, soils and food across the EGB.

Arsenic contamination poses a major environmental problem, especially in Southeast Asian countries like Bangladesh and India. Threatening the health of millions of people due to arsenic’s toxicity and carcinogenicity, the major routes of arsenic exposure for humans are either through drinking water or crops. Rice is the crop most affected by arsenic owing to its cultivation in major arsenic contaminated areas, biogeochemical factors in the soil during rice growth, and specific features of rice that enable it take up more arsenic than other crop plants. This book addresses the problem of arsenic by pursuing a holistic approach. It presents the status quo in different parts of the world (North and South America, Europe, Asia, etc.) and provides essential information on food-related arsenic exposure risks for humans, and possible preventive and curative measures for tackling arsenic poisoning. It covers the arsenic contamination status of rice, rice-based products, other vegetables, fishes, mushrooms, and other foods, with a special focus on rice-arsenic interactions. The mechanisms of arsenic uptake, translocation and distribution in plants and grains are also explained. In closing, the book reviews a variety of prospective agronomic and biotechnological solutions to the problem of arsenic accumulation in rice grains. The book is intended for a broad audience including researchers, scientists, and readers with diverse backgrounds including agriculture, environmental science, food science, environmental management, and human health. It can also be used as an important reference guide for undergraduate and graduate students, university faculties, and environmentalists.

The Congress "Arsenic in the Environment" offers an international, multi- and interdisciplinary discussion platform for research and innovation aimed towards a holistic solution to the problem posed by the environmental toxin arsenic, with significant societal impact. The Congress has focused on cutting edge and breakthrough research in physical, chemical, toxicological, medical, agricultural and other specific issues on arsenic across a broader environmental realm. The Biennial Congress "Arsenic in the Environment" was first organized in Mexico City (As2006) followed by As2008 in Valencia (Spain), As2010 in Tainan (Chinese Taiwan), As2012 in Cairns (Australia), As2014 in Buenos Aires (Argentina) and As2016 in Stockholm (Sweden). The 7th International Congress As2018 was held July 1-6, 2018, in Beijing, P. R. China and was entitled Environmental Arsenic in a Changing World. The Congress addressed the broader context of arsenic research aligned on the following themes: Theme 1: Arsenic Behaviour in Changing Environmental Media Theme 2: Arsenic in a Changing Agricultural Ecosystem Theme 3: Health Impacts of Environmental Arsenic Theme 4: Technologies for Arsenic Immobilization and Clean Water Blueprints Theme 5: Sustainable Mitigation and Management Arsenic in drinking water (mainly groundwater) has emerged as an issue of global health concern. During last decade, the presence of arsenic in rice, possibly also other food of plant origins, has attained increasing attention. This is particularly true in the Asian countries, where the use of high arsenic groundwater as source of irrigation water and drinking water has been flagged as severe health concern. This has been accentuated by elevating arsenic concentrations in deep groundwater recharged from shallow high arsenic groundwater, which may have further detrimental effects on public health. Notably, China has been in the forefront of research on arsenic biogeochemical cycling, health effects of arsenic, technologies for arsenic removal, and sustainable mitigation measures. The Congress has attracted professionals involved in different segments of interdisciplinary research on arsenic in an open forum, and strengthened relations between academia, research institutions, government and non-governmental agencies, industries, and civil society organizations to share an optimal ambience for exchange of knowledge.

The congress "Arsenic in the Environment" offers an international, multi- and interdisciplinary discussion platform for arsenic research aimed at short-term solutions of problems with considerable social impact, rather than only focusing on cutting edge and breakthrough research in physical, chemical, toxicological, medical and other specific issue