title: DDT, epigenetic harm, and transgenerational environmental justice.
abstract: Although the environmentally harmful effects of widespread dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) use became well-known following Rachel Carson's Silent Spring (1962), its human health effects have more recently become clearer. A ban on the use of DDT has been in place for over 30 years, but recently DDT has been used for malaria control in areas such as Africa. Recent work shows that DDT has transgenerational effects in progeny and generations never directly exposed to DDT. These effects have health implications for individuals who are not able to have any voice in the decision to use the pesticide. The transgenerational effects of DDT are considered in light of some widely accepted ethical principles. We argue that this reframes the decision to use DDT, requiring us to incorporate new considerations, and new kinds of decision making, into the deliberative process that determines its ongoing use. Ethical considerations for intergenerational environmental justice are presented that include concern and respect for autonomy, nonmaleficence, and justice. Here, we offer a characterization of the kinds of ethical considerations that must be taken into account in any satisfactory decisions to use DDT.
authors.forename: William P
authors.initials: WP
authors.lastname: Kabasenche
authors.affiliation: Center for Reproductive Biology, School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, USA. skinner@wsu.edu.
authors.forename: Michael K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Skinner
mesh_terms: D003634:DDT / Q000633:toxicity*; D004777:Environment; D044127:Epigenesis, Genetic / Q000187:drug effects*; D040941:Heredity / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans; D010575:Pesticides / Q000633:toxicity*; D012935:Social Justice
chemical_list: D010575:Pesticides; D003634:DDT
references.citation: Lancet. 2005 Aug 27-Sep 2;366(9487):763-73
references.pmid: 16125595
references.citation: PLoS One. 2014 Jul 24;9(7):e102091
references.pmid: 25057798
references.citation: PLoS One. 2013 Jul 23;8(7):e69516
references.pmid: 23936033
references.citation: Indian J Med Res. 2005 Jan;121(1):55-62
references.pmid: 15713980
references.citation: Syst Biol Reprod Med. 2010 Apr;56(2):113-21
references.pmid: 20377310
references.citation: PLoS One. 2013;8(1):e55387
references.pmid: 23359474
references.citation: Trends Endocrinol Metab. 2010 Apr;21(4):214-22
references.pmid: 20074974
references.citation: Cad Saude Publica. 2007 Dec;23(12):2835-44
references.pmid: 18157325
references.citation: Curr Med Chem. 2001 May;8(6):651-74
references.pmid: 11281847
references.citation: Hum Fertil (Camb). 2010 Dec;13(4):268-71
references.pmid: 21117937
references.citation: PLoS One. 2012;7(9):e46249
references.pmid: 23049995
references.citation: Biochim Biophys Acta. 2011 Aug;1809(8):459-68
references.pmid: 21515434
references.citation: Hum Reprod. 2003 Dec;18(12):2525-33
references.pmid: 14645167
references.citation: Malar J. 2011 Jan 25;10:16
references.pmid: 21266037
references.citation: Environ Int. 2008 Oct;34(7):1062-71
references.pmid: 18423595
references.citation: Nature. 2011 Oct 19;479(7373):365-71
references.pmid: 22012258
references.citation: Annu Rev Entomol. 2010;55:569-91
references.pmid: 19754246
references.citation: Ethics. 2005 Oct;116(1):132-52
references.pmid: 16578954
references.citation: Environ Health Perspect. 2009 Nov;117(11):1656-63
references.pmid: 20049114
references.citation: J Environ Health. 2006 Dec;69(5):9-15, 36, 38
references.pmid: 17190337
references.citation: PLoS One. 2012;7(2):e31901
references.pmid: 22389676
references.citation: Rev Environ Health. 1999 Jan-Mar;14(1):39-50
references.pmid: 10372419
references.citation: BMC Med. 2013 Oct 23;11:228
references.pmid: 24228800
references.citation: Int J Obes (Lond). 2008 Sep;32(9):1373-9
references.pmid: 18626486
references.citation: J Agric Food Chem. 2011 Apr 13;59(7):2825-8
references.pmid: 21341671
references.citation: J Androl. 2007 May-Jun;28(3):423-34
references.pmid: 17192596
references.citation: Curr Genomics. 2008 Nov;9(7):500-8
references.pmid: 19506739
references.citation: Lancet. 2001 Jul 14;358(9276):110-4
references.pmid: 11463412
references.citation: Reprod Toxicol. 2013 Apr;36:104-16
references.pmid: 23453003
references.citation: Environ Health Perspect. 2012 Mar;120(3):451-7
references.pmid: 22027556
references.citation: Science. 2005 Jun 3;308(5727):1466-9
references.pmid: 15933200
references.citation: Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2007 Dec;77(6 Suppl):249-63
references.pmid: 18165500