In this issue of Trends, we discuss the potential adverse environmental and human health effects associated with pharmaceuticals.
The first Trends article looks back to a pivotal 15-year-old study documenting pharmaceuticals in U.S. surface waters and describes the significant advances in the measurement, assessment, and regulation of pharmaceuticals in the environment since then. The second article describes how “pharmacoepidemiology,” an emerging field bridging clinical pharmacology and epidemiology, is used to enhance drug safety evaluations. The third article describes new advances in computational programs for predicting toxic effects that are improving their capabilities for screening and prioritizing the potential risks that pharmaceutical impurities, or unwanted chemicals associated with the drug development process, can pose.
Gradient contributors to this issue include Drs. Tim Verslycke, Tamara Lunsman, Kirsten Zu, Julie E. Goodman, Joel Cohen, and Tom Lewandowski. Joining us with a guest editorial are Erin M. Bosman and Julie Y. Park from the law firm Morrison & Foerster providing legal perspective on the rise of digital health.
We hope that this issue of Trends gives you insight into some of the current hot topics related to pharmaceuticals.
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