ENVIRONMENTAL SPECIMEN BANKING AND POISONS CONTROL - A NEW CHALLENGE

Today clinical toxicology and poisons control are widely lacking objec tive criteria, e.g., analytical data, figures of kinetics and metaboli sm in acute and chronic poisoning. Cooperation between clinical toxico logy and an environmental specimen bank for human tissue will help to overcome many difficulties and complement one another. The possible po wer of such a co-operation is demonstrated by the example of the insti tutions in Munster, Germany. The successful strategies used for settin g-up an environmental specimen bank for human tissue may also be appli ed in clinical toxicology and experimental toxicology. The frame of a university medical clinic seems to be the ideal basis of an effective co-operation of an Environmental Specimen Bank for Human Tissue, a Poi sons Control Centre and clinical toxicology. In general a co-operation of an environmental specimen bank for human tissue and a poisons cont rol centre will be cost-saving and beneficial to both and an environme ntal specimen bank for human tissue will gain the status of a unique t ool for risk assessment of xenobiotics.