Dear all, We would like to draw your attention to a Special Issue entitled 'New developments and perspectives in marine mammal toxicology’ which will be published in Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology (ISSN 0090-4341 (print version), ISSN 1432-0703 (electronic version), http://www.springer.com/environment/environmental+toxicology/journal/244). As guest editors, we invite you to contribute a full length research paper or mini-review (<5,000 words including references) for potential publication. Special issue: New developments and perspectives in marine mammal toxicology Deadline: 31 January 2015 Special Issue Description As apex predators in aquatic ecosystems with relatively long life spans and considerable fat deposits, many marine mammals undergo contaminant accumulation and related effects. It is widely recognized that marine mammals are exposed to a wide variety of pollutants, with a weight of evidence indicating impacts on their health through endocrine disruption. Since hundreds of new chemicals enter the global market every year, the methods, approaches and technologies used to characterize pollution levels or impacts are also in a constant state of flux. However, legal and ethical constraints often limit the type and extent of toxicological research being carried out in marine mammals. Nevertheless, new and emerging in vivo, in vitro as well as in silico research opportunities abound in the field of marine mammalogy. In the application of findings to population-, species-, or habitat-related risk assessments, the identification of causal relationships which inform source apportionment is important. This, in turn, is informed by a comprehensive understanding of contaminant classes, profiles and fate over space and time. Such considerations figure prominently in the design and interpretation of marine mammal (eco)toxicology research. This Special Issue will showcase new developments in marine mammal toxicology, approaches for exposure-effect research in risk assessment, and future perspectives. This Special Issue will welcome all contributions towards: · Biomonitoring studies that have investigated temporal or spatial trends in marine mammals worldwide; · Biomonitoring studies of new and emerging contaminants in marine mammals; · Biological effect studies on the development, validation and application of new contaminant-related biomarker approaches in marine mammal; · Studies developing in vitro and in silico methods for the study of the mode of action of pollutants in marine mammals; · Studies which inform the identification of contaminants of concern in marine mammals and their habitat. Please keep in mind that all submissions are subject to the regular peer review process at AECT and need to be written and formatted according to the Aims and Scopes of AECT. Full-length reviews are not allowed as this remains the prevue of Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology (RECT), but we may accept mini-reviews (<5,000 words including references). The final deadline for MS submission has been set on January 31st 2015. If you are interested in submitting your MS, please remember to specify in the submission process that you are applying for the Special issue: New developments and perspectives in marine mammal toxicology We are looking forward to receiving your valuable contribution and to hearing from you soon! Kind regards, Liesbeth and Annalisa Dr. Liesbeth Weijs National Research Centre for Environmental Toxicology (Entox) The University of Queensland QHFSS, 39 Kessels Road Coopers Plains Queensland, 4108 Australia Website: http://www.entox.uq.edu.au/ E-Mail: l.weijs@uq.edu.au<mailto:l.weijs@uq.edu.au> and Dr. Annalisa Zaccaroni Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences University of Bologna Viale Vespucci 2 Cesenatico (FC) 47042 Italy Website: http://www.scienzemedicheveterinarie.unibo.it/it E-Mail: annalisa.zaccaroni@unibo.it<mailto:annalisa.zaccaroni@unibo.it>