WSU scientist named a top 50 researcher
A Washington State University scientist has been named one of the top 50 researchers of 2007 by Scientific American magazine for work showing possible health threats from a component in polycarbonate plastics used to package food and drinks.
Patricia Hunt, a molecular bioscientist, found that mice exposed to bisphenol A, or BPA, showed high levels of chromosome abnormalities in cells developing into eggs, known as oocytes. The levels of BPA exposure were consistent with the amount humans encounter when they consume foods from containers made of polycarbonate or lined with a BPA-based resin, WSU said in a news release.
The kind of chromosomal abnormalities that resulted are the types that cause miscarriage, infant death and conditions such as Down syndrome in humans. Hunt’s research also indicates that a single exposure to BPA to a female mouse can affect three subsequent generations of mice. Hunt’s research and others have prompted Congress to look into limits on the use of polycarbonate.
Hunt’s selection to Scientific American’s Top 50 comes on the heels of two WSU research projects being named to the list of 2007’s top 100 science stories by Discover magazine. One project was based on the DNA analysis of a 10,300-year-old tooth; the other was research showing the effects of toxic exposure on mammals over several generations.
– Shawn Vestal
Kootenai County
Rathdrum man dies after car flips twice
A 34-year-old man was killed Friday when his sedan flipped after hitting a pickup truck near Hayden.
Joshua M. Spence, of Rathdrum, was pronounced dead at the scene of the 2:55 p.m. collision at Miles Avenue and Ramsey Road, according to Idaho State Police. He was not wearing a seat belt, troopers reported.
The driver of the Ford pickup, 27-year-old David E. Espen of Rathdrum, suffered minor injuries and was treated at Kootenai Medical Center.
According to state police, Spence was westbound in a 1989 Toyota Camry on Miles Avenue and failed to stop at a stop sign at Ramsey, crashing into Espen’s northbound truck. The Camry flipped twice and came to rest in a nearby field, according to state police. One of the vehicles, troopers are unsure which one, hit a power pole, shearing it in half.
– David Wasson
BELLINGHAM
Murder case arraignment delayed
The arraignment for a Bellingham man accused of stabbing his father to death and wounding his mother has been delayed a second time for a mental evaluation.
Whatcom County Deputy Prosecutor Mac Setter said the evaluation will be considered at a Jan. 30 hearing to determine whether Brian Williams is competent to stand trial.
The 24-year-old is charged with murder and assault in the Jan. 3 attack on Mark and Connie Williams at their home in Bellingham. Family members say Brian Williams was recently diagnosed with schizophrenia.
The prosecutor and public defender had also agreed to delay a Jan. 11 arraignment.
– Associated Press