| CODE | CLS1319 | ||||||
| TITLE | Biological Principles in Health, Safety and Occupational Toxicology | ||||||
| UM LEVEL | 01 - Year 1 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 5 | ||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 6 | ||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Centre for Labour Studies | ||||||
| DESCRIPTION | The study-unit will introduce participants to the relevant basic principles of biology including cells, tissues, organs and organ systems, their functions and principles of physiology. The unit shall then present current topics in occupational toxicology as they apply and interact with the aforementioned biological systems. Relevant health and safety matters shall feature throughout the unit. Study-Unit Aims: Through this study-unit participants will obtain an understanding of the fundamental principles of biological systems, their relevance to health and the interaction of toxic substances with their function. In so doing, students will appreciate the importance of the involvement of health and safety where workers are exposed to toxic substances and the rationale of control measures. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - State how cells, tissues, organs and organ systems function, including basic aspects of physiology and the impact of abnormal function on health during a final assessment; - Identify during class discussion and during a final assessment the entry and routes of absorption of toxic substances as well as body-distribution of toxic substances; - Explain during class discussion and during a final assessment the local and systemic effects of toxic substances on the human body and its metabolism. Including dose-response, interactions, limit values and excretion of toxic substances. Students shall be able to analyse the specific effects on target organs including the lungs, nervous system, skin, liver, blood, kidneys and reproductive system, and the implications of these. Additionally, the responses to be learnt shall include: occupational asthma, dematoses, chemical carcinogenesis; neoplasmic proliferation; tissue lesions (liver, lung and kidney); organogenesis; teratogenesis; immunogenesis; and mutagenesis; - Analyse by means of occupational case studies the impact of special differences including gender, genetics, diet, age, pathological conditions; - Examine aspects of occupational chemicals, including the classification of different toxic substances and their environmental effects during a final assessment and during discussion of case studies; - Analyse the general principles of identification and prevention of harmful substances during a final assessment. This shall including regulatory, best practice and legal considerations. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Apply knowledge of the toxicological properties and effects of chemicals when carrying out a risk assessment or developing control measures; - Contribute to the outlining of health surveillance needs depending on identified substances present within a workplace; - Demonstrate an ability to understand chemical fact sheets; - Outline the risks of substances in terms of toxic effects to relevant organisational stakeholders. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Texts: - Stacey, N. & Winder, C. (2004). Occupational toxicology (2nd ed). London: Taylor & Francis. - U.S. Department of Health and Human 福利在线免费 (n.d.). Toxicology tutorials. Available from: http://sis.nlm.nih.gov/enviro/toxtutor.html Supplementary Readings: - Baker, D., Murray, V. & Parkinson, N.H.T. (2012). Essentials of toxicology for health protection (2nd ed). UK: Oxford press. - European Chemicals Agency.The REACH directive Frequently Asked Questions on REAC by Industry. 2008. http://reach.jrc.it/ - International Programme on Chemical Safety Joint Project with OECD on the Harmonisation of Hazard/Risk Assessment Terminology. Descriptions of selected key generic terms used in chemical hazard/risk assessment. http://www.who.int/ipcs/publications/methods/harmonization/definitions_terms/en/ - OECD. The OECD Environmental Risk Assessment Toolkit: Tools for Environmental Risk Assessment and Management. 2010. http://www.oecd.org/document/54/0,3343,en_2649_34373_44909430_1_1_1_1,00.html - Wallace Hayes (ed) Principles and Methods of Toxicology (5th ed) CRC; 2008. - WHO. Descriptors of selected key generic terms used on chemical hazard/risk assessment. 2006. http://www.who.int/ipcs/publications/methods/harmonization/en/terminol_part-I.pdf. - Williams, P.P et al. (2000). Principles of toxicology, New York: John Wiley and sons. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture and Independent Study | ||||||
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| LECTURER/S | Anthony Casaru |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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