Special
Topic Issue on the Implications of Endocrine Active Substances for Humans
and Wildlife
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Dedication
On 14 April 2003, Dr. Junshi Miyamoto passed away unexpectedly after
a short illness. All the members of the Scientific Advisory Committee
of the SCOPE/IUPAC project on endocrine active substances, as well as
all the contributors to the project find it hard to accept, given that
he was so lively at the Yokohama Symposium in November 2002. With his
death, we have lost the spiritus rector of the project and a very good
friend.
Dr. Junshi Miyamoto, trained as a chemist, provided impressive scientific
achievements during his career in the Japanese crop protection industry,
where he had been Associate Director of the board of Sumitomo Chemical
for ten years until retirement, and general manager of the Takarazuka
Research Center for seven years. His major fields of research were toxicology,
metabolism, and evaluation of the mode of action of pesticides and other
xenobiotics. He also worked on biochemistry and molecular biology, environmental
chemistry, and risk assessment of chemicals. In all, he published over
350 scientific publications.
The major objective of his professional activities was to contribute
a science base to issues of safety and public concern and to promote
the understanding of chemistry. Consequently, he was active in many
international organizations, served IUPAC for more than 25 years in
different positions, and was a major contributor to nine Environmental
Health Criteria documents of the International Program on Chemical Safety
(IPCS). He was also very active in SCOPE and the Intergovernment Forum
on Chemical Safety (IFCS). His achievements were acknowledged by many
foreign and Japanese awards.
From the beginning of the evolving concerns on endocrine disruption,
he engaged himself in the sound scientific judgment of the potential
risks for humans and the environment. This involved him in the IUPAC/IUPHAR/IUTOX
White Book on the basis for scientific risk assessment of
natural and anthropogenic estrogens. With continuous public concern
and advances in scientific knowledge, and his tremendous efforts, scientific
skills, and management capabilities, he initiated and led this current
SCOPE/IUPAC project. It is the result of his outstanding leadership
that over 80 leading international scientists in this area contributed
to this unique and comprehensive project. Thus, it is our honor and
deeply felt obligation to dedicate this publication to Dr. Junshi Miyamoto.
The members of the Scientific Advisory Committee miss him deeply,as
we have all lost a friend and a valued colleague.
J. Burger
SCOPE/Rutgers University, New Jersey, USA
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