Beginning of DDT

     First synthesized in 1874 by Austrian chemist Othmar Zeidler (1) as an insecticidal property to control insect vectors of typhus. Dr. Paul Hermann Muller was awarded a Noble Prize in 1948 for Physiology and Medicine for his effort.  During World War II  DDT was extensively sprayed to control insect vectors of typhus, malaria and dungue fever in Europe and South Pacific. Later back in North America DDT was available to farmers to spray in their fields for many years. Yet, DDT was a very effective chemical against various insects in many countries, but less effective in tropical regions due to the continuous life cycle of mosquitoes and poor infrastructure. Rich countries with big cities were able to spray often but poor countries were not able to spray and gain the benefits of DDT.

References

1. ^ A birth year of 1859 would make him a mere 14 years old at the time of his dissertation in 1873. The 1859 birth yearwas used by Joseph S. Fruton, in his Contrasts in scientific style: research groups in the chemical and biochemical sciences, Memoirs of the American Philosophical Society, Vol 191, 1990, page 373, as well as by Gerhard Oberkofler inLeopold Ruzicka, 1887-1976: schweizer Chemiker und Humanist aus Altösterreich‎ - Page 44. The latter even has him quit his pharmacy studies at the Vienna University in 1872 (at the apparent age of 12/13) to move to Strassburg.

• History | CDC Malaria at www.cdc.gov

• Othmar Zeidler (1874). "Verbindungen von Chloral mit Brom- und Chlorbenzol". Berichte der deutschen chemischen Gesellschaft 7 (2): 1180–1181. doi:10.1002/cber.18740070278

       

What is DDT

     According to Encyclopedia Britannica: "DDT abbreviation of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, also called 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane, a synthetic insecticide belonging to the family of organic halogen compounds, highly toxic toward a wide variety of insects as a contact poison that apparently exerts its effect by disorganizing the nervous system".

DDT chemical formula is C14H9Cl5

Pure DDT

     In its pure form, DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) is an organochlorine insecticide which is a white, crystalline solid, tasteless, and almost oderless (like table salt). 1.

     One of the worries about DDT is it doesn't break down in the environment or in organisms. Its long life is due to its low solubility in water and it's relatively high solubility in fats. In other words DDT will not dissolve in water but will in the fats of organisms.

     The way it effects humans is through the food supplies. Cow eats the plants that were sprayed by DDT. When we later consume the cow we end up having DDT in our system. The fields that were sprayed with DDT also leech into our rivers, streams and the lakes. When it rains DDT is swept away into our waterways where DDT clings to the plants and the krill. The fish eat the contaminated plant and then the larger fish eats the smaller fish and we end up consuming the poisonous fish.

                     We consume the product.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i} Toxicological Profile: for DDT, DDE, and DDE. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, September 2002.

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