Apparently, there’s something about a study involving cats and flame retardants that makes it irresistible blogging fodder. Lisa Stiffler at Dateline Earth was the first to alert us to the study, reporting that it linked cats’ PBDE exposure and hyperthyroidism. (PBDEs, or polybrominated diphenyl ethers, are flame retardants that have been banned in Washington state due to health concerns associated with them.) The Olive Ridley Crawl points out a logical fallacy regarding PBDE and reminds us that correlation is not causation. Eric DePlace at Gristmill and EvilMonkey at Neurotopia combine info on PBDEs with cat photos.

Elsewhere:

 At Gristmill, Theo Colburn explains why we need to do something about the other ED problem (the one having to do with synthetic chemicals, not Viagra).

Peter Etnoyer at Deep Sea News points out new research about the effects of detergent on corals – turns out, detergents can be worse than the oil spills they’re used to clean up.

Christine Gorman at Global Health Report highlights a South African government initiative to combine ecological restoration and job creation.

Revere at Effect Measure explains the clever genetic trick that’s made West Nile Virus a more persistent and serious public health hazard.

MarkH at denialism blog debunks the Wall Street Journal op-ed that claims the FDA is responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths. Orac at Respectful Insolence and Angry Toxicologist have some thoughts on the experimental drug issue, too.

Two posts give accessible descriptions of new medical research developments and their importance: Grrl Scientist at Living the Scientific Life (Scientist, Interrupted) reports on bones acting as endocrine organs, and Abel Pharmboy at Terra Sigillata alerts us to the propogation of human liver cells in immunocompromised mice.