On 20 Aug 2003 05:47:08 GMT, Brian Sandle
posted:

In nz.general cp1c wrote:

The spray is Bt.



with all due respect the spray is not BT.
the active ingredient is BTk.

Yes, Bt kurtaski.

98% of the spray is Ingredients identified in the Foray 48B spray are
methyl paraben
(methyl 4-hydroxybenzoate), benzoic acid/sodium benzoate,
propylene glycol, potassium sorbate, sorbitol, hydrochloric acid,
and polyacrylic acid.

The other ingredients - Btk, fermentation solids and water - are already
publicly known.

The water would be the main component.

I agree the other components could be a problem. For me hydrochloric acid
is a bit of a constrictor. Polyacrylic acid looks a problem. As I have
posted on sci.med.dentistry rabbits exposed to acrylic acid vapour get
nasal inflammation. Maybe there is a connection to the bad dermatitis on
hands of dental technicians who frequently work with methacrylates. Then
di-methacrylate, a basis in much modern white dental filling material, is
a very potent sensitizer. (di being `two' - on the way to `poly'.)

all harmless by themselves

Not for all people.

but some people react badly to this combination
in a very fine aerosol when inhaled

And animals.

Some people are advised to use a mask when dealing with soil and Btk is a
soil bacteria.

The soil is full of many different bacteria. We are warned about
Legionella in potting mixes here.

In reply to another poster yes the cotton could have had herbcide applied
to dry it out prior to harvest. Roundup has been used to dry out some
crops prior to harvest. Then the question is what do the farmers use as a
`dessicant' if the crop is genetically engineered to be Roundup resistant.

Any other cheap, suitable herbicide.

I have posted an article with `byssinosis' in the title and it may not
have appeared on all servers on the groups in the header, but I see it has
got on nz.general on my server.

A ref I gave asks whether a GM herbicde tolerant crop turns the herbicde
into a toxic degradation product which may increase byssinosis lung
disease of cotton workers.

Then the question is whether washing would wash
that out. But it could not wash out the Bt or herbicide degradation
protein which I presume are a part of the fibre structure and which would
touch against lung tissue.

The fibre is practically pure cellulose. Poly glucose.

It might be intersting to do immune reaction tests on workers. They have
shown positive on Auckland people exposed to the spray.

But cotton?