User:Peter Damian/investigation

Elementary mistakes
The (II) in Nitrogen (II) oxide means the oxidation state of the nitrogen in the compound. For two-element compounds, each oxidation state times the number of that atom present cancels to zero. Since the oxidation state of oxygen is always -II in compounds, nitrogen(II) oxide will be NO as a +2 nitrogen will cancel a -2 oxygen. For nitrogen(IV) oxide, we have a +4 nitrogen and so need two -2 oxygens to balance the charge, and so nitrogen(IV) oxide is NO2.

Wikicology also made the mistake of thinking carbon(I) oxide was CO when it would actually be C2O - which doesn't exist! Carbon monoxide is CO, and would be carbon(II) oxide under this naming system.This is a beginner mistake: it is taught at High School in Australia.

His classification of beryllium poisoning as an example of gas poisonings was also a surprise, as any chemist should know that beryllium is a solid at room temperature. Further, beryllium poisoning is characterised by granulomas ("an inflammation found in many diseases. It is a collection of immune cells known as histiocytes. Granulomas form when the immune system attempts to wall off substances it perceives as foreign but is unable to eliminate.") formed by the body to deal with solid particles of beryllium. Gas poisonings aren't like this, and while some symptoms might be superficially similar, a biochemist wouild understand the process and the differences.

Another example is the statement from the biochemical effects part of the article: "It also causes a decrease in Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase which may results in Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency known as favism, a condition that predisposes to hemolysis (spontaneous destruction of red blood cells).[47]" Ref 47 is another rat study on NO2, which is a questionable basis for such a broad statement. More disturbingly, the abstract states that "The activities of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and glutathione reductase were significantly higher than those in the control group for the 9-month exposure. In the 18-month exposure, however, they showed a tendency to return to control level." Any scientist should know that the control group is the one not exposed to the test and so the abstract actually says that the levels of this enzyme were higher in the treatment group but the article says the levels decreased. These examples suggest limited understanding of the chemistry, poor choice of sources, and mistaken interpretation of those sources, in addition to sources being incorrect.

Yet another example from the lead of the article is:
 * Known sources of Nitrogen gas poisoning includes automobile exhaust, Power stations, The toxicity may also results from non-combustible sources such as the one released from anaerobic fermentation of food grains and Anaerobic digestion of Biodegradable waste.

However:

The description of nitrogen dioxide in the lead is incomplete, in that it is a red-brown gas but exists in equilibrium as colourless dinitrogen tetroxide (N2O4) and at low temperatures this second form is the dominant form. It does not become colourless though the colour intensity may fade to be not noticeable as concentration decreases, in addition to reacting to form N2O4. The impression is that Wikicology is enthusiastic about science but has knowledge gaps that one would hope not to see in a graduate in the field.
 * Nitrogen gas poisoning is the bends and has nothing to do with nitrogen dioxide poisoning.
 * "Anaerobic fermentation" is wikilinked to lactic acid fermentation, which doesn't involve nitrogen (it is a major source of methane from sugars).
 * The linked anaerobic digestion page show that nitrogen in these cases ends up mostly as ammonia. The reference does mention nitrogen and its oxides, but a biochemist should know that significant NO2 production requires oxygen (ie. aerobic not anaerobic conditions) and that the anaerobic product of metabolising nitrogen is overwhelmingly ammonia.  In other words, interpreting the reference appropriately requires recognition that one of the products listed is vastly more significant in terms of quantity than are the others.