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'''Lindane''', also known as '''''gamma''-hexachlorocyclohexane''', (γ-HCH), '''gammaxene''', '''Gammallin''' and erroneously known as '''[[benzene hexachloride]]''' (BHC),<ref name="bhc-misnomer">{{cite book |title= Analytical toxicology: for clinical, forensic, and pharmaceutical chemists |last1= Brandenberger |first1= Hans |last2= Maes |first2= Robert A. A. |year= 1997 |publisher= Walter de Gruyter |location= Berlin |isbn= 9783110107319 |page= 243 |url= http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=ZhYtynyC4kAC&pg=PA243&lpg=PA243 |accessdate= 2009-05-10}}</ref> is an [[organochlorine]] chemical variant of [[hexachlorocyclohexane]] that has been used both as an agricultural [[insecticide]] and as a [[pharmaceutical]] treatment for infestations of [[Pediculosis|lice]] and [[scabies]].<ref name="drugs.com">[http://www.drugs.com/mmx/lindane.html Drugs.com Professional Drug Information: Lindane]. Retrieved 2009-05-10</ref><ref name="x4"> Commission for Environmental Cooperation. The North American Regional Action Plan (NARAP) on Lindane and Other Hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH) Isomers. 2005. Available at: http://www.cec.org/files/PDF/POLLUTANTS/Lindane-NARAP-Public-Comment_en.pdf.</ref>
Lindane works as a [[neurotoxin]] by interfering with [[GABA]] [[neurotransmitter]] function, specifically by interacting with the [[GABAA receptor|GABA<sub>A</sub> receptor]]-chloride channel complex at the [[picrotoxin]] binding site. In humans, exposure to toxic amounts of lindane primarily affects the [[nervous system]].<ref name="Agency">Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Toxicologic profile for alpha-, beta, gamma- and delta-hexachlorocyclohenxane. August 2005. http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/toxprofiles/tp43.pdf</ref><ref name="VolRED">[http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/REDs/factsheets/lindane_fs_addendum.htm Lindane Voluntary Cancellation and RED Addendum Fact Sheet], US EPA, July name 2006.</ref> Limited data suggest that lindane may be an endocrine disruptor but additional research is needed to determine the relevance to public health. Data regarding carcinogenicity have been conflicting, though the most recent assessments indicate that lindane is not likely to pose a major cancer risk to humans.<ref name="IARC"> International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). Summaries & Evaluations: HEXACHLOROCYCLOHEXANES (Group 2B). Updated March 2, 1998. http://www.inchem.org/documents/iarc/suppl7/hexachlorocyclohexanes.html</ref><ref name="EPACA"> U.S. EPA. Evaluation of the Carcinogenic Potential of Lindane, PC. Code: 009001. 2001. http://www.lindane.com/pdf/EPA_Cancer_Assessment_of_Lindane2001.pdf</ref><ref name="WhoH2O"> World Health Organization (WHO). Lindane in Drinking Water: Background Document for Development of WHO Guidelines for Drinking-Water Quality. 2004.</ref>
The [[World Health Organization]] classifies lindane as "Moderately Hazardous," based on acute animal toxicity studies and its international trade is restricted and regulated under the [[Rotterdam Convention]] on Prior Informed Consent.<ref name="WHOClass">World Health Organization, [http://www.who.int/ipcs/publications/pesticides_hazard_rev_3.pdf ''The WHO Recommended Classification of Pesticides by Hazard''], 2005.</ref> It is presently banned in more than 50 countries, and in 2009 was included in the [[Stockholm Convention]] on [[persistent organic pollutants]], which bans its production and use for agricultural purposes in participating (ratified) countries but with a specific exemption for use as a human health pharmaceutical for the control of head lice and scabies as second-line treatment. <ref name="engeler">Eliane Engeler, "UN: Treaty expanded by 9 more dangerous chemicals", Associated Press 2009-05-09</ref> While the US is not currently a member country to the Stockholm Convention, it similarly called for the voluntary cancellation of registered agricultural products but continues to support FDA-approved medical uses of pharmaceutical lindane.
==History==
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