NHEERL on the Road

Paris, France

NHEERL Scientist Participates in Manufactured Nanomaterials Working Party, Then Named Its Co-Chair

In Paris, France, on September 22 and 23, 2008, Kevin Dreher participated in a workshop as a member-and later named its co-chair-of an Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) working party on engineered manufactured nanomaterials steering group to evaluate and provide guidance on the role of alternative test methods to assess and predict the toxicity of such nanomaterials. This OECD steering group's objectives are to provide (1) a detailed review of the available in vitro methods and to discuss how they might be used in an overall assessment plan for hazard testing of manufactured nanomaterials (the representative set); (2) a data set from testing a representative set of nanomaterials against an agreed suite of in vitro tests and comparisons made with in vivo studies; and (3) a guidance document for the longer term on integrated testing strategies and, for more general use, on the use of alternative methods not entailing animals, such as in vitro and in silico methods, for the hazard evaluation of manufactured nanomaterials.

NHEERL Scientists Participate in OECD Expert Group Meeting

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has published a draft Test Guideline entitled "Extended One-Generation Reproductive Toxicity Test." An Expert Group Meeting was organized in an attempt to reach consensus by the lead countries (the United States, Germany, and the Netherlands) on a number of scientific issues. The OECD steering committee requested nominations to seat an expert panel from different countries to discuss the methodology and added value of the developmental immunotoxicity and neurotoxicity cohorts. Interest in this new testing approach is high, and OECD wanted to make certain that previous consensus building evident in the early phase of guidance development was carried forth into the guideline process. In Paris, France, October 15-17, 2008, several NHEERL scientists participated in this effort (see below).

Robert W. Luebke, NHEERL Experimental Toxicology Division, participated in the meeting as an expert panel member to discuss the methodology and added value of the immunotoxicity cohort. Dr. Luebke is an internationally recognized expert on immunotoxicology and has been involved in the development of this guideline since its inception. His participation in this meeting was at the request of the OECD Steering Committee.

Ralph L. Cooper, NHEERL Reproductive Toxicology Division, participated in this meeting as the primary lead for the United States. Dr. Cooper is an internationally recognized expert on endocrine disruptors and was co-chair of the ILSI-HESI Task Force on Life Stage Testing and authored the ensuing document on the development of the life stages testing scheme (Cooper et al., Critical Reviews in Toxicology, 2006). OECD requested Dr. Cooper's participation as a member of the steering group developing the new design on reproductive toxicity testing as part of the EDSP ongoing initiative.

Kevin M. Crofton, NHEERL Neurotoxicology Division, served as an expert panel member to discuss the methodology and added value of the neurotoxicity cohort. Dr. Crofton is an internationally recognized expert on developmental neurotoxicology. OECD requested Dr. Crofton to participate as an expert panel member to develop the new design on reproductive toxicity testing.

NHEERL Researcher Meets with OECD Counterparts To Discuss Expanding Screening Methods

Philip Bushnell, an NHEERL Toxicity Assessment Division, Neurotoxicology Branch scientist who is an internationally recognized leader in the area of cognitive test methods in animal models, met with Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) colleagues at their headquarters in Paris, France, on June 15, 2009. OECD is partnering with EPA to develop test guidelines and screening methods based on quantitative structure-activity relationships to identify the hazards of environmental chemicals. Neurotoxicity presently is not captured by existing procedures. The purposes of this meeting were to discuss new developments and potential approaches to screen for neurotoxicity and to discuss potential paths forward to integrating tests of neurotoxicity into the screening methods. This meeting will benefit EPA by coordinating efforts between the EPA and OECD on this important regulatory issue.

ISTD Researcher To Head Up OECD Subgroup in Paris

William Mundy, a neurotoxicologist with NHEERL's Integrated Systems Toxicology Division's (ISTD's) Systems Biology Branch, has been asked by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to participate in a meeting of its Advisory Group on Molecular Screening in Paris, France, October 26-28, 2009. There, he will be the head of the subgroup on Developmental Neurotoxicoloty Testing (DNT). Dr. Mundy will present a talk giving an overview of progress of the DNT subgroup in identifying appropriate chemicals for screening, identifying the appropriate end points and assays relevant to neurodevelopment, and developing a strategy to validate assays and interpret high-throughput data. Dr. Mundy will meet with scientists from the OECD subgroups to revise the Advisory Group plans to develop high-throughput screening assays and harmonize data evaluation procedures that will result in chemical prioritization for further testing. He then will meet with Dr. Barbara Demeniux at her laboratory to observe the use of in vitro techniques for the assay of chemical effects on thyroid-mediated developmental processes.

Dr. Mundy's participation in these activities will ensure that the Agency is current on new methods and approaches that are being used to build new toxicity testing paradigms in the international community. This exchange of information will be important in setting future research priorities as ORD and NHEERL begin implementing research programs on new methods for chemical screening and prioritization.