BMDS Training at Society for Risk Analysis (SRA) on December 8
A full-day Benchmark Dose Modeling training was provided at the US EPA and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) on December 8 at the 2022 Society for Risk Analysis (SRA) Conference in Tampa.
Training covered what was then the newly released BMDS Online and BMDS 3.3.
For years, EPA’s Benchmark Dose Software has been available as a standalone Windows desktop application for the dose-response analysis of toxicological data for risk assessment.
In addition to the updated BMDS Excel release, BMDS 3.3, the EPA and NIEHS expanded dose-response capabilities to BMDS Online and ToxicR:
- BMDS Online reimplements the existing BMDS software in a web-based application, allowing users to run BMDS on any computer with access to the internet.
- ToxicR is an R-based Bayesian modeling platform developed by NIEHS/National Toxicology Program (NTP) that “untethers” BMDS and other models from standard parameterizations, expanding its capabilities for research applications. ToxicR is freely available for statistical computing.
This workshop covered dose-response analyses (frequentist and Bayesian). Participants learned and practiced, through hands-on exercises, dose-response modeling of dichotomous and continuous response data using BMDS Online.
Following these introductory analyses, participants learned and practiced the use of Bayesian models, including the application of a Bayesian framework for model averaging using ToxicR.
Participants explored model averaging approaches for dichotomous and continuous data, including new model averaging capabilities for continuous data that include the European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA) suite of continuous models, currently only available in ToxicR.
The research functionality and modeling capacity of the ToxicR platform was demonstrated. Hands-on exercises in ToxicR were provided. Participants were shown how to modify prior assumptions and perform sensitivity analyses to investigate the default prior’s effect on a given analysis. Additional features of the package that allow for scripted batch processing, advanced graphics, and custom BMD analysis were also highlighted.
Participants were asked to bring their own laptops, with the following software installed:
- BMDS 3.3; (Windows is required for this portion of the training)
- A recent internet browser (Google Chrome is preferred)
- R
- R-Studio
- Toxic R package
The SRA website had registration details, but registration is now closed because this event already happened.