EFSA on epigenetics in risk assessment

EFSA publishes official report from the June 2016 colloquium on epigenetics in risk assessment

ILSI NA workshop on FCMs

Videos of presentations and panel discussions held at ILSI North America workshop on safety evaluation of FCMs in September 2016 are now available online

JRC: Report 2016 on alternatives to animal testing

European Union Reference Laboratory for Alternatives to Animal Testing (EURL ECVAM) publishes 2016 status report providing an update on its activities

EFSA: consultation on MixTox project

European Food Safety Authority calls for stakeholder contributions to shaping its new project MixTox aiming to develop a harmonized methodology for risk assessment of chemical mixtures

Five AOPs published by OECD

OECD endorses five new Adverse Outcome Pathways; cover liver fibrosis, heritable mutations, reproductive dysfunction, impairment of learning and memory abilities in children and adults; new background article on AOPs available on FPF website

Adverse outcome pathways

Adverse outcome pathway (AOP) describes the sequence of events linking initial molecular perturbations to adverse outcomes in organisms and populations; this framework supports the use of high-throughput animal-free toxicity testing methods in regulatory decision-making

Adverse health effects of low-dose mixtures

Scientists evaluate health effects of a mixture of 27 environmental chemicals in rats exposed to low concentrations comparable to current human exposure levels; find effects on weight, histology, gene expression in the liver, and metabolome of blood plasma

BfR’s research on nanomaterials

German Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) summarizes its research on health and environmental safety of nanomaterials and other novel materials; nanoparticle detection optimized in different matrices; animal-free toxicity testing implemented

Endocrine-active chemicals in baby bottles

Scientists test 65 chemicals migrating from ‘BPA-free’ baby bottles in a panel of in vitro assays for effects on seven receptors; 12 chemicals show no activity, 53 activate or inhibit at least one of the tested receptors

Carcinogenesis by low-dose chemical mixtures: way forward

Scientists summarize the knowledge on the combined contribution of low-dose chemical exposures to carcinogenesis, identify research gaps, recommend novel methodologies for research and risk assessment