CAAT- EU to hold info day on toxicological risk assessment
The committee, known for promoting education in humane science has scheduled speakers from multinational cosmetic companies and animal welfare organizations to discuss the applicability of 3D systems to model human physiology and pathophysiology with particular focus on toxicological risk assessment on the 25th October in Konstanz.
“Systems presented will include hepatic, neuronal, lung and skin models, and we will also be looking at the hurdles in regulatory acceptance.”
According to CAAT, first 3D cultures have been established to better mimic the functional and physiological engineered tissues and 3D- cell cultures modelling the liver or aspects of the nervous system, the skin, the respiratory system, the intestine, the heart and other organs.
"However, the use in toxicological research is still relatively limited only few of these systems have found regulatory acceptance." Hence the requirement for the information day.
Other CAAT meetings...
Back in May, CAAT held an open workshop on the ‘Human Toxome Project’ for alternatives to animal testing in Brussels.
The small non-profit center offered industry professionals to see first-hand how the Human Toxome Project can help the industry to comply with major European Regulations dealing with cosmetics, chemicals and toxicity testing.
According to CAAT, a new toxicity testing plan has already been launched in the US which includes the use of predictive, cell-based assays (of human origin) to evaluate perturbations in key pathways of toxicity, and to conduct targeted testing against those pathways.
Then, university CEO Dr. Mardas Daneshian told CosmeticsDesign-Europe.com, “New developments in the area of regulatory toxicity are on-going in the USA. This workshop aims to awaken the decision maker and hopes for a combination of forces from both sides of the Atlantic for the realization of the human toxome project.”
Animal testing focus
The proposed ban on animal testing, due to take effect in 2013, has hit a few hurdles and there has been increased pressure throughout the industry for the European Commission to uphold this.
Regulations imposed by the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) in 2006 have led to an unprecedented need for alternatives to animal testing in Europe.
