Research and testing activities for the National Toxicology Program (NTP)

National Institute Of Environmental Health Sciences

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

In FY 2014, BSB continued its activities as part of Tox21 to evaluate chemicals using higher throughput assays and use computational approaches to understand results relative to key toxicity pathways and disease outcomes. They screened chemicals against a range of stress response pathways and nuclear signaling assays. They also explored the use of non-mammalian species as potential alternative models for toxicology testing. BSB is currently evaluating two model organisms, Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) and zebrafish, for assessing the potential toxic effects of chemicals on development and the immune and nervous systems of multicellular organisms. BSB is also working to identify the genetic reasons for differences in disease and disease incidence caused by toxic substances and initiated a project to identify a targeted gene set for high throughput screening against chemical exposures. The Toxicology Branch is working on a wide variety of research and testing activities, including evaluations of the potential health impact of cellphone radiation, botanical dietary supplements, environmental substances that can mimic or interfere with endogenous hormones, occupational exposures, gene therapies, and nanoscale materials. The results of NTP toxicology and carcinogenesis studies undergo rigorous peer review and are published in several NTP report series. In FY2014, the NTP prepared eight draft NTP Technical Reports for peer review on botanical dietary supplements, substances used in industry and consumer products, and byproducts of cooking and water disinfection. The NTP also published two NTP Technical Teports on substances used in industry and consumer products.