Ronde 2014 Internationaal (Innovative Systems Toxicology for Alternatives to Animal Testing):
People are exposed to numerous chemicals via the environment. To prevent adverse health effects, risk and safety assessment are obligatory before chemicals are allowed on the market. The aim of this research project is the development of a strategy to detect adverse effects on the brain resulting from chemical exposure. The ultimate goal is to do this without experiments in animals. Therefore, a number of cell models are used. To evaluate whether these cellular assays reliably predict neurotoxicity, also a limited number of experiments are done to detect effects of exposure to chemicals on behaviour. Data from this research in combination with information from literature are combined in mathematical models to predict neurotoxicity in humans. It will be evaluated in which manner (which combination of experiments and methods) neurotoxicity is optimally predicted to improve risk and safety assessment. This will be actively communicated to societal, regulatory and governmental parties concerned.