- In vitro toxicology
"In vitro" toxicity testing is the
scientific analysis of the effects oftoxic chemical substance s on cultured bacteria ormammalian cells. "In vitro" (literally 'in glass') testing methods are employed primarily to identify potentially hazardous chemicals and/or to confirm the lack of certain toxic properties in the early stages of the development of potentially useful new substances such as therapeutic drugs,agricultural chemicals and direct food additives. Most toxicologists believe that "in vitro" toxicity testing methods can be a useful, time and cost-effective supplement to toxicology studies in living animals (which are termed "in vivo" or "in life" methods). However, it is generally accepted that the available "in vitro" tests are not presently adequate to entirely replace animal toxicology tests.In vitro assays for xenobiotic toxicity are recently carefully considered by key government agencies (e.g. EPA; NIEHS/NTP; FDA), mainly due to a societal movement to reduce the use of animals in research, and a desire to better assess human risks. There are substantial activities in using in vitro systems to advance mechanistic understanding of toxicant activities, and the use of human cells and tissue to define human-specific toxic effects.
External links
* [http://www.qed-experiment.com/mouselymphomaassay/ Mouse Lymphoma Assay Calculations]
* [http://www.qed-experiment.com/genetictoxicology/ Introduction to Genetic Toxicology]
* [http://altweb.jhsph.edu/ Alt Web]
* [http://caat.jhsph.edu/ The Johns Hopkins Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT)]
* [http://www.mattek.com/pages/in_vitro_toxicology 3-D, Human Cell-Derived TISSUES for Tox. Testing - MatTek Corp.]
* [http://www.toxicology.org/ISOT/SS/ivss/ In Vitro and Alternative Methods Specialty Section]
* [http://www.3t3nru.com In Vitro Phototoxicity Testing]
* [http://www.apsciences.com/index.php?option=com_docman&task=cat_view&gid=13&Itemid=34 IdMOC system for in vitro toxicity evaluation]
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