ToxCast

Hey there! The winter holidays are now over, and it's back to school! Definitely not a good thing, but there is good news reporting all the way from North Carolina...

"About 40 scientists at the Environmental Protection Agency in Research Triangle Park are working on ToxCast, a program to screen chemicals for their potential to harm people and the environment"

"Instead of live-animal tests developed more than 40 years ago, ToxCast uses screening technology gleaned from drug research. Computers then turn the results of about 600 ToxCast tests per chemical into quick-to-grasp, three-dimensional maps"

"A ToxCast fingerprint can be ready in a few weeks and costs about $25,000. Live-animal testing takes months and can cost $10 million to $12 million per chemical"

Generally, the above quotes are stating how a program called ToxCast is starting to be being used as an alternative that is even faster and cheaper than animal testing in assessing chemicals in some circumstances - yes, is admittedly not very popular as stated in the article:

"Still, it will probably take another five to 10 years before ToxCast fingerprints can be used regularly to predict a chemical's potential harm."

But it's a start, right?


Read the article at http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/01/02/1951280/a-new-way-to-assess-chemicals.html

The Environmental Protection Agency in Research Triangle Park

- Ayunie