By Richard S. Pollenz, Education Committee Chair
James C. Bonner, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, has been selected by the Education Committee to be the speaker for 
the In Vitro Lecture and Luncheon at 12:00 noon, Monday, March 23. This event is sponsored by an educational grant from the Colgate-Palmolive Company. The goal of the In Vitro Toxicology Lecture series is to feature important research using in vitro and alternative techniques to study basic mechanisms and to illustrate how these test methods benefit animal welfare by refining, reducing, and replacing animal use whenever it is feasible.
Undergraduate students, graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, and recipients of Colgate-Palmolive awards are among the guests at the In Vitro Toxicology Lecture and Luncheon. Students and postdoctoral scholars register for $10 (nonrefundable) via the Annual Meeting registration. Dr. Bonner will present an introduction to the topic, challenge participants to discuss specific questions at their tables, and attendees will report their ideas to the general audience.
The development of in vitro alternative approaches to test chemical toxicity and reduce the need for in vivo rodent testing continues to be a key area of focus for toxicologists and the public in general. While traditional toxicology methods have relied heavily on animals, new high-throughput screening approaches to generate toxicological data are becoming increasingly available for the safety assessment of chemicals. The emergence of the nanotechnology revolution has made the demand for alternative testing more urgent than ever to address a rapidly expanding number and variety of engineered nanomaterials. Nanotechnology is anticipated to bring societal benefits in the areas of medicine, engineering, electronics, and energy. However, it also is inevitable that some nanomaterials will present risks for disease in humans exposed occupationally or as a result of exposure to consumer products that incorporate nanomaterials.
As the number of different types and modifications of nanomaterials in research, development, and commercialization continues to grow exponentially, a reliable and robust scientific approach to screen nanomaterial toxicity will require in vitro cell systems that can predict disease in mice and humans in vivo. A promising new toxicological paradigm for nanomaterials will be discussed, using carbon nanotubes as a case study, which utilizes alternative test strategies to reduce reliance on animal testing through the use of in vitro cell-based model systems. The most appropriate types of in vitro systems for predicting specific types of disease (e.g., cancer, fibrosis, asthma) will be addressed for hazard assessment of nanomaterials at various stages of synthesis, product development, and overall life cycle.