SOT Component Groups (Regional Chapters, Special Interest Groups, and Specialty Sections) and Committees host webinars throughout the year. Webinars are an effective distance-learning method intended to impart scientific knowledge to members of their group as well as the SOT membership at large. These webinars are just one of the many benefits of SOT membership.
Upcoming webinars for October and November 2019 are listed here.
Global Estimates of Mortality Associated with Long-Term Exposure to Outdoor Fine Particulate Matter
Host: Occupational and Public Health Specialty Section (OPHSS)
Date and Time: Wednesday, October 2, 2019, 1:00 PM–2:00 PM (ET)
Registration is required.
Exposure to ambient fine particulate matter is a global public health concern. Join the OPHSS and special guest Dr. Richard Burnett for a presentation on the Global Exposure Mortality Model (GEMM) and how it was implemented to examine the association between PM2.5 and nonaccidental mortality using data from 41 cohorts from 16 countries. Dr. Burnett will describe GEMM and how it addresses many limitations associated with previous models and provides a means of quantifying the health impacts of outdoor air pollution, as well as discussing the significance of this work on outdoor air pollution as a population health risk factor.
Dr. Burnett has more than 30 years of experience working on issues related to environmental risk assessment. Dr. Burnett is a senior research scientist with the Healthy Environments and Consumer Safety Branch of Health Canada, where he has been working since 1984. He also is an Affiliate Professor at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) at the University of Washington. Dr. Burnett’s interests are in mathematical and statistical methods to track health risks from environmental hazards in both space and time, allowing assessments of the effectiveness of risk management strategies with respect to improvements in population health. Dr. Burnett has served on numerous US National Academy of Sciences committees and university program advisory committees. He is a member of the Global Burden of Disease expert group on outdoor air pollution and is a recipient of the Federal Public Service Excellence in Science 2012 Award and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal.
The Hidden and Not-So-Hidden Health Effects of E-cigarettes
Host: Inhalation and Respiratory Specialty Section (IRSS)
Date and Time: Tuesday, October 8, 2019, 12:00 Noon–1:00 PM (ET)
Registration is required.
This talk will cover known and unknown pulmonary and systemic toxicities of various types of e-cigarettes. Dr. Crotty Alexander will go through different generations of e-cigs and their e-liquids, and the possible toxicities of flavors versus other components. The speaker will cover human, mouse, and in vitro studies to date.
Get Noticed! Writing Abstracts and Award Applications to Get Your Science Recognized
Hosts: Molecular and Systems Biology Specialty Section (MSBSS) and Graduate Student Leadership Committee (GSLC)
Date and Time: Wednesday, October 9, 2019, 12:00 Noon–1:00 PM (ET)
Registration is required.
As the end of the year approaches, many trainees find themselves in a frantic hustle to write abstracts and submit award applications for the upcoming SOT Annual Meeting. A well-written abstract is essential for a competitive award application and increases the likelihood of being selected for a platform presentation. This webinar will cover the essentials of how to write a powerful SOT abstract and craft compelling award applications. We will discuss the fundamental elements of the abstract, including the title, question, hypothesis, methods/results, and conclusion. We will review examples of clear, effective abstracts and instruct individuals on how to edit their own abstracts. The second half of the webinar will focus on building competitive award packages for the numerous SOT trainee awards. Award applications often require additional writing pieces beyond the standard abstract, including extended abstracts, cover letters, and personal statements. We will discuss strategies for developing engaging award applications that showcase trainees’ scientific and professional accomplishments. By participating in this webinar, attendees will learn key strategies for generating concise and compelling writing pieces and will develop valuable and transferable skills before the 2020 SOT Annual Meeting.
Comparison of Various Approaches to AOP Quantification
Host: Risk Assessment Specialty Section (RASS)
Date and Time: Wednesday, October 9, 2019, 3:00 PM–4:30 PM (ET)
Registration is not required.
Frederic Bois, Senior Scientific Advisor, Simcyp Division, Certara UK Limited, Sheffield, UK, will serve as the webinar speaker. The webinar abstract is as follows: We recently compared three approaches to qAOP building: empirical dose-response modeling, Bayesian network calibration, and systems biology modeling. These methods were applied to the quantification of a simplified oxidative stress–induced chronic kidney disease AOP, on the basis of in vitro data obtained on RPTEC/TERT1 cells exposed to potassium bromate. We are extending the Bayesian network approach, and we have analyzed mitochondrial toxicity data generated by the EU-ToxRisk project. The results obtained will give us the opportunity to discuss the pros and cons of the various approaches.
Bridging the In Vitro–In Vivo Divide for Hazard Testing of Nanomaterials
Host: Neuroscience and Advanced Materials Specialty Section (NAMSS)
Date and Time: Monday, October 21, 2019, 12:00 Noon–1:00 PM (ET)
Registration is required.
There have been great developments in our understanding of nanosafety over the last decade. However, there is also now increased recognition that technical challenges remain in the use of standard in vitro hazard evaluation strategies that impact their reliability and predictivity. Most hazard tests for risk assessment purposes are currently based on mammalian cells cultured as a two-dimensional (2D) monolayer, but these culture systems do not closely mimic human physiological functioning. In contrast, when cells are cultured in three dimensions (3D), the increased structural complexity results in cell-to-cell and/or cell-to-matrix cross talk, enhanced metabolic capacity, and altered global transcriptomic and proteomic profiles, leading to 3D models that are more representative of the in vivo environment. The application of 3D tissue constructs and complex co-culture models incorporating multiple cell types is improving our ability to report on a wider range of potential key events leading to adverse outcome effects following exposure to nanomaterials. Thus, the continued development and standardization of such advanced in vitro models may provide substantial benefits in bridging the in vitro to in vivo gap for hazard assessment, potentially minimizing the necessity of animal testing. An overview will be given about the current advancement of lung, intestine, and liver 3D models as well as state-of-the-art exposure approaches to understand the impact of various nanomaterials.
Award Webinar Series: 2019 Graduate Student and Postdoctoral Awards
Host: Molecular and Systems Biology Specialty Section (MSBSS)
Date and Time: Monday, November 4, 2019, 12:00 Noon–1:00 PM (ET)
Registration is required.
This webinar will highlight the research of the 2019 MSBSS award recipients. This year, we acknowledge exceptional research related to targeting renal proliferation to combat acute kidney injury, estrogen as a modulator of the microbiome, and hepatic transcriptomics following prenatal exposures. These three outstanding early-career scientists will share their work during this one-hour webinar:
- MSBSS Paper of the Year Award
- Dr. Maria Monteiro, Harvard Medical School
- A High-Throughput Screen Identifies DYRK1A Inhibitor ID-8 That Stimulates Human Kidney Tubular Epithelial Cell Proliferation
- MSBSS Postdoctoral Fellow Research Award
- Dr. Tara Catron, US Environmental Protection Agency
- Estradiol Exposure Disrupts the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis during Zebrafish Development
- MSBSS Graduate Student Research Award
- Dr. Kari Neier, University of Michigan
- Reprogramming of Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Target Genes in Mice Perinatally Exposed to Phthalates
Chemical Carcinogenicity Revisited in Three Parts
Host: Risk Assessment Specialty Section (RASS)
Date and Time: Wednesday, November 13, 2019, 3:00 PM–4:30 PM (ET)
Registration is not required.
- Part 1: A Unified Theory of Carcinogenicity Based on Contemporary Knowledge
- Douglas C. Wolf, DVM
Syngenta Crop Protection LLC
Greensboro, NC
- Part 2: Current Knowledge of Carcinogenesis Shows That Categorization as a Carcinogen or Noncarcinogen Is Not Scientifically Credible
- John E. Doe, PhD
Parker Doe LLP
Bramhall, Stockport, Cheshire, UK
- Part 3: Risk Assessment of Carcinogenic Potential Based on the Current State of Knowledge of Carcinogenesis in Humans
- Samuel E. Cohen, PhD
Department of Pathology and Microbiology
Havlik-Wall Professor of Oncology
University of Nebraska Medical Center
Omaha, NE
Developments in the understanding of the etiology of cancer have profound implications for the way the carcinogenic potential of chemicals should be addressed in a testing framework and regulatory decision-making/risk management. Our enhanced understanding of carcinogenesis obligates us to develop better ways to evaluate and regulate chemicals. It is no longer appropriate to embrace the concept that chemicals are either “carcinogens” or “noncarcinogens.” The capacity to induce cancer should not be classified in an inflexible, binary manner as present (carcinogen) or absent (noncarcinogen). In this three-part presentation, we will (1) describe a unified theory of carcinogenesis; (2) present the argument that the long-term rodent bioassay is no longer appropriate or efficient for evaluating carcinogenic potential for humans and to inform risk management decisions, and that since modes of action that lead to the induction of tumors are already considered under other hazardous property categories in classification (e.g., Mutagenicity/Genotoxicity and Target Organ Toxicity), a separate category for Carcinogenicity is not required and provides no additional public health protection; and (3) propose a transition from dependence upon the long-term bioassay to a decision tree matrix that can be applied to a broader range of chemicals, with better predictivity, based on the premise that cancer is the consequence of DNA coding errors that arise either directly from mutagenic events or indirectly from sustained cell proliferation.