The FutureTox II Pathways to Prediction: In Vitro Data and In Silico Models for Predictive Toxicology Contemporary Concepts in Toxicology (CCT) conference will be held January 16–17, 2014, at the William and Ida Friday Center for Continuing Education, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The conference will address the progress made in moving away from animal testing to high-throughput and in vitro assays that assess how chemical compounds perturb cellular functions. This new paradigm for assessing toxicity was outlined in The National Research Council (NRC) report “Toxicity Testing in the 21st Century: A Vision and a Strategy.”
Leading experts is diverse disciplines will focus on the central question: In what ways can in vitro/in silico methodologies be seen as superior to in vivo methods such that the latter would not be needed to confirm findings. An overarching goal of FutureTox II is to clarify the usefulness and validity of new and emerging technologies and approaches so that expectations can be managed in both the regulatory and regulated scientific communities. There will be ample opportunities to network with experts in this fast changing growth area. The FutureTox II CCT Organizing Committee has invited a group of distinguished experts to deliver cutting-edge presentations.
The program agenda and registration information is available on the SOT website. Breakout groups will address four key areas: Regulatory Toxicology, Liver Disease and Hepatotoxicity, Developmental/ Reproductive Toxicity, and Cancer. There is global interest in “Adverse Outcome Pathways” (AOPs) as a conceptual framework for mode-of-action approaches in these four areas.
For those interested in presenting a poster at this conference, the Abstracts Submission portal now is open. Approximately 200 scientists from diverse sectors are anticipated to attend and partial funding will be available for graduate students and postdoctoral scholars.
Focusing the FutureTox II CCT on scientific issues where new methodologies and advances can move us beyond reliance on animal models will benefit all researchers and regulators as a way of identifying key questions that need research.