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UTILITY OF SHORT-TERM TESTS FOR GENETIC TOXICITY
Citation:
DeMarini, D.M., J. Lewtas, AND H. Brockman. UTILITY OF SHORT-TERM TESTS FOR GENETIC TOXICITY. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/D-89/061 (NTIS PB89223622).
Description:
By definition, short-term test (STTs) for genetic toxicity detect genotoxic agents, not carcinogens specifically. owever, there is ufficient evidence, based on mechanistic considerations alone, to say that genotoxic agents are potential carcinogens. TTs have high statistical power, are almost always replicated, can be performed rather easily under various sets of experimental conditions, are relatively inexpensive, and detect a variety of endpoints relevant to carcinogenesis. n addition, several STTs have shown considerable utility in evaluating the genotoxic effects of real-world, environmental complex mixtures as well as the antimutagenic effects of various pure compounds and complex mixtures. TTs are likely to continue to be refined, resulting in STTs that are increasingly more relevant to human mutation and disease. heir utility should not be judged solely against the questionable standard of a rodent carcinogenicity assay.