Citation:

Hecker, M. AND C. LaLone. Adverse outcome pathways: Moving from a scientific concept to a internationally accepted framework. ENVIRONMENTAL TOXICOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY. Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, Pensacola, FL, 38(6):1152-1163, (2019). https://doi.org/10.1002/etc.4385

Impact/Purpose:

he adverse outcome pathway (AOP) is a conceptual framework for organizing available biological information to understand how chemical and non-chemical stressors may disrupt biology and lead to adverse health or environmental effects. A workshop was held in April of 2017 to advance this framework to be more useful to the broader international scientific and regulatory communities. The workshop focused on making strides scientifically and socially with the framework. This was accomplished through asking the international community, via an online survey, about what their perceived needs were to advance the framework. The workshop then served as a platform to address the needs identified. This manuscript summarizes the discussions captured in six companion manuscripts derived from the workshop. Further, the paper identifies new directions for further advancement of the AOP framework.

Description:

The adverse outcome pathway (AOP) framework has gained significant international traction as a systematic approach for capturing existing knowledge to transparently link mechanistic data to apical toxicity endpoints to inform research and regulatory decision-making. While the framework has evolved significantly since its introduction in 2010, it was recognized that a survey of the broader scientific community would be useful in identifying shortcomings and guiding future initiatives. Therefore, in 2016 we reached out to the international scientific and regulatory communities through a horizon scanning exercise to gather information on key outstanding challenges that must be addressed in order to realize the full potential of the AOP framework. Four key themes emerged from this, which were then addressed at a Society of Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry (SETAC) Pellston™ Workshop by international participants representing industry, government, academia, and non-governmental organizations. These themes were 1) AOP networks and their applications; 2) quantitative AOPs (qAOPs) and their applications; 3) regulatory use of the AOP framework; and 4) expanding awareness of, involvement in, and acceptance of AOPs to support aspects of predictive toxicology and regulatory decision-making. This manuscript provides an overview of the workshop discussions and describes the outcomes that emerged. Common themes that spanned across the main topics are also presented. In short, the current momentum of the AOP framework, driven by increased AOP development and publication, provided a unique opportunity to advance the AOP framework both technically, in regards to networks and qAOPs, and socially by strategic engagement of various stakeholder communities and demonstrated application to regulatory scenarios. Such advances were collectively deemed essential for the overall sustainability of the AOP framework, and are addressed by six companion papers representing the products of the Pellston™ Workshop. The contents of this presentation neither constitute nor necessarily reflect US EPA policy.

URLs/Downloads:

Record Details: