The carcinoGENOMICS project: critical selection of model compounds for the development of omics-based in vitro carcinogenicity screening assays.
Recent changes in the European legislation of chemical-related substances have forced the scientific community to speed up the search for alternative methods that could partly or fully replace animal experimentation. The Sixth Framework Program project carcinoGENOMICS was specifically raised to develop omics-based in vitro screens for testing the carcinogenic potential of chemical compounds in a pan-European context. This paper provides an in-depth analysis of the complexity of choosing suitable reference compounds used for creating and fine-tuning the in vitro carcinogenicity assays. First, a number of solid criteria for the selection of the model compounds are defined. Secondly, the strategy followed, including resources consulted, is described and the selected compounds are briefly illustrated. Finally, limitations and problems encountered during the selection procedure are discussed. Since selecting an appropriate set of chemicals is a frequent impediment in the early stages of similar research projects, the information provided in this paper might be extremely valuable.
Department of Toxicology, Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), Laarbeeklaan 103, B-1090 Brussels, Belgium. mvinken@vub.ac.be
Mathieu
M
Vinken
Tatyana
T
Doktorova
Heidrun
H
Ellinger-Ziegelbauer
Hans-Jürgen
HJ
Ahr
Edward
E
Lock
Paul
P
Carmichael
Erwin
E
Roggen
Joost
J
van Delft
Jos
J
Kleinjans
José
J
Castell
Roque
R
Bort
Teresa
T
Donato
Michael
M
Ryan
Raffaella
R
Corvi
Hector
H
Keun
Timothy
T
Ebbels
Toby
T
Athersuch
Susanna-Assunta
SA
Sansone
Philippe
P
Rocca-Serra
Rob
R
Stierum
Paul
P
Jennings
Walter
W
Pfaller
Hans
H
Gmuender
Tamara
T
Vanhaecke
Vera
V
Rogiers
D000826:Animal Testing Alternatives; D015197:Carcinogenicity Tests / Q000379:methods*; D005062:European Union; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D023281:Genomics / Q000379:methods*; D015386:Hazardous Substances; D007391:International Cooperation; D043922:Toxicogenetics / Q000639:trends
D015386:Hazardous Substances