Toxicology testing
Encyclopedia
Toxicology testing, also known as safety testing, or toxicity testing, is conducted by pharmaceutical companies testing drugs, or by contract animal testing facilities such as Huntingdon Life Sciences
and Inveresk Research International on behalf of a wide variety of customers, including the manufacturer of medicines and household products. http://www.buav.org/pdf/HouseholdProductTests.pdf
Around one million animals are used every year in Europe in toxicology tests. In the UK, one-fifth of animal experiments are toxicology tests.
The tests are conducted without anesthesia
, since drugs can change test results. The tests examine finished products such as pesticide
s, medication
s, food additives such as artificial sweeteners, packing materials, and air freshener, or their chemical ingredients. The substances are applied to the skin or eyes; injected intravenously, intramuscularly, or subcutaneously; inhaled either by placing a mask over the animals and restraining them, or by placing them in an inhalation chamber; or administered orally, through a tube into the stomach, or placing them in the animals' food. Doses may be given once, repeated regularly for many months, or for the lifespan of the animal.
Huntingdon Life Sciences
Huntingdon Life Sciences is a contract animal-testing company founded in 1952 in England, with facilities in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire; Eye, Suffolk; New Jersey in the U.S., and Japan...
and Inveresk Research International on behalf of a wide variety of customers, including the manufacturer of medicines and household products. http://www.buav.org/pdf/HouseholdProductTests.pdf
Around one million animals are used every year in Europe in toxicology tests. In the UK, one-fifth of animal experiments are toxicology tests.
The tests are conducted without anesthesia
Anesthesia
Anesthesia, or anaesthesia , traditionally meant the condition of having sensation blocked or temporarily taken away...
, since drugs can change test results. The tests examine finished products such as pesticide
Pesticide
Pesticides are substances or mixture of substances intended for preventing, destroying, repelling or mitigating any pest.A pesticide may be a chemical unicycle, biological agent , antimicrobial, disinfectant or device used against any pest...
s, medication
Medication
A pharmaceutical drug, also referred to as medicine, medication or medicament, can be loosely defined as any chemical substance intended for use in the medical diagnosis, cure, treatment, or prevention of disease.- Classification :...
s, food additives such as artificial sweeteners, packing materials, and air freshener, or their chemical ingredients. The substances are applied to the skin or eyes; injected intravenously, intramuscularly, or subcutaneously; inhaled either by placing a mask over the animals and restraining them, or by placing them in an inhalation chamber; or administered orally, through a tube into the stomach, or placing them in the animals' food. Doses may be given once, repeated regularly for many months, or for the lifespan of the animal.
Links
What is aquatic toxicity testing?See also
- Children's Environmental Exposure Research StudyChildren's Environmental Exposure Research StudyThe Children's Environmental Exposure Research Study was a study conducted by the United States Environmental Protection Agency designed to examine how children may be exposed to pesticides and other chemicals used in U.S. households, such as phthalates, brominated flame retardants, and...
(CHEERS) (in the US)