Dr. Anastas Confirmed as Head of US EPA Office of Research and Development

January 14, 2010

After some delay, the Senate has confirmed Paul Anastas to head up the US Environmental Protection Agency’s US (EPA) Office of Research and Development. Dr. Anastas is widely known as an expert in “green chemistry” and is currently the Director, Center for Green Chemistry and Green Engineering Teresa and H. John Heinz III Professor in the Practice of Chemistry for the Environment, School of Forestry & Environmental Studies. He has been a faculty member of Yale University since 2007.

Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) had blocked Dr. Anastas’ confirmation because he was concerned that theUS EPA had not yet completed an assessment of the risks associated with formaldehyde, which was found in the trailers that the Federal Emergency Management Agency gave victims of Hurricane Katrina.

In Memoriam: SOT Charter Member and Past President Gabriel L. Plaa Passed Away

November 13, 2009

Gabriel L. Plaa

Gabriel Leon Plaa, a prominent educator and toxicologist, died of cancer in Montreal, Canada. He was 79 years of age.

Gabriel L. Plaa was born May 15, 1930, in San Francisco to immigrants from France and thus French was his first language. He graduated from the University of California in 1952 with a B.Sc. in criminalistics. As a veteran of the Korean War, Dr. Plaa returned to the University of California for graduate studies in criminalistics. While attending a course taught by Dr. Charlie Hine, he was given the choice of remaining a graduate student in criminalistics without a stipend, or becoming a graduate student in pharmacology and toxicology with a stipend. Dr. Plaa became a toxicologist, earning his M.Sc. in 1956, and his Ph.D. in 1958 in Comparative Pharmacology and Toxicology with Dr. Charlie Hine as his mentor.

Dr. Plaa was an Instructor and Assistant Professor at Tulane University from 1958–1962, and then was assistant and associate professor at the University of Iowa from 1962–1968. In 1968, Dr. Plaa moved to the University of Montreal where he was Chairman of Pharmacology for 12 years. Over the years, he held other administrative positions at the university including Vice-Dean of Research and Graduate Studies, all the while conducting an active research program. The University of Montreal acknowledged his achievements and named him Professor Emeritus in 1996. In 2003, on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of its founding, the University of Montreal recognized Dr. Plaa as one of the pioneers of the institution.

Dr. Plaa was extraordinarily charitable with his time for the advancement of science nationally and internationally. He served on various scientific committees for the Society of Toxicology (SOT), NIH, ASPET, Society of Toxicology of Canada (STC), MRC, NAS, FASEB, WHO, IUPHAR, and IUTOX. He was on the editorial board of nine scientific journals, served as Associate Editor of Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology, Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, and Canadian Journal of Physiology and Pharmacology, and was Editor of TAAP from 1972–1980. Dr. Plaa was President of the STC (1981–1983) and SOT (1983–1984).

Dr. Plaa’s research focused on chemical-induced liver injury. With his Ph.D. dissertation, he was the first scientist to study hepatotoxicity using an isolated perfused liver. He made significant contributions in the 1) dose-response characteristics of hepatotoxicity, 2) catecholamines and carbon tetrachloride hepatotoxicity, 3) dye clearance technique for assessing hepatic function, 4) potentiation of haloalkane hepatotoxicity, 5) ANIT-induced cholestasis, 6) the manganese-bilirubin model of cholestasis, and 7) potentiation of chemically- induced cholestasis. Dr. Plaa published 233 peer-reviewed manuscripts, wrote 48 chapters and literature reviews, and edited five books. He received the first Achievement Award from the SOT (USA) in 1967, an award which recognizes promising young scientists. That recognition was affirmed when in 1996 he received the Society’s highest award, the Merit Award which recognizes career length contributions to the science and profession of toxicology. In the intervening years he received the Arnold Lehman Award (1981) for his use of sound scientific principles in risk assessment and regulation of chemicals, and the Education Award (1987) for his teaching and training of toxicologists. Similarly in Canada, he received from the STC the VE Henderson Award (1969), the STC Award of Distinction (1984), and was named honorary president of ICT-XI in Montreal (2007).

Dr. Plaa had high expectations, first for himself and then for those he related to; he relayed these expectations with a witty sense of humor that was inspiring and stimulating. Dr. Plaa summarized his scientific career in an article entitled “A four-decade adventure in experimental liver injury” published in Drug Metabolism Reviews 29: 1–37, 1997 in which he concluded “the most satisfying ‘results’ of my research program are not the data or new observations acquired, but the graduate students and fellows with whom I collaborated over a span of nearly 40 years. I am forever grateful for their precious presence and participation in my laboratory.” Gabbie’s influence in training toxicologists was extraordinary. Two of his Ph.D. students later received Achievement Awards from the SOT (Klaassen and Charbonneau), and five graduate students in the pharmacology-toxicology program during Gabbie’s six years at the University of Iowa were later elected Presidents of SOT (Dixon, Gibson, Hook, Klaassen, and McClain).

Dr. Plaa retired from the University of Montreal in 1996. During the last 13 years of his life, he cared for his wife, Colleen, who has multiple sclerosis, much as she cared for Gabbie during his decades in science. Gabbie was also the loving father of eight children, Ernest, Steven, Kenneth, Gregory, Andrew, John, Denise, and David, as well as a grandfather of eight.

Gabbie Plaa had an enormous influence on his children, his “academic children,” as well as the entire toxicology community. We all will miss him, but his contributions to society will survive us all.

SOT Members Part of State Effort to Regulate Hazardous Air Pollutants

August 27, 2009

Drs. Kimber White and John Morris, two members of the Society of Toxicology, have been selected to serve on the Virginia Inhalation Toxicology Advisory Group, which is charged with facilitating the development of a scientifically-based approach to regulate hazardous air pollutants. Virginia currently regulates hazardous air pollutants based on Significant Ambient Air Concentrations, the values of which were devised more than 20 years ago to serve as workplace thresholds limit values for chemicals. The Advisory Group has been asked to update the process for deriving these thresholds.

SOT Sponsors "Nanotechnology Health & Safety Forum"

May 26, 2009

Dear SOT Member,

SOT is pleased to sponsor the upcoming "Nanotechnology Health & Safety Forum," June 8–9, 2009, Edgewater Hotel, Seattle, Washington. Nanotechnology was one of the thematic approaches at both the 2008 and 2009 SOT Annual Meetings. SOT Members Justin Teeguarden and Robert Tanguay are among the featured speakers. Additional information is provided below.

Cheryl Lyn Walker
SOT President

Throughout two information packed days, this meeting will explore the science of nanotechnology, hazards associated with engineered nanomaterials and nanomanufacturing, government regulations, insurance and risk management, along with the roles of corporations and non-profit organizations as related to the future of nanotechnology.

Space is limited so be sure to register early (on or before June 8, 2009).

For additional information concerning this must-attend nanotechnology event, please visit the Nanotechnology Health & Safety Forum's Web site.

SOT Sponsors the 2nd Endocrine Society Forum on Endocrine Disruptors

May 19, 2009

Dear SOT Members:

SOT is pleased to sponsor the 2nd Endocrine Society Forum on Endocrine Disruptors: Best Science for Risk Management and Policy, June 9, 7:00 AM–5:00 PM, Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Washington, D.C. The Society is committed to increasing scientific impact by strengthening partnerships with other scientific- and health-based organizations, as exemplified by this forum. The SOT Scientific Liaison Task Force facilitated this inter-society meeting, at which SOT members are featured in a number of sessions.

Cheryl Lyn Walker
SOT President

Held the day before ENDO 09 in Washington, D.C., this forum will inform Society members about the basic and clinical science of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), and will bring cutting-edge endocrinology to regulators and policymakers. Endocrine research is lacking in recent well-publicized risk assessments for EDCs such as bisphenol-A, phthalates, and perchlorate, which rely heavily on toxicological studies. Understanding the mechanisms by which EDCs alter endocrine function in child development or adult physiology is important to public health and health policy. In addition, it is critical to quantify the risk of EDC exposure to the human population. Endocrinologists are well versed in the methods required to understand the mechanism of action of chemicals that act on development and physiology. Endocrine research is critically needed to provide adequate information for effective risk assessment and development of regulations in order to inform a public health agenda.

To register on-line, please visit the Web siteor to just register for this workshop only (without attending ENDO), please fill out the ENDO 09 registration form and fax it to the number on the form. For more information, contact Loretta Doan, Ph.D., Associate Director, Science Policy, at (301) 941-0258.

SOT Endowment Fund Continues to Grow

May 18, 2009

TO: Fellow SOT Members

FROM: Roger O. McClellan
Chair, SOT Endowment Fund Board 2006–2009

Dear SOT Member,

For the past 2 ½ years I have had the privilege and honor of serving as the Chair of the Society of Toxicology Endowment Fund Board. I accepted the position as Founding Chair of the Endowment Fund Board in large part because I was confident that SOT members would recognize the value of the Endowment Fund to the Society and give generously to it. My confidence in my fellow toxicologists, their families and others interested in building a financial base for the future of toxicology has proved to be well founded.

During the past 2 ½ years, over 600 gifts totaling over $450,000 have been given to the Endowment Fund creating 4 General Purpose Funds and more than two dozen Specific Purpose Funds. This level of giving surpassed the most optimistic projections made by my fellow Endowment Fund Board members and me. We extend our thanks to every donor for their generosity.

The impact of the SOT Endowment Fund is already being realized. At the Annual SOT meeting recently concluded in Baltimore, more than 20 Awards were given funded by individual Funds within the Endowment. In future years, even more Awards will be funded from the Endowment. I had the opportunity to speak with many of the Student Award recipients and learn first hand of their excitement for toxicology and their gratitude for receiving an Award funded by the Endowment. A year and a half ago my wife, Kathleen, and I created a Specific Purpose Fund which also received contributions from many of our friends. It was a special pleasure for me to be present when the first McClellan Award recipient was introduced and to learn how the Award will help advance his career. I also know from my conversations with other Endowment Fund donors that they have been thrilled to see their contributions having impact.

With this memo, I am pleased to introduce Jacqueline Smith who will succeed me as Chair of the SOT Endowment Fund Board. I have had the pleasure of knowing Jacqueline for many years and served with her on the Task Force that provided guidance for developing the Endowment and, most recently, on the Endowment Fund Board. She has great enthusiasm for the Endowment Fund and its role in advancing the science of toxicology. I am confident your generous support of the Endowment will ensure that it continues to grow and have positive impact on the SOT and the science of toxicology. I look forward to celebrating in the near future with Jacqueline and all SOT members the Endowment Fund passing the $500,000 level of giving This will be an extraordinary achievement for the Society of Toxicology, an achievement matched by few other scientific Societies.

As you consider gifting options between now and the end of the fiscal year, June 30, 2009, please remember that every dollar you give is matched with an SOT dollar as part of the SOT 50th Anniversary Match. Thus, $500,000 in gifts will have been matched by $500,000 in SOT funds resulting in twice the impact. It is easy to give, download a Donor Contribution Form from the SOT Web site and return the form with a check or credit card information to SOT Headquarters. If you have questions about the Endowment Fund, including the creation of new Specific Purpose Funds, please do not hesitate to contact Jacqueline Smith, (410) 745-5771.

SOT Sponsors "Genomics in Cancer Risk Assessment Workshop," August 27–28

April 27, 2009

Dear SOT Member:

SOT is pleased to sponsor a workshop on "Genomics in Cancer Risk Assessment, August 27–28, 2009, on San Servolo Island, Venice, Italy. For further details, please see announcement below.

Kenneth S. Ramos
SOT President

A workshop focusing on "Genomics in Cancer Risk Assessment" will be held on San Servolo Island, Venice, Italy, from August 27–28, 2009. Join leading experts from academia, industry, and governmental research and regulatory agencies in the US and the EU who will meet in Venice, Italy, to discuss the state-of-the-art in the use of toxicogenomics in the investigation of carcinogenesis and in the ultimate implementation within cancer risk assessment. This exciting meeting is a Satellite Workshop to the 10th International Conference on Environmental Mutagens (ICEM) August 20–25, 2009, in Florence, as well as to the VII World Congress on Alternatives & Animal Use in the Life Sciences August 30–September 3, 2009, in Rome.

Space is limited so be sure to register early.

Additional information concerning the scientific program, the venue, and registration can be found at the Workshop Web site.

SOT Supports TERA's Dose-Response Assessment Boot Camp

April 17, 2009

Dear SOT Member:

SOT is pleased to endorse the Dose-Response Assessment Boot Camp hosted by Toxicology Excellence for Risk Assessment, September 21–25, 2009, Cincinnati, Ohio. For further details, please see announcement below.

Kenneth S. Ramos
SOT President

Dose-Response Assessment Boot Camp…… Risk Assessment from 0 to 95% Confidence in 5 days! Toxicology Excellence for Risk Assessment (TERA) will be hosting its Dose-Response Assessment Boot Camp on September 21–25, 2009 in Cincinnati, OH. This course is a 5-day intensive hands-on training in hazard characterization and dose-response assessment. Beginners through expert toxicological risk assessors will learn advanced methods, as well as enhance their understanding and skills in the basics. Course lectures will be supplemented with daily hands-on application exercises. Interested individuals should have a basic understanding of Toxicology and interest in developing skills in human health risk assessment.

Upon completion of the course, participants will be able to derive and evaluate risk values and supporting documentation for both non-cancer and cancer risk assessments. Five Continuing Maintenance (CM) points will be available from the American Board of Industrial Hygienists (ABIH). Additional information can be found on the TERA Web site.

SOT Sponsors—VII World Congress on Alternatives & Animal Use in the Life Sciences

April 15, 2009

Dear SOT Members:

SOT is pleased to sponsor the upcoming VII World Congress on Alternatives & Animal Use in the Life Sciences, to be held in Rome (Italy), from August 30 to September 3, 2009. For details on this meeting, please see announcement below.

The World Congress was given the motto "Calling on Science" in order to emphasize that scientific progress today goes hand in hand with progress towards the reduction, refinement, and replacement of experimental animals (the 3-R's). The program will address alternatives and the use of animals from different angles in specific day themes that you can discover in the Congress Web site.

Do not miss the opportunity to be part of and contribute to these exciting developments: all SOT Members are offered a special extension of the poster submission deadline to April 30. You will just have to send a quick message to the WC7 Organizing Secretariat making reference to this message and follow the abstract submission instructions in the Congress Web site.

Kenneth S. Ramos
SOT President

SOT Congressional Visits

January 23, 2009

Dear SOT Member:

SOT is planning Congressional visits Thursday, March 19 and Friday, March 20 in conjunction with the SOT 2009 Annual Meeting in Baltimore. SOT members who are interested are invited and encouraged to participate. The purpose of these meetings will be to:

• Introduce your Congressional representative and staff to SOT and make them aware of the Society and its resources;
• Let them know that they can call upon SOT members for technical/policy assistance on relevant scientific issues that Congressmay consider during the 111th Congress; and,
• Invite them to attend a Congressional briefing later that week on biomonitoring (TBD).

The SOT Communications Committee believes these meetings are an important first step to what will be a regular activity and part of a longer-term strategy for SOT. These meetings and increased communication with staff members and Members of Congress are a key part of the SOT Strategic Plan to:

Advocate for the Value of Toxicology by:

• Becoming known as the primary source for scientific expertise in toxicology.
• Increasing reliance of decision makers on the science of toxicology.
• Playing a proactive role in defining issues for policymakers.

SOT Headquarters will make all the arrangements for you. You just need to let us know which day might work for you. We will visit the Hill in small groups of four, carry brief information packets, and limit our time to thirty minutes per visit. Prior to going to the Hill, we will meet on Tuesday, March 17 at 6:30 AM in the Baltimore Convention Center (Room 305) to prepare for these Congressional visits.

By Feburary 13, please contact Martha Lindauer and let her know of your plans to attend. SOT will provide transportation from the Baltimore Convention Center to Capitol Hill. Also, please also let her know whether you have participated in any previous Congressional briefings, meetings or hearings and give her any information you have on these activities, which will be helpful in preparing background information for our visits. We hope you decide to join us. Your support will make a difference!.

Sincerely,

Kenneth Ramos
SOT President 2008–2009