https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4498-0915
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Abstract
Background
The purpose of toxicology is to protect human health and the environment. To support this, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), operating via its Extended Advisory Group for Molecular Screening and Toxicogenomics (EAGMST), has been developing the Adverse Outcome Pathway (AOP) approach to consolidate evidence for chemical toxicity spanning multiple levels of biological organization. The knowledge transcribed into AOPs provides a structured framework to transparently organize data, examine the weight of evidence of the AOP, and identify causal relationships between exposure to stressors and adverse effects of regulatory relevance. The AOP framework has undergone substantial maturation in the field of hazard characterization of chemicals over the last decade, and has also recently gained attention from the radiation community as a means to advance the mechanistic understanding of human and ecological health effects from exposure to ionizing radiation at low dose and low dose-rates. To fully exploit the value of such approaches for facilitating risk assessment and management in the field of radiation protection, solicitation of experiences and active cooperation between chemical and radiation communities are needed. As a result, the Radiation and Chemical (Rad/Chem) AOP joint topical group was formed on June 1, 2021 as part of the initiative from the High Level Group on Low Dose Research (HLG-LDR). HLG-LDR is overseen by the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) Committee on Radiation Protection and Public Health (CRPPH). The main aims of the joint AOP topical group are to advance the use of AOPs in radiation research and foster broader implementation of AOPs into hazard and risk assessment. With global representation, it serves as a forum to discuss, identify and develop joint initiatives that support research and take on regulatory challenges.
Conclusion
The Rad/Chem AOP joint topical group will specifically engage, promote, and implement the use of the AOP framework to: (a) organize and evaluate mechanistic knowledge relevant to the protection of human and ecosystem health from radiation; (b) identify data gaps and research needs pertinent to expanding knowledge of low dose and low dose-rate radiation effects; and (c) demonstrate utility to support risk assessment by developing radiation-relevant case studies. It is envisioned that the Rad/Chem AOP joint topical group will actively liaise with the OECD EAGMST AOP developmental program to collectively advance areas of common interest and, specifically, provide recommendations for harmonization of the AOP framework to accommodate non-chemical stressors, such as radiation.
Acknowledgements
The authors are grateful to Annick Laporte for support on the graphics and Sami Qutob and Katya Feder for critical review of the manuscript. The opinions expressed and arguments employed herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official views of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the Nuclear Energy Agency or of the governments of their member countries.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Additional information
Funding
Notes on contributors
Vinita Chauhan
Vinita Chauhan, Ph.D, is a Senior Research Scientist at the Consumer and Clinical Radiation Protection Bureau of Health Canada. She is a Canadian delegate of the HLG-LDR and Extended Advisory Group on Molecular Screening and Toxicogenomics (EAGMST) of the OECD. She chairs the HLG-LDR Rad/Chem AOP Joint Topical Group and is the co-founder of Canadian Organization of Health Effects from Radiation Exposure (COHERE) initiative.
Danielle Beaton
Danielle Beaton, Ph.D, is a Research Scientist with Canadian Nuclear Laboratories. Her current research focuses on the effects of low dose radiation on biological systems.
Nobuyuki Hamada
Nobuyuki Hamada, RT, Ph.D, is a Senior Research Scientist at CRIEPI Radiation Safety Unit and a Visiting Professor at Hiroshima University Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine. He serves on ICRP Task Groups 102, 111 and 119, NCRP PAC 1, OECD/NEA/CRPPH/HLG-LDR/Rad/Chem AOP Joint Topical Group, and Consultation Committee on AOP development for space flight health outcomes (Canadian project).
Ruth Wilkins
Ruth C. Wilkins, Ph.D, is a Research Scientist at the Consumer and Clinical Radiation Protection Bureau of Health Canada and the Chief of the Ionizing Radiation Health Sciences Division. She graduated with a Ph.D in Medical Physics from Carleton University and has been employed at Health Canada for the past 25 years. She is an Adjunct Professor and lecturer in Radiobiology in the Department of Physics at Carleton University and the alternative representative of Canada to the United Nations Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR).
Julie Burtt
Julie Burtt is a Radiation Biologist with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. Her research is focused on the potential health effects from exposure to low doses of ionizing radiation. She is a technical expert for UNSCEAR. She is a member of the ICRP (Committee 4), and she also serves on several NEA committees.
Julie Leblanc
Julie Leblanc, Ph.D, is a Radiation Biologist and Women in STEM Special Advisor with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. Her research is focused on the potential health effects from exposure to low doses of ionizing radiation. She is a mentee in the ICRP Task Group 111.
Donald Cool
Donald Cool, Ph.D, is a Technical Executive with Electrical Power Research Institute in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. He is Vice-Chair of the Main Commission of the ICRP, and a Council Member of the US National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements.
Jacqueline Garnier-Laplace
Jacqueline Garnier-Laplace, Ph.D, a Senior Radiation Protection Specialist, is Deputy Head of the Division of Radiological Protection and Human Aspects of Nuclear Safety at the OECD Nuclear Energy Agency. She is the Scientific Secretary of the Committee on Radiological Protection and Public Health, and of the NEA HLG-LDR. Previously, she headed Radiation Protection research at France’s IRSN. She served as scientific secretary of ICRP Committee 1 from 2017 to 2021, and is currently serving on Committee 4 with the same function.
Dominique Laurier
Dominique Laurier, Ph.D, is a Senior Epidemiologist and head of a research department on the biological and health effects of low-dose radiation exposure at the French Institute for Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN). He is Chair of Committee 1 of the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP), French representative to UNSCEAR, and Chair of the NEA HLG-LDR.
Yevgeniya Le
Yevgeniya Le, Ph.D., PMP, is a Program Manager for Health, Safety and Environment research and development program at CANDU Owners Group Inc. She is also Adjunct Professor in the Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Ottawa. Her research and work focus on increasing the understanding of the health and environmental impacts of low dose and low-dose rate ionizing radiation.
Yukata Yamada
Yutaka Yamada, D.V.M., Ph.D., is a Research Scientist at National Institutes for Quantum Science and Technology. His main fields are radiation biology and radiotoxicology, and his studies have focused on radiation-induced pulmonary carcinogenesis and the biological effects from exposure to low doses of ionizing radiation.
Knut Erik Tollefsen
Knut Erik Tollefesn, Ph.D, is a Chief Scientist and Program Manager at the Norwegian Institute for Water Research’s (NIVA) Computational Toxicology Program, NCTP (www.niva.no/nctp) and an Adjunct professor at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU). He is an ecotoxicologist with over 20 years of experience in experimental ecotoxicology, computational toxicology and risk assessment. He chairs the HLG-LDR Rad/Chem AOP Joint Topical Group and participates in the OECD EAGMST.