Host: The Japanese Society of Toxicology
Name : The 47th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Toxicology
Date : 2020 -
Environmental chemicals have potential effects on children's neurodevelopmental toxicity, leading to neurobehavioral outcomes such as autism. Since the developing brain is much more vulnerable to chemicals compared with the adult brain, exposure to chemicals during prenatal and/or postnatal period can cause delayed neural disorders.
Current developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) guidelines (OECD #426, EPA #OPPTS 870.6300) using in vivo studies comprise in vivo behavioral observational tests and other tests to assess DNT. To overcome the disadvantages of high cost and time consuming of in vivo DNT tests, we have established the human iPSC-based platform. The differentiation in vitro is considered to be similar to the stages of brain development in human. We have evaluated the effect of DNT compounds on neural differentiation capability and functional neural network recorded by multi-electrode assay system. The iPSC technology would replace the traditional black box animal models by providing mechanistic data at the cellular and molecular levels.
In the symposium, I would like to talk about a possible role of iPSC on in vitro DNT testing. In addition, I would like to share the current status and future perspectives of in vitro DNT testing, which has been proposed at OECD.
