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Toxicology test acceptance sparks a welcome departure from animal testing
The long-standing alliance between BASF and Givaudan to develop and validate cruelty-free test methods has ended successfully with the approval of three alternative testing strategies.
For the first time ever, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has adopted a cruelty-free testing method, also formally known as a toxicology testing strategy, to predict the skin sensitisation potential of a substance.
Dr Robert Landsiedel, vice president, special toxicology, BASF, explains: “For more than 10 years, we have been working towards this goal. It is a big step in the right direction. Now we can also use alternative methods to answer more complex toxicological questions without animal testing.”
Dr Andreas Natsch, head of in vitro molecular screening at Givaudan, adds: “This strategy has a better predictivity for human allergy risks compared to traditional animal testing.”
CHALLENGES IN REPLACING ANIMAL TESTING
Before a new product is approved by the authorities and placed on the market, is must undergo various tests. This includes a test to determine if the product sensitises the skin. Until now, animal testing has always been required for skin sensitisation tests.
“To replace animal testing, one alternative method is not enough when it comes to skin sensitisation. To assess skin sensitisation, which is caused by a complex process in the organism, a combination of three methods is needed,” Landsiedel explains. “With the results of these three tests, scientists can predict whether a substance will cause an allergic reaction in humans.”
The third alternative method that has also received OECD approval predicts the intensity of an allergic reaction using the kinetic direct peptide reactivity assay. This alternative testing method also transpires from the collaborative efforts of Givaudan and BASF and complements the now approved testing strategy.
In addition to assessing whether there is a potential for skin sensitisation, the new method can add information on the potency. It is only with this additional test that animal testing for allergic reactions can finally be abandoned.
A COLLABORATIVE INDUSTRY
“Of course, we haven’t done it all on our own. Over the past 10 years, various companies and scientific institutions, such as the Institute for In Vitro Sciences have worked with us to validate the individual methods of the strategy,” stresses Dr Susanne Kolle, lab team leader at BASF. “We have trained laboratories around the world on how to use these methods to generate accurate results. As more laboratories embrace these methods, the more we will be able to reduce animal testing in the future.”
Dr Roger Emter, who developed one of the underlying methods at Givaudan, adds: “By demonstrating that the results are reproducible and predictive, trust in alternative tests is growing.”
Experts from both companies agree that the approval of the test strategy is a breakthrough in efforts to completely eliminate animal-testing requirements. In principle, this has opened up a possibility for approvals of entire testing strategies in other areas, such as eye irritation effects or effects on the hormone system. •
BASF – www.basf.com
Givaudan – www.givaudan.com
