IIVS e-News, January 2018
How Can an Integrated Testing Strategy for Skin Sensitization Work for You?
Skin sensitization is a key endpoint for product safety assessments of cosmetic and personal care ingredients and formulations. Further, recent regulations in many countries now prohibit in vivo testing. 

IIVS is a leader in non-animal testing methodologies and offers three OECD-approved, GLP-compliant methods for in vitro skin sensitization testing: the KeratinoSens TM and LuSens assays, the Direct Peptide Reactivity Assay (DPRA), and the Human Cell Line Activation Test (h-CLAT). The assays can be performed individually or combined as an Integrated Testing Strategy (ITS).

Click the "Read more" link below to learn about each assay and how an ITS approach could meet your needs.
IIVS at SOT 2018 in San Antonio
IIVS will be at the upcoming Society of Toxicology meeting, March 11-15, 2018, in San Antonio, Texas.

If you will be attending the meeting, mark your calendar to attend these events:

Sunday, March 11, 1:15-5:00 pm
IIVS toxicologist and study director Allison Hilberer will join ICCVAM member, Joanna Matheson, of the Consumer Product Safety Commission to present at the Continuing Education session, “Consumer Products Safety Assessment: Progress in the Use of Alternatives to Animal Models.” 

Monday, March 12, 5:00-6:30 pm
IIVS, in collaboration with PISC and NICEATM, will hold an ancillary meeting: "Updates from Multi-Stakeholder Collaborations to Advance Non-Animal Approaches for Respiratory Toxicology."

We will also present several posters and host an exhibit booth (Booth #533). Watch for more information!
IIVS and BASF Collaborate to Distribute Test Method to Replace Animal Testing in China
We are excited about our collaboration with BASF to import a non-animal, cell based, safety test into China. The LuSens test, developed by BASF, is an in vitro test to detect the sensitization potential of chemicals to human skin. The test was developed to be license free and shared with the scientific community at-large. It has recently been incorporated into the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Test Guideline Program.  

LuSens, along with the associated protocols and training video, will be imported through the Chinese Academy of Inspection and Quarantine, and distributed by the National Institute of Food and Drug Control of the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA) to key government testing laboratories for implementation. 
Brent Gilbert Joins IIVS as Business Development Manager
We are pleased to welcome Brent Gilbert to our team as our new Business Development Manager.

Brent, who joined IIVS this past October, comes to us with a Master's Degree in Toxicology, an MBA, and more than 12 years of experience with various Contract Research Organizations where he supported companies engaged in alternative methods of toxicological testing. He is an Associate member of the Society of Toxicology as well as the In Vitro and Alternative Methods Specialty Section (IVAM) of SOT.

Brent's role is to assist companies and organizations to incorporate in vitro (or alternative) methods and technologies into their safety testing strategies. You can reach Brent at bgilbert@iivs.org or +1 813-598-5570. 
ARDF Grants Available
The Alternatives Research and Development Foundation (ARDF) is currently accepting proposals for its Annual Open Grant Program that funds research projects on alternative methods to advance science and replace or reduce animal use. Proposals are welcome from any nonprofit educational or research institution worldwide, although preference will be given to US applications. Proposals will be accepted through May 1; awards up to $40,000 per project will be announced by July 17.

Expert reviewers will evaluate proposals based on scientific merit and feasibility, and the potential to reduce or replace the use of animals in the near future. Proposals will be considered in fields of research, testing, or education. Pathway-based approaches that use in silico and in vitro methods with human cells or tissues are of particular interest. Proposals for projects that use intact, non-human vertebrate or invertebrate animals will not be considered.
Free Webinar Series on Non-animal Methods for REACH
The PETA International Science Consortium and Chemical Watch, a leading global regulatory news and information service for the chemical industry, have teamed up again to present a free webinar series focusing on non-animal methods and testing strategies that can be used to meet REACH requirements. The webinars include:

Skin Irritation and Corrosion - Thurs, Jan. 25, 4:00-5:00 pm GMT
Skin Sensitization - Thurs, Feb. 1, 4:00-5:00 pm GMT
Eye Irritation and Corrosion - Thurs, Feb. 15, 4:00-5:00 pm GMT

The webinars will be of interest to industry toxicologists, those registering chemicals for the first time, companies that want to know more about validated non-animal tests that are available and how other businesses are using them, and REACH consultants.
What's New
IIVS Announces the Opening of a Non-Animal Testing Laboratory in China



New Video Highlights
IIVS-PISC Collaboration




IIVS President Talks to Allure magazine about
non-animal testing of cosmetics in China

View the Workshop Report for the Feb. 2016 Workshop: " In Vitro to In Vivo Extrapolation for High Throughput Prioritization and Decision Making". Available from Toxicology In Vitro without a subscription through Feb. 23.

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Read recent coverage in the Washington Post and Bloomberg.com about our work to end animal testing in China.




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