Society of Toxicology of Canada

43rd Annual Symposium

Low Dose Effects and Their Use in Risk Assessment:

When is an Effect Adverse?

Dates: December 4 - December 6, 2011

Location: Delta Centre-Ville, 777 University Street, Montreal

This year's program will feature four sessions aimed at evaluating low dose effects in toxicology and human studies. There will be 11 plenary lectures by recognized global leaders working in this area presenting new science and novel frameworks. In addition, poster presentations by STC members and students will showcase their research results. The deadline for abstract submissions is Oct 1, 2011.

On the first day, Session 1 “Low Dose Risk Assessment, Theory and Practice” will set the stage discussing a toxicity testing framework for evaluating the shapes of various dose-response curves, and a look at some of the latest dose-response data for different agents and responses.

Confirmed Speakers:

Dan Krewski (University of Ottawa) – New Directions in Toxicity Testing: Understanding Key Events in Toxicity Pathways at Low Doses

James Bus (Dow Chemical) – Low Dose Risk Assessment: Experimental Verification of Extrapolation from High Doses

Edward Calabrese (University of Massachusetts) – Hormesis: Its Significance for Toxicology, Pharmacology, and Risk Assessment

In Session 2, “Adverse Effects - Biological Perturbations at Low Exposure” we will examine some biological changes occurring at low exposures that may lead to adverse outcomes - or not.

Confirmed Speakers:

Carole Yauk (Health Canada) – Effects of Air Pollutants on Male Germ Cells at Environmentally Relevant Exposure Levels

Craig Parfett (Health Canada) – Assessment of Subclinical Changes in Hepatic Gene Expression Profiles after Low Dose, Short Term Exposures

Catherine Klein (NYU Langone Medical Center) – Epigenetic Mechanisms: Transgene Silencing by Estrogens and Xenoestrogens


Day 2 will open with session 3: “Carcinogenesis and Low Exposure Toxicology” in which we will see what new approaches are being used to evaluate environmentally relevant exposures to some classic substances, and what we can learn from biomarkers about exposure and health effects, and consider a new theory to replace the somatic mutation theory for carcinogenesis.

Confirmed Speakers:

Julian Preston (US EPA) – Radiation Linear No-Threshold Dose Response Model: Diagnostic Radiology

James Swenberg (University of North Carolina) – Endogenous vs. Exogenous DNA Adducts: Their Role in Carcinogenesis, Epidemiology and Risk Assessment

Carlos Sonnenschein (Tufts University) – Tissue Organization Field Theory - a Replacement for the Somatic Mutation Theory of Cancer

Day 2 and the Symposium will conclude with two epidemiology presentations in session 4 “Low Dose Toxicity in Humans.” We will see how toxicology can be informed by recent progress on cancer and non-cancer impacts of two classical environmental chemicals at low exposures.

Confirmed Speakers:

A.R. Schnatter (ExxonMobil Biomedical Sciences Inc) – New Benzene Findings in Occupational Epidemiologic Studies and Implications for Benzene Risk Assessment

D.H. Garabrant (University of Michigan) – The University of Michigan Dioxin Exposure Study: Predictors of Human Serum Dioxin Concentrations in Midland and Saginaw, Michigan

In addition this year’s symposium will host the following activities:

1. Workshop on Study Design:Aone-hour long workshop considering study design and data interpretation as applied to current research technologies, offeredduring the late afternoon on December 5th. This session is designed to introduce STC members to the importance of experimental design in 21st Century Toxicology Testing using gene microarrays. Attendance is open to all symposium registrants.

2. ToxQuiz:Up to four teams (n=3) will compete, during STC President’s reception, in an animated game of testing your knowledge of toxicology and risk assessment,perhaps includinginformation presented earlier on the first day of the symposium.The 30 min ToxQuiz is scheduled for December 5th at about 6:30 PM. Don't miss the opportunity to be part ofthe fun. If you or your colleagues would like to enter a team (and give it an appropriate name!), contact Sami Haddad of our Program Committee () to join the competition.

September 30, 2011