This
independent workshop will be held at the Loews Philadelphia
Hotel, beginning Friday morning and ending Saturday at noon,
just prior to the Teratology/NBTS/BTS/OTIS Annual Meeting. Members
of the Workshop Steering Committee include Karen Acuff, Will
Boyes, Kevin Crofton, George Dearlove, Larry Sheets, William
Slikker, Thomas Sobotka, and Mark Stanton. Space will be limited.
Contact Thomas Sobotka (tsobotka@cfsan.fda.gov)
for more information.
The
one and a half day workshop on behavioral testing has been developed,
separate from the Annual Meetings, to enhance the utility of
behavioral data as a reliable index of neurotoxicity in the
safety evaluation of chemical substances. The level of confidence
with which changes in behavior can reliably signal adverse effects
on the nervous system is dependent upon the scientific quality
of the data generated. With an emphasis on education and problem
solving, this workshop will focus on the practical aspects and
scientific rationale underlying valid and high-quality testing.
In behavioral testing, there are numerous experimental factors
that may impact on the quality of data. These include such elements
as experimental design, selection of test methods, the care
and precision in the conduct of behavioral testing, control
procedures needed to minimize bias, appropriateness of statistical
analyses, and data interpretation. Information from the workshop
will be used to help finalize a behavioral test methods primer
being drafted by the Interagency Committee on Neurotoxicology
(ICON).
Meetings
