In vitro toxicity methods are gaining importance, in particular as a response to a number of European legislative changes which call for more mechanistically-based decision-making and limit or even prohibit the use of animal experimentation for risk assessment purposes. Hence, there is an urgent demand for toxicologists and risk assessors to implement in vitro testing results into regulatory safety evaluation of chemicals. This course aims at meeting this ubiquitous need by training individuals who wish to start or pursue a career in this direction or to gain an update on the state-of-the-art of applied in vitro toxicology.

Traditional toxicology testing whereby experimental animals are exposed to chemicals for different periods of time with observation of effects on clinical, behavioral and pathological endpoints may not be sufficient anymore to serve future scientific and regulatory needs. There is a need for a better understanding of mechanisms of toxicity in experimental animal species and their relevance to man. An adverse outcome pathway (AOP) is a conceptual framework based on existing knowledge that relates exposure to a toxic substance to subsequent molecular and cellular changes that result in illness or injury to an individual or a population. Once a (molecular or cellular) mechanism of an apical endpoint of toxicity is understood and a reliable screening method for this mechanism is developed, chemicals can be screened for this type of toxicity. It is the intention of this annual BelTox congress to bring their audience from Belgium and abroad up to speed with these new concepts in the safety assessment of chemicals.

Le radon tue chaque année plusieurs centaines de personnes en Suisse. Lors d’une rénovation ou d’une construction neuve, il est donc important de prendre en considération la problématique de ce gaz radioactif d’origine naturel. Ce séminaire permettra aux participants d’avoir toutes les clés en main pour diminuer au mieux les incidences du radon sur la santé des habitants des bâtiments concernés.

Once again this year, there will be a scientific annual meeting organised by the Swiss Society of Toxicology. Beyond two main topics, presentations on actual and relevant topics from the different disciplines of toxicology and safety sciences will be provided.

Although the theme is «INFLAMMATION in the era of BIG DATA», all the research fields investigated in the two faculties will be covered, making the MedLem meeting an opportunity to discover the breadth of research around Lake Geneva. The MedLem meeting replaces the Changins one that was organized for the last time in November 2013. Congress language will be English.

The workshop plenary sessions and panels will focus on the following key project areas environmental methodology of mixtures and residues, grouping of nanomaterials, dust and workers exposure, dermal absorption modelling, eye irritation alternatives, epidemiological evidence of ED, and epigenetics normality.

The conference this year will focus upon in vitro approaches and methodologies in the key research areas of tissue engineering alternatives, systems pharmacology and nanotoxicology.

With regard to the art and science of clinical toxicology, Tox Info Suisse has organized this Anniversary Symposium with an array of distinguished speakers from Switzerland and abroad. In their talks, they will cover a range of topics which have been continuously important through the decades, or have emerged as new toxic threats. This includes the analgetic paracetamol, toxic mushrooms, new illicit drugs, chemical weapons and others.  The programme will start at 12:00 and close at 19:30 with an Apéro. The language of the symposium is English. The symposium is open to everyone, but as the number of seats is limited, registration is needed. There is no registration fee. See flyer for further information.

The BioEngineering Laboratory (BEL) within the Department of Biosystem Science and Engineering (D-BSSE) host the next TEDD visit to highlight the combined effort of the Basel area in the field of microphysiological systems and 3D tissue engineering by presenting research from FMI, University of Basel, FHNW and D-BSSE. The event is free of charge and priority will be given to TEDD partners. Registration until the 7th of November, using this following link. Further information and program.

Der Kurs (auf Deutsch) gibt einen Überblick über Methoden für die ökotoxikologischen Beurteilung von Mischungen in der regulatorischen Praxis. Es werden Konzepte und Methoden aus der Zulassung von Pestiziden und Industriechemikalien vorgestellt. Ausserdem wird auf die Beurteilung der Gewässerqualität mit chemischen und biologischen Analysemethoden eingegangen. Mit Hilfe von chemischen Monitoring-Daten und der bekannten ökotoxikologischen Wirkung der gefundenen Substanzen kann das Gesamt-Risiko für die am stärksten gefährdeten Organismengruppen bestimmt werden.