ISTNET-DART

Currently, there is a paradigm shift in regulatory toxicology, moving from animal testing to the development and implementation of human-relevant, mechanistic and non-animal testing. An area of particularly high animal utilisation is Developmental and Reproductive Toxicity (DART) and new methodologies, such as human stem cell-derived in vitro models, hold promise for more efficient and protective DART testing. The International STakeholder NETwork (ISTNET) Workshop aims at creating a DART testing roadmap for regulatory purposes through effective communication and discussion among actors from academia, regulation and industry.

The first meeting of the ISTNET for DART was initiated by SCAHT and took place in Zurich (Switzerland) on September 12-13, 2024, with the aim of building consensus on the development and use of in vitro and in silico methodologies to deliver useful data for regulatory decision making. The publication of the roadmap is currently under development.