DEVELOPING ADVERSE OUTCOME PATHWAYS FROM EXPOSURE DYNAMICS IN ZEBRAFISH EMBRYOS
Background: Adverse outcome pathways (AOP's) are the conceptualization of knowledge into logical chains of events linking molecular initiating events through key processes to adverse outcomes. Their applicability to regulatory and monitoring processes has been demonstrated, however the development and discovery of AOP's still proves to be a challenge. To address this, data-driven approaches can leverage the power of computational biology and high dimensional data sets to accelerate the discovery of AOP's. Using the newly established OECD test-guideline 236, the fish embryo toxicity test (FET), we are developing a large molecular dose response dataset in order to expand the current EPIC-map and develop quantitative AOP's.
We are working closely with CEFAS, learning from their expertise in zebrafish biology and its application to regulation and environmental monitoring. Experiments with zebrafish embryos are being conducted at the CEFAS Weymouth laboratory.