Toxicogenomics and toxic torts

One of the first practical applications of toxicogenomics will probably be in the context of toxic tort personal injury litigation. Gene expression changes that'fingerprint' exposure to particular classes of toxic substances can potentially be used to demonstrate exposure, prove causation and support novel damage claims in lawsuits brought by citizens injured by toxic exposures. Although the potential use of toxicogenomic data in toxic tort litigation is immense, there is a danger of premature use of such data before they have been adequately validated and characterized.