Short- and intermediate-term carcinogenicity testing--a review. Part 2: available experimental models

Area of Science:

• Toxicology
• Carcinogenesis
• Chemical Safety Assessment

Background:

• Established short- and intermediate-term carcinogenicity assays exist for many years.
• Previous review part introduced mouse skin tumour and rat liver foci assays.
• This part focuses on rodent assays for multiple target organs and alternative species.

Purpose of the Study:

• To survey diverse short- and intermediate-term carcinogenicity test systems.
• To detail rodent assays for various organs and multi-organ models.
• To outline and discuss fish, non-vertebrate, and avian embryo assays for carcinogenicity testing.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing experimental protocols for carcinogenicity assays.
• Focus on rodent assays for lung, kidney, urinary bladder, pancreas, stomach, oral cavity, small intestine, and colon.
• Inclusion of multi-organ models and alternative species (fish, non-vertebrates, avian embryos).

Main Results:

• Detailed examination of rodent assays for specific target organs and multi-organ approaches.
• Assessment of the potential use, advantages, and limitations of fish, non-vertebrate, and avian embryo assays.
• Discussion on the validation challenges of carcinogenicity test systems.

Conclusions:

• A comprehensive overview of short- and intermediate-term carcinogenicity assays is presented.
• The review highlights the utility of rodent multi-organ models and alternative species.
• A strategy for contemporary chemical safety assessment concerning carcinogenicity detection and evaluation is proposed.