Agrochemical Neurotoxicology Evaluations

Agrochemical Neurotoxicology Evaluations

The nervous system is the target organ for a variety of compounds. For example, lead exposure is associated with lower intelligence scores in children, and manganese at sufficiently high exposures is associated with neurotoxic effects similar to Parkinson's disease. Neurotoxicity refers to structural or functional changes in the nervous system caused by exposure to physical, chemical or biological factors. The toxic effects of chemicals on the brain or peripheral nervous system can have far-reaching effects. Agrochemicals are compounds that are widely used to prevent, destroy or mitigate pests such as insects, rodents, herbs and weeds. However, most of them also act as environmental estrogens, anti-estrogens and/or anti-androgen chemicals. Consequently, there is also growing concern that agrochemicals may cause more subtle neurodevelopmental effects, including autism and attention deficit disorders. Herbicides and pesticides have been shown to have significant adverse effects on hippocampal neurogenesis, which are particularly important because dysregulated neurogenesis may be associated with cognitive decline and neuropathology (e.g., Alzheimer's disease). Therefore, assessment of the potential neurotoxic effects of agrochemicals is an important component of safety assessment. BOC Sciences has established a new safety testing platform for the agrochemical neurotoxicology evaluations that is developed based on the latest pluripotent stem cell and primary central nervous system cell-based assays.

Figure 1. The molecular mechanism of various organotins in the event of neurotoxic manifestations. (Iqubal, A.; et al. 2020)

Neurotoxicology Testing

Combining our immunology and neuroscience expertise, BOC Sciences' experts are continually developing our services offering and expanding to meet customer needs.

• We have developed a range of neurotoxicity services including developmental neurotoxicity assays (DNT) using our pluripotent stem cell and primary CNS cell-based assay platforms that can support the regulatory and safety requirements.
• BOC Sciences supports different cell-based strategies including cytotoxicity, viability and proliferation assays, mitochondrial toxicity and calcium influx assays. We can customize any project to fit your functional endpoints with custom readouts and custom experimental design.

Features of Our Services

• Our analytical team has practical expertise in planning, implementing and coordinating regulatory guideline-based toxicity studies and investigative human studies to address potential neurotoxicology for diverse types of agrochemicals.
• Our strong scientific expertise and practical laboratory experience allow us to better anticipate and address potential issues that may impact risk assessment decisions.
• We are also experienced in interpreting study data to develop criteria and risk/safety assessments, weight-of-evidence assessments regarding possible links between exposure to specific compounds and neurotoxic effects, quantitative benchmark dose analyses, and chemical risk assessments.

Figure 2. The molecular mechanism of neurotoxicity by lead exposure. (Iqubal, A.; et al. 2020)

BOC Sciences Advantages

• Highly specialized technical and analytical services for the worldwide registration and regulatory compliance of agrochemicals
• Robust analytical testing programs that span from research and product development through the production process to final product
• Relies on broad industrial experience, ensuring that all of our work meets the high standards expected by our clients
• Our regulatory experts, toxicology consultants, scientists and inspectors will ensure that you receive maximum levels of guidance, testing and inspection you need.

Reference

• Iqubal, A.; et al. Environmental neurotoxic pollutants: review. Environmental Science and Pollution Research. 2020.