Number: 2003-028-1-700
Title: Glossary for chemists of terms used in toxicology -
revision and updating
Task Group
Chairman: J. Duffus
Members: M.
Nordberg and D.
M. Templeton
Completion Date: 2007 - project completed
Objective:
IUPAC is the world authority on chemical nomenclature and terminology.
Toxicology is a subject area dependent on good chemistry and itself
influences chemistry through its impact on legislation for chemical
safety. IUPAC has long recognised this fact and in 1993 published
a Glossary for Chemists of Terms Used in Toxicology as an IUPAC Recommendation.
This Glossary has received wide recognition as authoritative and,
in particular, has been adopted by the U.S. National Institutes of
Health as the glossary for its TOXNET website. This website is now
being updated and the Task Group Chairman (above) has been asked if
the existing IUPAC Glossary is being revised and brought up to date.
This is clearly necessary since toxicology has developed considerably
in the 11 years since the glossary was published. The need for a glossary
in toxicokinetics, recognised by IUPAC in another project (project
number #2000-034-2-700), is a symptom of the need to revise and
expand the existing glossary of terms used in toxicology.
The objective of this project is to create a revised "Glossary
for Chemists of Terms Used in Toxicology". The revised glossary
will incorporate essential terms from the new Glossary of Terms in
Toxicokinetics, review existing definitions, and add new terms which
have come into common use since the original glossary was compiled.
It is proposed to seek input widely and to co-operate with the U.S,
National Institutes of Health National Library of Medicine so that
the revised glossary can link effectively into their Toxnet system
and be hyperlinked to the educational resource Tox Tutor on their
website. This will help to ensure wide use of the Glossary. Acceptance
of this Glossary as a global tool to serve chemists and others will
have an impact on a number of scientific fields and help to maintain
a good image of both IUPAC and of chemistry in society generally.
Description:
This Glossary in its revised version will cover all terms relevant
to toxicology and bring them together in one source document for ease
of use. It will include new terms and more terms in toxicokinetics
identified and defined in the recent project which produced a glossary
of terms in toxicokinetics. It will also cover essential terms relevant
to risk assessment of chemical use.
Progress:
May 2005 - The draft which had been circulated by John
Duffus was reviewed, with valuable comments from Mike Schwenck. The
glossary of terms in toxicokinetics has been included and terms revised
in this glossary replaced the 1993 terminology. New terms introduced
by the rapid development of toxicogenomics were added and the definitions
refined to the agreement of the group. Terms related to endocrine
disruption were also added.
A revised draft, with annotations, will circulate among the task group
for further consideration.
April 2006 - A manuscript is being prepared for publication
in Pure Appl. Chem. A final document is submitted to public
review comments until 30 Sep 2006.
> provisional recommendations [reports/provisional/abstract06/duffus_300906.html]
Project completed - IUPAC Recommendations published in Pure
Appl. Chem.
79(7), 1153-1344, 2007
Last Update: 2 July 2007