A Next-Generation Risk Assessment Case Study for Coumarin in Cosmetic Products.

Next-Generation Risk Assessment is defined as an exposure-led, hypothesis-driven risk assessment approach that integrates new approach methodologies (NAMs) to assure safety without the use of animal testing. These principles were applied to a hypothetical safety assessment of 0.1% coumarin in face cream and body lotion. For the purpose of evaluating the use of NAMs, existing animal and human data on coumarin were excluded. Internal concentrations (plasma Cmax) were estimated using a physiologically based kinetic model for dermally applied coumarin. Systemic toxicity was assessed using a battery of in vitro NAMs to identify points of departure (PoDs) for a variety of biological effects such as receptor-mediated and immunomodulatory effects (Eurofins SafetyScreen44 and BioMap Diversity 8 Panel, respectively), and general bioactivity (ToxCast data, an in vitro cell stress panel and high-throughput transcriptomics). In addition, in silico alerts for genotoxicity were followed up with the ToxTracker tool. The PoDs from the in vitro assays were plotted against the calculated in vivo exposure to calculate a margin of safety with associated uncertainty. The predicted Cmax values for face cream and body lotion were lower than all PoDs with margin of safety higher than 100. Furthermore, coumarin was not genotoxic, did not bind to any of the 44 receptors tested and did not show any immunomodulatory effects at consumer-relevant exposures. In conclusion, this case study demonstrated the value of integrating exposure science, computational modeling and in vitro bioactivity data, to reach a safety decision without animal data.

Determination of genotoxic potencies of pyrrolizidine alkaloids in HepaRG cells using the γH2AX assay.

Pyrrolizidine alkaloids (PAs) are secondary metabolites from plants that have been found in substantial amounts in herbal supplements, infusions and teas. Several PAs cause cancer in animal bioassays, mediated via a genotoxic mode of action, but for the majority of the PAs, carcinogenicity data are lacking. It is assumed in the risk assessment that all PAs have the same potency as riddelliine, which is considered to be one of the most potent carcinogenic PAs in rats. This may overestimate the risks, since many PAs are expected to have lower potencies. In this study we determined the concentration-dependent genotoxicity of 37 PAs representing different chemical classes using the γH2AX in cell western assay in HepaRG human liver cells. Based on these in vitro data, PAs were grouped into different potency classes. The group with the highest potency consists particularly of open diester PAs and cyclic diester PAs (including riddelliine). The group of the least potent or non-active PAs includes the monoester PAs, non-esterified necine bases, PA N-oxides, and the unsaturated PA trachelanthamine. This study reveals differences in in vitro genotoxic potencies of PAs, supporting that the assumption that all PAs have a similar potency as riddelliine is rather conservative.