Society for Birth Defects Research and Prevention 2022-2027 strategic plan.

BACKGROUND: The sixth Strategic Planning Session of the Society for Birth Defects Research and Prevention (BDRP) was held on April 24-25, 2022, in Alexandria, VA. METHODS: This effort built upon previous strategic planning sessions, conducted every 5 years. RESULTS: The overall process was designed to identify BDRP's vision, purpose, culture, and potential, as well as to communicate the value that BDRP brings to its members, volunteers, partners, and the greater community. CONCLUSIONS: The BDRP 2022-2027 Strategic Plan provides the BDRP leadership, members, and staff with a clearly articulated framework and direction to support long-term sustainability and growth of the society.

The first 60 years: Honoring Teratology's past, a new perspective on the future.

BACKGROUND: This paper updates the history of the Teratology Society, now known as the Society for Birth Defects Research and Prevention (BDRP), for its first 60 years and describes the current strategy to position the Society to continue to advance its multidisciplinary science in the future. Common threads across our history include the positive impact of the Society's approach to sharing multidisciplinary, cutting-edge science and the collegial nature of the annual meetings. AIM: In recent years, we have tackled challenging issues through periodic strategic planning sessions to improve the impact of the Society and its value to our members. MATERIALS & METHODS: Archived and current resources were reviewed for this historical perspective. RESULTS: In 2019, the Society took steps to rebrand itself to clarify our mission to the broader scientific and governmental communities. DISCUSSION: Although our name has changed, the mission remains to understand and prevent birth defects and disorders of developmental and reproductive origin. CONCLUSION: As BDRP, we continue to promote the exchange of research and ideas, provide educational opportunities, influence policy through advocacy, and evolve our communications to better serve our members and to have a greater impact on the health of future generations.

Toxicological and ecotoxicological properties of gas-to-liquid (GTL) products. 1. Mammalian toxicology.

Gas-to-liquid (GTL) products are synthetic hydrocarbons produced from natural gas using a Fischer-Tropsch process. This process yields a synthetic crude oil that consists of saturated hydrocarbons, primarily linear alkanes, with increasing amounts of branched (methyl-groups) alkanes as the chains get longer. In addition, small amounts of cycloalkanes (branched cyclopentanes and cyclohexanes) may be formed as the polymerization reaction prolongs. This synthetic crude can subsequently be refined to a range of products very similar to petroleum refining. However, in contrast to their petroleum-derived analogs, GTL products are essentially free of unsaturated or aromatic constituents and also no sulfur-, oxygen-, or nitrogen-containing constituents are present. From a regulatory perspective, GTL products are new substances which require extensive testing to assess their hazardous properties. As a consequence, a wide range of GTL products, covering the entire portfolio of GTL products, have been tested over the past few years in a wide variety of toxicological studies, including reproductive and prenatal development toxicity studies. This review provides an overview of the hazardous properties of the various GTL products. In general, the data collected on GTL products provide strong proof that they exert minimal health effects. In addition, these data provide supporting evidence for what is known on the mechanisms of mammalian toxicology of their petroleum-derived analogs. In the few cases where adverse effects were found for the GTL substances, these were usually less severe than the adverse effects observed with their petroleum-derived analogs.

Health assessment of gasoline and fuel oxygenate vapors: reproductive toxicity assessment.

Vapor condensates of baseline gasoline (BGVC), or gasoline-blended with methyl tertiary butyl ether (G/MTBE), ethyl t-butyl ether (G/ETBE), t-amyl methyl ether (G/TAME), diisopropyl ether (G/DIPE), ethanol (G/EtOH), or t-butyl alcohol (G/TBA) were evaluated for reproductive toxicity in rats at target concentrations of 2000, 10,000, or 20,000mg/m(3), 6h/day, 7days/week. BGVC and G/MTBE were assessed over two generations, the others for one generation. BGVC and G/MTBE F1 offspring were evaluated for neuropathology and changes in regional brain glial fibrillary acidic protein content. No neurotoxicity was observed. Male kidney weight was increased consistent with light hydrocarbon nephropathy. In adult rats, decreased body weight gain and increased liver weight were seen. Spleen weight decreased in adults and pups exposed to G/TBA. No pathological changes to reproductive organs occurred in any study. Decreased food consumption was seen in G/TAME lactating females. Transient decreases in G/TAME offspring weights were observed during lactation. Except for a minor increase in time to mating in G/TBA which did not affect other reproductive parameters, there were no adverse reproductive findings. The NOAEL for reproductive and offspring parameters was 20,000mg/m(3) for all vapor condensates except for lower offspring NOAELs of 10,000mg/m(3) for G/TBA and 2000mg/m(3) for G/TAME.

Health assessment of gasoline and fuel oxygenate vapors: developmental toxicity in rats.

Gasoline-vapor condensate (BGVC) or condensed vapors from gasoline blended with methyl t-butyl ether (G/MTBE), ethyl t-butyl ether (G/ETBE), t-amyl methyl ether (G/TAME) diisopropyl ether (G/DIPE), ethanol (G/EtOH), or t-butyl alcohol (G/TBA) were evaluated for developmental toxicity in Sprague-Dawley rats exposed via inhalation on gestation days (GD) 5-20 for 6h/day at levels of 0 (control filtered air), 2000, 10,000, and 20,000mg/m(3). These exposure durations and levels substantially exceed typical consumer exposure during refueling (<1-7mg/m(3), 5min). Dose responsive maternal effects were reduced maternal body weight and/or weight change, and/or reduced food consumption. No significant malformations were seen in any study. Developmental effects occurred at 20,000mg/m(3) of G/TAME (reduced fetal body weight, increased incidence of stunted fetuses), G/TBA (reduced fetal body weight, increased skeletal variants) and G/DIPE (reduced fetal weight) resulting in developmental NOAEL of 10,000mg/m(3) for these materials. Developmental NOAELs for other materials were 20,000mg/m(3) as no developmental toxicity was induced in those studies. Developmental NOAELs were equal to or greater than the concurrent maternal NOAELs which ranged from 2000 to 20,000mg/m(3). There were no clear cut differences in developmental toxicity between vapors of gasoline and gasoline blended with the ether or alcohol oxygenates.

A GHS-consistent approach to health hazard classification of petroleum substances, a class of UVCB substances.

The process streams refined from petroleum crude oil for use in petroleum products are among those designated by USEPA as UVCB substances (unknown or variable composition, complex reaction products and biological materials). They are identified on global chemical inventories with unique Chemical Abstract Services (CAS) numbers and names. The chemical complexity of most petroleum substances presents challenges when evaluating their hazards and can result in differing evaluations due to the varying level of hazardous constituents and differences in national chemical control regulations. Global efforts to harmonize the identification of chemical hazards are aimed at promoting the use of consistent hazard evaluation criteria. This paper discusses a systematic approach for the health hazard evaluation of petroleum substances using chemical categories and the United Nations (UN) Globally Harmonized System (GHS) of classification and labeling. Also described are historical efforts to characterize the hazard of these substances and how they led to the development of categories, the identification of potentially hazardous constituents which should be considered, and a summary of the toxicology of the major petroleum product groups. The use of these categories can increase the utility of existing data, provide better informed hazard evaluations, and reduce the amount of animal testing required.

Evaluating the male and female reproductive toxicity of high-boiling petroleum substances.

To meet the EPA HPV Chemical Challenge Program requirement for reproductive toxicity data on sponsored high-boiling petroleum substances (HBPS), an analysis was conducted using the results of 39 repeat-dose and 59 developmental rat dermal toxicity studies on HBPS samples spanning the boiling range of the sponsored substances, and the results of three one-generation reproductive toxicity studies on two samples spanning the concentration range of polycyclic aromatic compounds of sponsored substances. The analysis found little evidence of male or female reproductive tract toxicity based on histopathology, reproductive organ weight, and sperm parameters, and no evidence of effects on fertility, while significant developmental toxicity and/or systemic repeat-dose toxicity were frequently observed. Among 14 samples of HBPS tested in both repeat-dose toxicity and developmental toxicity studies, there were no studies in which an adverse reproductive tract finding occurred at a dose lower than that producing developmental toxicity or other adverse effects in repeat-dose toxicity studies. The current analysis supports the hypothesis that effects in developmental and/or repeat-dose toxicity studies of HBPS occur at doses lower than those that might affect fertility in rat one-generation reproductive studies. When adequate developmental and repeat-dose toxicity studies are available, a reproductive toxicity study of HBPS appears unnecessary.