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| About Barry Hardy (Douglas Connect) |
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Dr. Barry Hardy currently manages the eCheminfo and InnovationWell community of practice activities of Douglas Connect and the training programs of the Knowledge Management Institute, Switzerland. He obtained his Ph.D. in 1990 from Syracuse University working in the area of computational chemistry, biophysics and computer-aided molecular modelling and drug design. Dr. Hardy has also been working in the area of knowledge management and communications since 1994 and has organised numerous international projects in the area of the chemical, life and medical sciences. He has also developed technology solutions for internet-based conferencing, tutor-supported e-learning, laboratory automation systems and computational chemistry and informatics. He is currently leading the Application and Knowledge Assessment Activities for the SYNERGY FP7 ICT project on Knowledge-oriented Collaboration, and serving as Coordinator for the OpenTox FP7 Health project on Predictive Toxicology. Dr. Hardy was a National Research Fellow at the FDA Center for Biologics and Evaluation, a Hitchings-Elion Fellow at Oxford University and CEO of Virtual Environments International. Further information on his ongoing activities are posted on the following blogs:
Cheminfostream: http://barryhardy.blogs.com/cheminfostream/
The Ferryman: http://barryhardy.blogs.com/theferryman/
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The OpenTox Predictive Toxicology Project
Barry Hardy, Douglas Connect, Switzerland
The goal of the OpenTox project is to develop a predictive toxicology framework, that provides a unified access to toxicological data, (Q)SAR models and toxicological information.
The OpenTox framework will provide tools for the integration of data from various sources (public and confidential), for the generation and validation of (Q)SAR models for toxic effects, libraries for the development and seamless integration of new (Q)SAR algorithms, and scientifically sound validation routines. OpenTox will attract users from a variety of research areas:
• Toxicological and chemical experts (e.g. risk assessors, drug designers, researchers)
• (Q)SAR model developers and algorithm developers
• Non-(Q)SAR specialists requiring access to Predictive Toxicology models and data
The OpenTox project will move beyond existing attempts to solve individual research issues within this area, by providing a flexible, extensible, and user friendly framework that integrates existing solutions as well as providing easy access to new developments.
OpenTox will be relevant for the implementation of REACH as it allows regulatory and industrial risk assessors to access experimental data, (Q)SAR models and toxicological information from a unified, simple-to-use interface, that adheres to European and international regulatory requirements (e.g. OECD Guidelines for (Q)SAR validation, QSAR Model Reporting Formats (QMRF)). For maximum transparency OpenTox will be published as an open source project. This will allow a critical evaluation of the implemented algorithms, ensure a widespread dissemination and will attract external developers. Facilities for the inclusion of confidential in-house data and for accessing and integrating commercial prediction systems will be included.
The OpenTox framework will be populated initially with high-quality data and (Q)SAR models for chronic, genotoxic and carcinogenic effects. These are the endpoints, where computational methods promise the greatest potential reduction in animal testing, that would be required for the implementation of REACH. The impact of OpenTox will however go beyond REACH, industrial chemicals and long-term effects, because reliable toxicity estimates are also needed for other products (e.g., pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, food-additives) and endpoints (e.g,. sensitisation, liver-toxicity, cardio-toxicity).
The proposed framework will actively support the development of new (Q)SAR models by automating routine tasks, providing a testing and validation environment and allowing the easy addition of new data. It will also support the development of new algorithms and avoid duplicated work by providing easy access to common components, validation routines and an easy comparison with benchmark techniques. For this reason we expect, that OpenTox will lead to (Q)SAR models for further toxic endpoints and generally improve the acceptance
and reliability of (Q)SAR models.
Project Coordinator: Barry Hardy, Douglas Connect, Switzerland
Principal Investigators
Christoph Helma, Andreas Karwath, Stefan Kramer, David Gallagher, Romualdo Benigni, Nina Jeliazkova, Haralambos Sarimveis, Vladimir Poroikov, Indira Ghosh, Sylvia Escher
Project Partners
Douglas Connect, In Silico Toxicology, Ideaconsult, Istituto Superiore di Sanita', Technical University of Munich, Albert Ludwigs University Freiburg, National Technical University of Athens, David Gallagher, Institute of Biomedical Chemistry of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences, Seascape Learning and the Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology & Experimental Medicine
Advisory Board
European Center for the Validation of Alternative Methods, European Chemicals Bureau, U.S Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Food & Drug Administration, Nestle, Roche, AstraZeneca, LHASA, University North Carolina, EC Environment Directorate General, Organisation for Economic Co-operation & Development, CADASTER and Bayer Healthcare
Project Web Site: OpenTox.org
OpenTox is a European Commission funded FP7 Research Project (1 September 2008 – 2011)
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