NSCPHD1029 Dynamic modelling of toxic effects
The toxicity of a chemical depends on chemical properties, the
exposed species, exposure time, the endpoint measured and exposure
conditions. Mathematical modelling is a powerful tool to interpret
the results of laboratory toxicity tests and to make educated
extrapolations. In this course, you will learn the basics of
toxicokinetic and toxicodynamic modelling, and how they can be
linked and learn how to analyse and interpret body residue and
toxicity data on a mechanistic basis.
A detailed schedule for the content of the specific talks and
exercises will be provided in spring.
The overall content is given in this summary:
The toxicity of a chemical depends on properties of the compound
and of the species that is exposed, but also on the exposure time,
the endpoint (e.g. growth, reproduction or survival), and the
exposure conditions (temperature, food level, etc.). In
ecotoxicology, the interdependencies of these factors are generally
ignored by rigid standardisation of the tests and descriptive
summary statistics such as EC50 and NOEC. However, we need a more
mechanistic interpretation of toxicity to make an unbiased
comparison of toxicity between species and chemicals, and to
extrapolate the effects to untested exposure conditions. Because it
is impossible to test all chemicals on all species under all
possible exposure scenarios, extrapolation is of key importance for
ecotoxicologists and environmental risk assessors.
Mathematical modelling is a powerful tool to interpret the results
of laboratory toxicity tests and to make educated extrapolations.
The process of mechanistically modelling toxicity can be divided
into two steps: toxicokinetics (TK) and toxicodynamics (TD). TK
deals with the uptake, biotransformation and distribution of a
chemical into the body of an organism, whereas TD deals with the
next step: from internal concentration of the active compound to
effects on the organism over time.
In this course, you will learn the basics of TK and TD modelling,
and how they can be linked, and you will learn to analyse and
interpret toxicity data on a mechanistic basis. For TK modelling,
we will focus on 1- and 2-compartment models; TD modelling will be
based on a simple Dynamic Energy Budget model (DEBkiss). The course
comprises a combination of lectures, computer exercises and
discussions. In the computer exercises you will learn to build and
use basic TKTD models yourself in Matlab or OpenModel, and work
with advanced pre-programmed models (GUTS, DEBkiss) to fit more
elaborate data sets. The output of the course will be individual
reports where the students use their accomplished skills to fit
TKTD models to their own and/or provided data, and to interpret the
results.
In this course, students will:
- Understand the concepts of TK and TD
- Understand the basics of mechanistic effect modelling
- Build TK and TD models to analyse and interpret toxicity data
- Analyse example data, discuss and interpret the results
- Use the software Matlab or OpenModel
Jager T, Heugens EHW, Kooijman SALM. 2006. Making sense of ecotoxicological test results: Towards application of process-based models. Ecotoxicology 15:305-314.
Ashauer R, Escher BI. 2010. Advantages of toxicokinetic and toxicodynamic modelling in aquatic ecotoxicology and risk assessment. Journal of Environmental Monitoring 12:2056-2061.
Jager T, Albert C, Preuss TG, Ashauer R. 2011. General Unified Threshold Model of Survival - a Toxicokinetic-Toxicodynamic Framework for Ecotoxicology. Environ Sci Technol 45:2529-2540.
Jager, T.; Martin, B. T.; Zimmer, E. I., DEBkiss or the quest for the simplest generic model of animal life history. Journal of Theoretical Biology 2013, 328, 9-18.
More information including references can be found on: www.debtox.info and www.ecotoxmodels.org.
The course will take place at Søminestationen (http://www.soeminestationen.dk/). Transport to and from Søminestationen to Holbæk station on Tuesday 5th and Wednesday 13th and food and housing is included in the price.
- Category
- Hours
- Lectures
- 20
- Practical exercises
- 10
- Preparation
- 40
- Project work
- 40
- Theory exercises
- 26
- Total
- 136
To sign up for the course, please send an e-mail to Nina Cedergreen (ncf@life.ku.dk). Please also remember to add the course to your PhD plan.
- Credit
- 5 ECTS
- Type of assessment
- Written assignmentThe final report must be handed in in time and be accepted by the course convenors.
- Exam registration requirements
- We expect you to prepare for the course in advance and to hand in a report at September 1st at the latest to receive full credits.
- Exam period
- September 2014
Course information
- Language
- English
- Course code
- NSCPHD1029
- Credit
- 5 ECTS
- Level
- Ph.D.
- Duration
- 7 days
- Placement
- Autumn
5th-13th of August 2014
- Schedule
- To be determined
- Course capacity
- Minimum 10 and maximally 30 participants
- Price
5000 dkr for PhD students and 10000 dkr for non-PhD students. The price includes transport to and from Holbæk station, food and housing. All participants must, however, bring their own lap-top.
There is a 150 dkr discount for members of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC)- Study board
- Natural Sciences PhD Committee
Contracting department
- Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences
Course responsibles
- Nina Cedergreen (3-72676a4474706972326f7932686f)
Lecturers
Tjalling Jager (Free University of Amsterdam, NL) and Roman Ashauer (University of York, UK)