Scope of Participant’s Task

 

Title:     Research Fellowship Program with the Oak Ridge Associated Universities.

 

Contact: Robert L. Sprando, Ph. D., Director, Division of Toxicology,

               CFSAN/OARSA/DT/DRTIB;  email: robert.sprando@fda.hhs.gov

 

Duration: 2 years

 

Location:  OARSA/DRTIB Laboratories, MOD1 Research Facility,                             8301 Muirkirk Rd, Laurel, Maryland 20708

 

Project Title: Validating the predictive performance of C. elegans as an alternative model in toxicity testing.

 

Scope of Work:

 

 The ideal candidate should be a US citizen or permanent resident; have a Ph.D. in a molecular biology, biochemistry or cell biology; experience with C. elegans genetics and using C. elegans as a model organism.  Programming skills (Matlab) and a familiarity with bioinformatics is a plus but not required. The successful candidate will assist in using genetic and cell biology approaches to investigate the mechanism of uptake and transport of the toxins in C. elegans and will assist in using chemical genomic approaches to identify the cellular pathways affected by these toxins.  Excellent writing and oral communication skills are required as the participant will be required to record accurately experimental findings and assist in the preparation of manuscripts or providing written summaries of experimental finding.  The participant will be trained in the use of the Complex Parametric Analyzer and Sorter and Worm Tracker.  The training involves an understanding of the FDA’s regulatory mission and its role in ensuring the safety of the nation’s food supply.   

 

 

Description of Work:

             The Developmental/Reproductive Toxicology Branch located in the Division of Toxicology (DT) in the Office of Applied Research and Safety Assessment (OARSA) in the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) establishes and conducts cohesive mission-relevant research in toxicology and molecular biology that will ensure the safety of the U.S. food supply.  In fulfilling this mission, the DRTIB/DT:

 

A.     Provides Center and Agency leadership in the areas of in vitro and in vivo developmental/reproductive toxicology.

B.     Recommends, develops, coordinates and conducts research on the toxic effects of substances for which the Center has regulatory responsibilities, and may investigate mechanisms of the underlying toxicological reactions.

C.     Develops and/or validates various in vitro/in vivo systems that may serve as adjuncts to, or replacements for, animal models, and conducts research on the application of in vitro test systems, or batteries of in vitro tests, to assess the toxic effects of substances for which the Center has regulatory responsibilities.

D.     Conducts toxicological studies on various classes of substances for which the Center has regulatory responsibility to provide data for guideline development and for evaluation of petitions and proposals and for the review of current tolerances and applications.

E.      Develops long-term research plans, and as appropriate leverages with other organizations including other center and agency components.

 

            DRTIB/DT provides laboratory capabilities including: 1) the Center’s laboratory facilities involved with the development and validation of alternative methods for screening food-related chemicals for toxicity, and 2) the Center’s animal testing facilities when in vivo studies are necessary to answer specific questions about food-related chemicals (e.g. fluoride) and chemical toxicants (e.g., mycotoxins, phytoestrogens, androstenedione, sodium arsenite, colchicine); 3) Complex Parametric Analyzer and Sorter equipped with reflex sampler and profiler and 4) Worm Tracker in early stages of development. 

 

A.     The participant will assist the Developmental/Reproductive Toxicology Team in evaluating the predictive performance of C. elegans to serve as an alternative animal model in toxicity testing.

 

B.     With respect to specific scientific duties, the participant will:

 

  1. Assist in evaluating various endpoints of growth and development (e.g. fecundity, generational period, numbers of offspring, survivability etc) in C. elegans exposed to selected compounds of known toxicity under various culture conditions (axenic liquid culture, standard agar culture or multi well culture formats) using COPAS technology to develop short-term high-throughput screening assays.

 

  1. Participate in developing approaches to identify both gene expression patterns and individual genes as candidates for development as biomarkers of exposure. 

 

  1. Assist in the development of the worm tracker and the identification of motion related endpoints of toxicity.

 

  1. Assist in performing all laboratory experiments in compliance with quality assurance guidelines developed by DT and CFSAN.