October 2003, Volume 2, Issue 1

National Guard Tours NCTR

By Billie Minton

On September 17 and 18, the NCTR and Arkansas Regional Laboratories (ARL) welcomed the 3^rd Platoon Chemical Site Defensive Force (CSDF) of the Oklahoma Army National Guard for a tour to learn about the FDA and its mission to protect our nation’s health. On the walking tour, NCTR investigators talked to them about the history of NCTR, primate studies, phototoxicology research, and Fresh Quality Indicator (FQI) technology. The Acting Director of the ARL completed the tour with a walk-through of the ARL microbiological and chemistry mass spectrometry operations. The CSDF was activated in May 2003 and assigned to the Pine Bluff Arsenal for one year to carry out Homeland Security responsibilities.

Arkansas Branch of AALAS Meets at NCTR

The Arkansas Branch of AALAS (American Association for Laboratory Animal Science) met July 26 at NCTR. The Arkansas branch became affiliated with the National organization in 1970 with a purpose to “…act as an information and education source concerning the responsible care and use of laboratory animals.” Membership is comprised of staff from local universities, commercial research laboratories, and the NCTR. Dr. Ann Turner, the Executive Director, and Dr. Chip Price, the Vice-President elect, represented the National AALAS organization. Dr. Turner updated the seventy-six attendees on “AALAS at Work.”

Martin Nichols, the President of the Arkansas branch, hosted an awards presentation in which NCTR staff received the “Technician of the Year Award,” the “Harvey Kalbach Award” for professional excellence in the field of laboratory animal management, and the 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd place poster awards.

William Braswell, a NCTR diet preparation technician, displays his prize winning poster.

Photo/D.Tucker

Willard’s Dog Days of Summer Race

By Fred Beland, Ph.D.

For the eighth consecutive year, NCTR has served as host to Willard’s Dog Days of Summer Criterium Series, a set of bicycle races held weekly during July and August. More than 75 riders, including riders from Arkansas, Tennessee, Texas, and Kansas, participated in two races each evening. The riders considered NCTR an ideal location due to its restricted car and pedestrian traffic, and the smooth road surface that allowed speeds in excess of 40 mph to be obtained. Donnie Van Patter, who rides for a local team (CARVE), was the overall winner, while his teammate Greg Eberdt was second. Peter Beland, who is sponsored by a Colorado-based team (Schwab Cycles), was third. In the preliminary event, Jason Polanski, who races for the California-based team Ranchos, was first and Meghan Specht was the overall women’s winner.

NCTR Scientist Named Distinguished Alumni

Dr. Ralph L. Kodell, Director of NCTR’s Division of Biometry and Risk Assessment, was recently inducted into the Academy of Distinguished Graduates of Texas A&M University’s College of Science in recognition of his outstanding leadership in mathematics and the sciences.

Dr. Kodell was recognized as a leading researcher on statistical methods for toxicology and as an expert in using statistics to assess health risks. He has developed statistical testing procedures used in the pharmaceutical industry for carcinogenicity assessment, and statistical estimation procedures that provide the basis for cancer risk estimates used by the FDA and EPA.

Dr. Ralph Kodell, distinguished
Texas A&M Alumni. Photo/D.Tucker

Recent Publications

NCTR conducts research designed to protect the public’s health. Results from some of these research projects have recently been accepted for publication in nationally recognized scientific journals.

Regulatory Research Perspectives: Impact on Public Health,an on-line newsletter that provides a vehicle for FDA scientists to communicate important scientific information, is available at http://www.fda.gov/nctr/science/journals/Default.htm.

• Allred, C.D., Dietary Genistein Results in Larger MNU-induced, Estrogen-dependent Mammary Tumors Following Ovariectomy of Sprague-Dawley Rats, Carcinogenesis
• Baldwin, R., Effect of Methylphenidate on Time Perception in Children with ADHD, Journal of Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology
• Beger, R., Combining NMR Spectral Information with Associated Structural Features to Form Computationally Non-Intensive, Rugged and Objective Models of Biological Activity, In: DISCOVERY HANDBOOK: Pharmaceutical Development and Research Handbook
• Beger, R., Structure and Dynamics of Thioguanine-Modified Duplex DNA Containing a Single Central Thioguanine Modification, Journal of Biological Chemistry
• Bowyer, J.F., Selective Changes in Gene Expression in Cortical Regions Sensitive to Amphetamine Neurotoxicity, NeuroToxicology
• Chelonis, J.J., The Effects of Prenatal Cocaine Exposure on Reversal Learning Using a Simple Visual Discrimination Task, Neurotoxicology and Teratology
• Chen, J.J., How Many of the Rejected Hypotheses are False?, Bulletin of the International Chinese Statistical Association
• Chou, M.W., Riddelliine N-oxide is a Phytochemical and Mammalian Metabolite with Genotoxic and Activity that is Comparable to the Parent Pyrrolizidine Alkaloid, Chem. Res. Toxicology
• Chou, M.W., Identification of DNA Adducts Derived from Riddelliine, a Carcinogenic Pyrrolizidine Alkaloid, Chem. Res. Toxicology
• Cisneros, F.J., Transplacental Exposure to the DNA Methylating Agent, 5-AZA-CdR, Affects the Sexual Behavior of CD-1 Male Mice, NeuroToxicology
• Cui, Y., In Vitro Metabolism of Hyperforin in Rat Liver Microsomal System, Drug Metabolism Disposition
• Ferguson, S.A., Developmental Treatment with Difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) has Few Effects on Behavior or Body Weight in Sprague-Dawley Rats, Journal Neurotoxicology and Teratology
• Ferguson, S.A., In vivo Basal and Amphetamine-induced Striatal Dopamine Release is Similar in the Spontaneously Hypertensive, Wistar-Kyoto and Sprague-Dawley Male Rats, Physiology and Behavior
• Hashemi, R.R., Grid Based Analysis Approach for Learning from Sparse Data, 1^st ACIS International Conference on Software Engineering Research and Applications (2003)
• He, Y., Role of Nitric Oxide in Rotenone-induced Nigro-striatal Injury, Journal of Neurochemistry
• Hotchkiss, C.E., Effect of Pair-housing on Operant Behavior Task Performance by Rhesus Monkeys, Contemporary Topics in Laboratory Animal Science
• Kim, Y., Sorption and Clay-catalyzed Degradation of Erythromycin A on Homoionic clays, Journal of Environmental Quality
• Kim, Y., Sorption and Degradation of Erythromycin A in Aquaculture Sediments, Journal of Environmental Pollution
• Leakey, Body Weight Considerations in the B6C3F1 Mouse and the Use of Dietary Control to Standardize Background Tumor Incidence in Chronic Bioassays, Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology
• Leakey, J.E., Dietary Controlled Carcinogenicity Study of Chloral Hydrate in Male B6C3F1 Mice, Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology
• Leakey, J.E., Toxicokinetics of Chloral Hydrate in Ad libitum-fed, Dietary-controlled and Calorically Restricted Male B6C3F1 Mice Following Short-Term Exposure Using Idealized Body Weight Curves that are Normalized by Modulation of Caloric Intake, Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology
• Lopachin, R.M., Application of Proteomics to the Study of Molecular Mechanisms in Neurotoxicology, NeuroToxicology
• Malling, H., Three origins of am3 Revertants in Transgenic Cell Culture, Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis
• Middaugh, L.D., Neurobehavioral Assessment: A Survey of Use and Value in Safety Assessment Studies, Toxicological Sciences
• Molefe, D., Tests for Effects on Tumor Frequency and Latency in Multiple Dosing Photococarcinogenicity Experiments, Journal of Statistical Planning and Inference
• Moon, H., Bootstrap Adjustment of Asymptotic Normal Tests for Animal Carcinogenicity Data, Proceedings of the Biometrics Section, American Statistical Association
• Nawaz, M.S., Detection of galE gene by Polymerase Chain Reaction in Campylobacters, Molecular Cellular Probes
• Rafii, F., Mechanism of Metronidazole-resistance in Isolates of Nitroreductase-producing Enterococcus gallinarum and E. casseliflavus from the Human Intestinal Tract, FEMS Microbiology Letters
• Scallet, A.C., Electroencephalographic, Behavioral, and c-fos Responses to Acute Domoic Acid Exposure, Neurotoxicology and Teratology
• Seng, J.E., Toxicokinetics of Chloral Hydrate in Ad Libitum-Fed, Dietary-Controlled and Calorically Restricted Male B6C3F1 Mice Following Short-Term Exposure, Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology
• Tsai, C., Estimation of False Discovery Rates in Multiple Testing: Application to Gene Microarray Data, Biometrics
• Turesky, R., Identification of Aminobiphenyl Derivatives in Commercial Hair Dyes, Chemical Research in Toxicology
• Williams, L.D., LC/MS Determination of the Metabolism and Disposition of the Antiretroviral Nucleoside Analogs Zidovudine and Lamivudine in C57BL/6N Mice, Journal of Chromatography B.

On-Line Research Information

Regulatory Research Perspectives: Impact on Public Health, an on-line journal that provides a vehicle for FDA scientists to communicate important scientific information, and NCTR's FY 2002-2003 Research Accomplishments and Plans are available from NCTR’s web site at http://www.fda.gov/nctr/science/science.htm.

Contact Information

The NCTR Quarter Page is published four times a year by the Division of Planning at the National Center for Toxicological Research. For more information about NCTR contact Dr. Dan Casciano, NCTR Director, at dcasciano@nctr.fda.gov or [870] 543-7517.