Testing Drug Phototoxicity in Mice*

Recent Trends of Alternative Methods to Phototoxicity Testing in Japan

Several in vitro phototoxicity methods have been developed to assess the phototoxic potential of substances. These can be classified into two groups: the methods for screening purposes and tests focusing on the specific mechanisms of phototoxic reactions. Among these methods the 3T3 Neutral Red uptake phototoxicity test (3T3 NRU PT) was accepted as an established alternative method by ECVAM. In...

Photodegradation and photosensitization in pharmaceutical products: Assessing drug phototoxicity*

Toxic reactants are a common result of the interaction of sunlight with pharmaceutical agents transported in the blood system or applied topically. Over the past decade there has been a considerable amount of research toward understanding both the unimolecular deactivation pathway of photoexcited pharmaceutical products and their photosensitizing capability in the presence of biological substra...

Ocular phototoxicity.

The human eye is constantly exposed to sunlight and artificial lighting. Therefore the eye is exposed to UV-B (295-320 nm), UV-A (320-400 nm), and visible light (400-700 nm). Light is transmitted through the eye and then signals the brain directing both sight and circadian rhythm. Therefore light absorbed by the eye must be benign. Damage to the young and adult eye by intense ambient light is a...

Drug testing in adolescents.

Drug Testing in Prisons

REASONS GIVEN IN DEFENCE OF TESTING The reasons most frequently given for instituting random drug testing programmes are based on the argument that it is a good tool for controlling drug problems because it offers inmates a valid excuse to avoid either drug use or participation in drug trafficking, and it assists in protecting inmates' access to programmes and transfers to lower security prison...