ASPIS Academy is excited to announce the launch of its “Back to School” initiative, a program designed to introduce students—both at the high school and university level—to New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) in toxicology. The goal is to educate young minds about the importance of NAMs, their role in chemical safety assessment, and the ongoing paradigm shift away from traditional animal testing.
“I was very happy and nostalgic to return to my former lab and share my research. Advancing developmental neurotoxicity testing with NAMs is a crucial step toward more human-relevant and ethical science. I’m grateful for the opportunity to engage with students, and I hope our conversation encouraged them to think critically about the future of toxicology and the transition toward methods that reduce reliance on animal testing.”
-Eliška
The program was officially launched when Dr. Eliška Kuchovská, former ASPIS Academy chair and a postdoctoral researcher at the Leibniz Research Institute of Environmental Medicine in Düsseldorf, delivered a lecture at RECETOX (Masaryk University) as part of the department’s seminar series for students and employees. During her talk, she introduced cutting-edge developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) NAMs, explaining how chemicals can impact brain development and how human-relevant, non-animal methods are paving the way for safer chemical regulation.
The presentation sparked an engaging discussion on the advantages of human cell-based models over rodent experiments and the challenges of implementing NAMs in regulatory frameworks.
As Eliška remarked: “The enthusiasm from the attendees was truly inspiring. Our discussion continued for 45 minutes, covering everything from research reproducibility and start-ups to the challenge of capturing cognition in a Petri dish. I’m thrilled that so many early-career researchers engaged with these topics, and I hope I’ve inspired some of them to pursue careers in NAMs and drive the next wave of innovation in toxicology.”
To expand this initiative, ASPIS Academy encourages its Early Career Researchers to connect with their former high schools or universities and give lectures on their own NAM-related research. By sharing their knowledge, they can inspire future toxicologists and professionals who may one day influence the adoption of innovative safety assessment methods.
Join us in shaping the future of toxicology education and advocating for the next generation of scientists! We encourage all early-stage researchers to take part in this initiative by contacting their former universities or high schools and sharing their knowledge and scientific work on NAMs with students. ASPIS Academy is here to support your outreach efforts—contact us in case of any questions and to have your lecture featured on the ASPIS YouTube channel and help inspire the next generation of scientists!
