Our Vision
Our vision is to support the design and advanced risk assessment of innovative materials through data-rich concepts like “safe by design”, adverse outcome pathways, computational modelling, and meta-analyses. To this end, we will establish a reliable and sustainable research data infrastructure which interlinks datasets along the data flow in the field of innovative materials safety.
Scope
The consortium addresses the research area of innovative materials and their impact on human health and the environment. Innovative materials include nanomaterials as well as other materials that exhibit novel properties independent of a defined size-range. They might possess deviating toxicological profiles compared to those of conventional materials. This requires strategies to assess and predict potential hazard and risk along their life-cycle as only safe materials applications can support sustainable innovations. The topic demands contributions from various disciplines. Correspondingly, the consortium works on an interdisciplinary basis and comprises members from the fields of chemistry, physics, materials science, toxicology, medicine, biology, and information sciences. The research field of materials safety is hallmarked by a vast variety of material types and approaches to characterise their intrinsic and toxicological properties. There is an urgent need to develop appropriate test systems and testing schemes supporting scientific understanding, appropriate materials design as well as regulatory needs. Consolidation of research data and their efficient use/re-use are mandatory for the further advancement of the field. Major challenge in this interdisciplinary and heterogeneous field is the establishment of community-wide accepted standards for acquisition, description, curation, and storage of research data.
Contact
Spokesperson
PD Dr. Andrea Haase
Bundesinstitut für Risikobewertung (BfR)
Max-Dohrn-Straße 8-10
10589 Berlin
Co-spokesperson
Matthias Razum
FIZ Karlsruhe – Leibniz Institute for Information Infrastructure
Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1
76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen