View NCTR's Recent Scientific Publications

Pathogenesis of Salmonella

Scientists from NCTR and the University of Arkansas have published a book chapter inGuide to Foodborne Pathogens, Second edition, that highlights the taxonomy and molecular typing methodologies which discriminate between and among Salmonella serovars. The traditional and rapid molecular methods of detecting Salmonella are discussed and the various strategic pre- and postharvest control strategies for controlling the spread ofSalmonella in raw and processed foods are identified. The article further reviews the known aspects of etiology, pathogenesis pathways, and mechanisms by which Salmonella can potentially cause diseases in humans. In addition, the article highlights the epidemiology of this pathogen, including prevalence data, vehicles of transmission, and sources/reservoirs of outbreaks.

Novel Mechanism of Sertraline-Induced Liver Toxicity

Scientists from NCTR, the University of Maryland, and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center have shown that endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress is a novel molecular mechanism of hepatic cytotoxicity induced by the antidepressant, sertraline, in an in vitrosystem. ER stress was detected in HepG2 (human liver carcinoma) cells treated with sertraline (at doses approximating human plasma levels) through analysis of gene and protein expression. Additionally, two in vitroreporter assays were developed to efficiently monitor ER stress-mediated liver toxicity. Sertraline is a widely prescribed antidepressant for which idiosyncratic liver injury has been reported. A manuscript detailing this study has been published in Toxicology .

NCTR Annual Report of Research Accomplishments and Plans

NCTR Welcomes New Executive Officer

Ms. Winona Cason, a retired Air Force Colonel, joins NCTR from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) where she served as Executive Officer to FEMA’s Chief Financial Officer. Winona has held numerous leadership positions, both in the military and within FEMA. While serving as Director, Division of Business Management, Ms. Cason was responsible for creating and executing all business initiatives for FEMA’s Logistics Management Directorate, including financial and human capital strategies and plans that enable FEMA Logistics to prepare for, respond to, and sustain disaster operations. As NCTR Executive Officer, Ms. Cason will manage a comprehensive and integrated management program for planning, human resources, budget and finance, grants and interagency agreements, information technology, diversity management, and facilities. She will also serve as the Center Director's senior policy advisor on all administrative management matters.

Because of the importance for international regulators, policy makers, and scientists to exchange views on how to develop, apply, and implement innovative methodologies into regulatory assessments, NCTR established an annual Global Summit on Regulatory Science, now in its fourth year. The 2014 Global Summit is being hosted by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency in Montreal on August 21-22 and will include international participants with a focus on “Regulatory Genomics and Beyond.”

"Global Partnerships Advance the Regulatory Science That Protects Public Health"

By: William Slikker, Jr., Ph.D., NCTR Director

In work, as in life, your success often comes down to the strength of your relationships. And as the director of FDA's National Center for Toxicological Research (NCTR), among the most pre-eminent regulatory science centers in the world, I have found that this axiom, often so apt in daily life, is also true on a grander scale in the world of research. Read more of the blog ...

Dr. Slikker Receives Prestigious Toxicology Forum Award

The George H. Scott Memorial Award honors an individual in the field of toxicology who has demonstrated an outstanding role in developing and applying the science of toxicology. Past honorees