CAAT Director Named to Chair in Evidence-Based
Toxicology
By Natalie Wood-Wright School of Public
Health
The Johns Hopkins
Bloomberg School of Public Health has named Thomas
Hartung, director of
the Center for
Alternatives to Animal Testing, the inaugural
Doerenkamp-Zbinden Professor and Chair
for Evidence-Based Toxicology. Hartung, a leader in the
field of toxicology and an advocate for
alternatives to animal testing, was officially installed
during a ceremony on May 12 at the Bloomberg
School.
The endowed chair was established by the
Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation in honor of
philanthropist Hildegard Doerenkamp and the late Gerhard
Zbinden, a renowned toxicologist and
professor. Created in 1982 to promote and reward
"exceptional achievements in animal protection in
biomedical research," the foundation supports research to
reduce, replace and refine animal
experimentation.
"Thomas Hartung is an outstanding researcher who has
made significant contributions to the
field of evidence-based toxicology and in addition to
leading CAAT will work to establish a laboratory
to lead the way in developing alternative methods to animal
testing in the U.S.," said Michael J. Klag,
dean of the Bloomberg School. "I would like to thank the
Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation for its
commitment to our school and to advancing toxicology
research."
Hartung came to the Bloomberg School this year as the
director of CAAT. He replaced the
center's founding director, Alan Goldberg, who will serve
as chair of CAAT's advisory board. Prior to
joining the Bloomberg School, Hartung was head of the
European Centre for the Validation of
Alternative Methods at the European Commission Joint
Research Centre in Italy. He has been
recognized as an integral figure in promoting the use of in
vitro test methods that focus on human
rather than animal biology. At the ECVAM, he assisted in
the development of several test strategies
that revolutionized the way safety assessments for
chemicals are done in Europe. In addition, Hartung
established and coordinated international agencies in the
shared promotion of the first international
validation study, which proved essential in expediting
international adoption of new test methods.
Hartung was educated in Germany. A graduate of the
University of Konstanz, he received his
doctorate in biochemical pharmacology and medical degree in
toxicology from the University of
Tubingen and completed his internship in surgery at the
University of Freiburg. He has published more
than 200 scientific papers, served on the editorial boards
of Alternatives to Laboratory Animals and
Alternativen Zu, Tierexperimenten and received multiple
awards, including the 2008 ALTEX Award
and the 2006 Society of Toxicology Enhancement of Animal
Welfare Award.
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