Environmental Health Science Research Bureau, Health Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.
Biology and Environmental Chemistry Division, Sustainable System Research Laboratory, Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry (CRIEPI), Komae, Tokyo, Japan.
Int J Radiat Biol. 2022;98(12):1714-1721. doi: 10.1080/09553002.2022.2086716. Epub 2022 Jul 20.
Studies on human health and ecological effects of ionizing radiation are rapidly evolving as innovative technologies arise and the body of scientific knowledge grows. Structuring this information could effectively support the development of decision making tools and health risk models to complement current system of radiation protection. To this end, the adverse outcome pathway (AOP) approach is being explored as a means to consolidate the most relevant research to identify causation between exposure to a chemical or non-chemical stressor and disease or adverse effect progression. This tool is particularly important for low dose and low dose rate radiation exposures because of the latency and uncertainties in the biological responses at these exposure levels. To progress this aspect, it is essential to build a community of developers, facilitators, risk assessors (in the private sector and in government), policy-makers, and regulators who understand the strengths and weaknesses of, and how to appropriately utilize AOPs for consolidating our knowledge on the impact of low dose ionizing radiation. Through co-ordination with the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) High-Level Group on Low-Dose Research (HLG-LDR) and OECD's AOP Programme, initiatives are under way to demonstrate this approach in radiation research and regulation. Among these, a robust communications strategy and stakeholder engagement will be essential. It will help establish best practices for AOPs in institutional project development and aid in dissemination for more efficient and timely uptake and use of AOPs. In this regard, on June 1, 2021, the Radiation and Chemical (Rad/Chem) AOP Joint Topical Group was formed as part of the initiative from the NEA's HLG-LDR. The topical group will work to develop a communication and engagement strategy to define the target audiences, establish the clear messages and identify the delivery and engagement platforms.
The incorporation of the best science and better decision making should motive the radiation protection community to develop, refine and use AOPs, recognizing that their incorporation into radiation health risk assessments is critical for public health and environmental protection in the 21st century.
随着创新技术的出现和科学知识体系的不断发展，人类健康和电离辐射生态效应的研究也在迅速发展。对这些信息进行结构化处理，可以有效地支持决策工具和健康风险模型的开发，从而补充当前的辐射防护体系。为此，人们正在探索有害作用途径（AOP）方法，以整合最相关的研究，确定化学或非化学应激源暴露与疾病或不良效应进展之间的因果关系。对于低剂量和低剂量率辐射暴露，这种工具尤为重要，因为在这些暴露水平下，生物反应具有潜伏期和不确定性。为了推进这一方面，必须建立一个由开发者、促进者、风险评估人员（私营部门和政府部门）、决策者和监管者组成的社区，让他们了解 AOP 的优势和劣势，以及如何适当利用 AOP 来整合我们对低剂量电离辐射影响的认识。通过与经济合作与发展组织（经合组织）核能机构（NEA）低剂量研究高级别小组（HLG-LDR）和经合组织 AOP 计划的协调，正在采取行动，展示这种方法在辐射研究和监管中的应用。其中，强有力的沟通策略和利益相关者参与将是至关重要的。这将有助于为 AOP 在机构项目开发中的应用建立最佳实践，并有助于传播，以提高 AOP 的采用和使用效率和及时性。在这方面，2021 年 6 月 1 日，辐射与化学（Rad/Chem）AOP 联合专题小组作为 NEA HLG-LDR 倡议的一部分成立。该专题小组将致力于制定沟通和参与策略，确定目标受众，阐明明确信息，并确定交付和参与平台。
将最佳科学和更好的决策纳入其中，应促使辐射防护界开发、完善和使用 AOP，认识到将其纳入辐射健康风险评估对于 21 世纪的公共卫生和环境保护至关重要。
