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A Guide to Practical Toxicology—Evaluation, Prediction and Risk

Although toxicology has become increasingly important in the 21st century, and although it is now taught as an academic discipline in many universities worldwide, much of the craft and everyday knowledge involved in conducting and interpreting studies performed to characterize the potential hazards of the substances which are of everyday concern (so called “regulatory toxicology” or “testing”) goes on both ignored by the academic world and largely undocumented in scholarly publications. Much of what many years of experience teaches is being lost because of this (as it has previously been in the past), only to have to be relearned by each new generation of practitioners. These points of the craft—in some cases, almost the unspoken little secrets of a professional community and their near colleagues—are not limited to laboratory techniques, but also extend to the interpretation of results and the use and presentation (with resulting influence on public and regulatory perception) of the resulting data. Although there have been a few volumes seeking to capture such knowledge (Arnold et al. 1990; Gad and Chengelis 1998; and Haschek et al. 2002 come to mind), Mr. Woolley is to be much commended for this valuable contribution to countering this trend. All the more so because of the broad scope of his effort, which, unlike the other works cited, seeks to address more of the interpretation, use and perception of the results of such tests. The volume comes in 15 well-written chapters, with some spill over of concepts between the chapters—meaning that, for many topics, one cannot simply go from the table of contents or index directly to a chapter or few pages, but rather must read several chapters or much of the book to capture the full sense of the issues involved. Many helpful tables are scattered throughout the book, making a complete reading a rewarding (and essential, for full understanding) exercise. The books principal drawbacks are also part of its virtues—its brevity (just under 300 pages of text, making it a suitable weekend read but also forcing one to go elsewhere for details) and the interconnected nature of the chapters. This said, it should be recommended to all those entering the field as professionals so that they might understand the field outside of academia, where most graduates will find employment upon completion of their degrees. The first chapter blends some history of toxicology with seeking to convey (successfully, I believe) some key concepts about toxicology for both new practitioners and our society.