The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced the release of two databases in a bid to make it easier to find data about chemicals. These include ToxCastDB, the Toxicity Forecaster database, and ExpoCastDB, a database of chemical exposure studies. Scientists and the public can use these databases to access chemical toxicity and exposure data.

ToxCastDB users can search and download data from over 500 rapid chemical tests conducted on more than 300 environmental chemicals. The database uses advanced scientific tools to predict the potential toxicity of chemicals and to provide a cost-effective approach to prioritising which chemicals of the thousands in use require further testing. ToxCast is currently screening 700 additional chemicals, and the data will be available in 2012.

ExpoCastDB consolidates human exposure data from studies that have collected chemical measurements from homes and childcare centres. Data include the amounts of chemicals found in food, drinking water, air, dust, indoor surfaces and urine. ExpoCastDB users can obtain summary statistics of exposure data and download datasets. EPA will continue to add internal and external chemical exposure data and advanced user interface features to ExpoCastDB.

The new databases are seen to link together two important pieces of chemical research - exposure and toxicity data - both of which are required when considering potential risks posed by chemicals. The databases are connected through EPA's Aggregated Computational Toxicology Resource (ACToR), an online data warehouse that collects data on over 500,000 chemicals from over 500 public sources.

Users can now access 30 years worth of animal chemical toxicity studies that were previously only found in paper documents, data from rapid chemical testing, and various chemical exposure measurements through one online resource. The ability to link and compare these different types of data is expected to better inform EPA's decisions about chemical safety.

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The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released a new database, called ToxRefDB, which allows scientists and the interested public to search and download thousands of toxicity testing results on hundreds of chemicals. ToxRefDB captures 30 years and $2 billion of testing results.

ToxRefDB provides detailed chemical toxicity data in an accessible format. It is a part of ACToR (Aggregated Computational Toxicology Resource), an online data warehouse that collects data from about 500 public sources on tens of thousands of environmentally relevant chemicals, including several hundred in ToxRefDB. Those interested in chemical toxicity can query a specific chemical and find all available public hazard, exposure, and risk-assessment data, as well as previously unpublished studies related to cancer, reproductive, and developmental toxicity.

ToxRefDB connects to an EPA chemical screening tool called ToxCast. ToxCast is a multi-year, multi-million dollar effort that uses advanced science tools to help understand biological processes impacted by chemicals that may lead to adverse health effects. ToxCast currently includes 500 fast, automated chemical screening tests that have assessed over 300 environmental chemicals.

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