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Gertsch W, Wong WK. An interactive tool for designing efficient toxicology experiments. Arch Toxicol 2024; 98:1015-1022. [PMID: 38112716 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-023-03651-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 12/21/2023]
Abstract
The design of dose-response experiments is an important part of toxicology research. Efficient design of these experiments requires choosing optimal doses and assigning the correct number of subjects to those doses under a given criterion. Optimal design theory provides the tools to find the most efficient experimental designs in terms of cost and statistical efficiency. However, the mathematical details can be distracting and make these designs inaccessible to many toxicologists. To facilitate use of these designs, we present an easy to use web-app for finding two types of optimal designs for models commonly used in toxicology. We include tools for checking the optimality of a given design and for assessing efficiency of any user-supplied design. Using state-of-the-art nature-inspired metaheuristic algorithms, the web-app allows the user to quickly find optimal designs for estimating model parameters or the benchmark dose.
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Affiliation(s)
- William Gertsch
- Department of Biostatistics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Weng Kee Wong
- Department of Biostatistics, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Kappenberg F, Duda JC, Schürmeyer L, Gül O, Brecklinghaus T, Hengstler JG, Schorning K, Rahnenführer J. Guidance for statistical design and analysis of toxicological dose-response experiments, based on a comprehensive literature review. Arch Toxicol 2023; 97:2741-2761. [PMID: 37572131 PMCID: PMC10474994 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-023-03561-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2023] [Accepted: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 08/14/2023]
Abstract
The analysis of dose-response, concentration-response, and time-response relationships is a central component of toxicological research. A major decision with respect to the statistical analysis is whether to consider only the actually measured concentrations or to assume an underlying (parametric) model that allows extrapolation. Recent research suggests the application of modelling approaches for various types of toxicological assays. However, there is a discrepancy between the state of the art in statistical methodological research and published analyses in the toxicological literature. The extent of this gap is quantified in this work using an extensive literature review that considered all dose-response analyses published in three major toxicological journals in 2021. The aspects of the review include biological considerations (type of assay and of exposure), statistical design considerations (number of measured conditions, design, and sample sizes), and statistical analysis considerations (display, analysis goal, statistical testing or modelling method, and alert concentration). Based on the results of this review and the critical assessment of three selected issues in the context of statistical research, concrete guidance for planning, execution, and analysis of dose-response studies from a statistical viewpoint is proposed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franziska Kappenberg
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227, Dortmund, Germany.
| | - Julia C Duda
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Leonie Schürmeyer
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Onur Gül
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Tim Brecklinghaus
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Jan G Hengstler
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Kirsten Schorning
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Jörg Rahnenführer
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227, Dortmund, Germany
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