Mutagenicity and genetic toxicology are the fields investigating whether agents can damage genetic material. Such damage can lead to inherited disease (germ cell mutations) and be a key event in the development of cancer. The UK's Committee on Mutagenicity (COM), a committee of independent experts, provides advice to government departments on specific topics and testing strategies. This talk will look back on some of the topics the COM has addressed in the past and will look forward to the issues arising for the 2020s. Full title for the COM is: Committee on Mutagenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment.
Dr David Lovell,
Chair of COM and Reader in Medical Statistics at St George's Medical School, University of London
David Lovell is Reader in Medical Statistics at St George's Medical School, University of London. Previously he was Reader in Medical Statistics at the Postgraduate Medical School, University of Surrey and an Associate Director and Head of Biostatistics support to Clinical Pharmacogenomics at Pfizer Global Research and Development (PGRD) in Sandwich, Kent providing data management and statistical support to pharmacogenetics and genomics. His PhD was from the Department of Human Genetics and Biometry at University College London in 1980. Before joining Pfizer, David was the Head of the Science Division at BIBRA International, Carshalton, which included Molecular Biology. Genetic Toxicology, Biostatistics and Computer Services. At BIBRA David managed the statistical and computing group providing specialised statistical support to BIBRA's Clinical Unit and contract research work. He conducted and managed research programmes on genetics, statistics and quantitative risk assessment for the EU and UK Government Departments. His research interests at BIBRA were in the use of mathematical and statistical methods together with genetic models in the understanding of toxicological mechanisms and risk assessment problems. David had previously been a Senior Research Officer with the MRC Experimental Embryology and Teratology Unit, a visiting Postdoctoral Fellow at the NIEHS in North Carolina, USA, a Geneticist at the MRC Laboratories, Carshalton and a Research Assistance in Cytogenetics at Birmingham University He was Vice Chair of the Scientific Committee of EFSA (the European Food Safety Authority) from 2009 - 2012 and a member of the Independent Scientific Advisory Committee (ISAC) for MHRA database research from 2006 - 2012. He is Chair of the UK Government's Advisory Committee on Mutagenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment (COM) and a member of the Committee on Carcinogenicity (COC). He is a member of the Board of the NC3R's and was a member of its Grant Assessment Panel (2013 - 2017).
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