Christopher T. De Rosa, Ph.D., Director
The 24-hour number is (404) 498-0120
About the Division of Toxicology
The Division of Toxicology (DT) performs an integral function in meeting the ATSDR mandates by participating in policy development for environmental health-related issues and in supporting scientific and technical projects within ATSDR, as well as in other federal agencies. The primary goal of DT is to serve as a resource for information and assistance regarding toxic substances in the environment.
As mandated by CERCLA, the Division (1)
identifies and publishes a priority list of substances of greatest
concern at National
Priorities List (NPL) sites; (2) coordinates all activities and
database development associated with preparing
toxicological profiles for the NPL hazardous substances; and (3)
ensures the initiation of
research 
(file size 155k) designed to determine the
health effects of identified hazardous substances for which
information is currently considered inadequate. As part of an
Agency-wide HazDAT
database effort, the Division is responsible for coordinating
the integration of the aforementioned information into HazDAT.
Division of Toxicology Responsibilities
- providing emergency response coordination operations assistance on a 24-hour basis on public health issues relating to the release or threat of release of hazardous substances. The 24-hour number is 404-498-0120;
- providing substance-specific consultations (toxicological expertise) to state and federal agencies as well as to the general public;
- coordinating ATSDR toxicology activities with the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the US National Toxicology Program, and other international, federal, state, local and public programs;
- developing innovative methods and protocols to guide and support NCEH/ATSDR health authorities, including public health assessments, health studies, and consultations;
- implementing a program of research to assess human health effects of water pollutants in the Great Lakes basin; and
- establishing minimal risk levels (MRLs) for hazardous substances. An MRL is a scientific estimate of the daily human exposure to a hazardous substance that is likely to be without appreciable risk of adverse non-cancerous health effects over a specified duration of exposure.
- Investigating human health effects of chemical mixtures.
Division of Toxicology Organization
The Division of Toxicology is organized into a Director’s office and three branches, which are as follows:
The Emergency Response and Scientific Assessment Branch is charged with
- coordinating all activities that identify, evaluate, and prioritize hazardous substances publicized in the National Priority List of Hazardous Substances;
- coordinating workgroup activities that lead to deriving MRLs and other health-based guidelines;
- coordinating activities that lead to development of the hazardous substances component of ATSDR’s Hazardous Substance Release/Health Effects Database;
- performing chemical consultations;
- conducting emergency preparedness and response activities; and
- developing the medical management guidelines (the MHMIs) for use by physicians and other healthcare professionals engaged in treating people exposed to hazardous substances.
The Research Implementation Branch is charged with
- developing, implementing, and coordinating a program of research to determine the health effects of hazardous substances;
- providing expertise in evaluating research priorities and in supporting the overall toxicology program of the division;
- administering ATSDR-sponsored projects that result from substance-specific programs of applied research, including voluntary research with industry and university-based research with minority health profession schools;
- implementing a program of research to characterize the association between consuming contaminated Great Lakes Fish and the potential for harmful health effects; and
- developing and applying computational toxicology models to determine and characterize risks from exposure to hazardous substances.
The Toxicology Information Branch is charged with
- coordinating all activities to develop, peer review, produce, and distribute toxicological profiles (which interpret all known information on specific hazardous substances), ToxFAQs™ and ToxFAQs™ en Español, and public health statements (in English and Español);
- coordinating child health as they relate to developing toxicological profiles and ToxFAQs™ and ToxFAQs™ en Español;
- developing and producing toxicological resource information for distribution via printed documents, the World Wide Web, and CD-ROMs;
- maintaining docket files for all toxicological profiles, including cited references and other profile documentation;
- coordinating profile development activities (over 150 profiles developed to date) with the US Environmental Protections Agency (EPA), the National Toxicology Program, and other appropriate federal, state, and local government programs;
- maintaining the mailing lists used for distribution of toxicological profiles to a diverse audience.
Division of Toxicology Products and Services
Substance-Specific Applied Research Program
Voluntary Research Program
Cooperative Program with the Minority Health Profession Foundation
Computational Toxicology Laboratory
In order to access the ATSDR interaction profiles' PDF files , you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader.
You may download that program for free from this link to
Adobe
and then use it to access (open) the files that are labeled
as PDF files.
