ACI Report Offers ‘State of the Science’ on In Vitro Methods for Cleaning Product Safety Assessment

The use of in vitro new approach methodologies (NAMs) to assess the potential for respiratory irritation depends on several factors, including the specifics of exposure methods and cell/tissue-based test systems.

A new workshop report co-authored by the American Cleaning Institute (ACI) examines this topic in the context of human health risk assessment for cleaning products as discussed at a 1-day public workshop held on March 2, 2023. This workshop was sponsored and organized by ACI.

The report, “New approach methodologies (NAMs) for the in vitro assessment of cleaning products for respiratory irritation: workshop report,” is now available in Frontiers in Toxicology.

The cleaning products industry routinely ensures the safety of the products they manufacture by testing them to confirm that they do not expose consumers to any hazards, one of which is respiratory irritation. To avoid the use of animals in testing and to improve the accuracy of results, useful in vitro cellular-based test systems have been developed, but their full benefits still need to be determined.

The report presents the workshop’s findings, which will serve as a guide to the state of the science for these in vitro tests, and it will provide the cleaning products industry with the best practices and principles when selecting in vitro testing methods for their products, officials said.

“Product safety is key component of product stewardship. In the cleaning products industry, manufacturers need relevant and reliable tests to assess the potential hazards of their products so as to promote safe and responsible use,” said Francis Kruszewski, PhD, DABT, ACI senior director, human health and safety, and a co-author of the research.