Education and Outreach

Andy Nong, Ph.D.

Division of Computational Biology

Center for Human Health Assessment

Education

Ph.D., Public Health (Toxicology), Université de Montréal, Montreal , Canada , 2006.
M.S., Pharmaceutical Sciences (Pharmacology), Université de Montréal, Montreal, Canada, 2001.
B.S., Biochemistry, McGill University, Montreal, Canada, 1998.

Research

My research under the supervision of Dr. Harvey Clewell and Dr. Mel Andersen involves the development of physiologically-based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) models for manganese in rats, monkeys and humans. Manganese (Mn) is found at low levels in food, water and air. General health concerns have arisen from use of Mn-containing fuel additives where Mn particulates are released in the air after combustion. Even though Mn is an essential element, high concentration inhalation exposures produce symptoms of central nervous system toxicity.

The Mn PBPK model will consider the range of uptake (i.e. dietary or inhaled) as well as liver and intestinal processes that regulate uptake and excretion of this metal. In addition, physiological parameters of the human PBPK model will be obtained using various common pharmacokinetic modeling approaches as well as by inference using statistical Bayesian techniques with the different toxicokinetic animal data. The completed Mn PBPK models will assist in developing a tissue-dose based risk assessment for this metal.

Selected Publications

Thompson, C., Sonawane, B., Nong, A. and Krishnan, K. (2007). Considerations for applying physiologically based pharmacokinetic models in risk assessment. In: Toxicokinetics and Risk Assessment, Lipscomb, J. and Ohanian, E., Editors, Informa Healthcare, London, pp. 123-139.

Krishnan, K., Nong, A. and Haddad, S. (2007). In silico predictions of partition coefficients and the application of PBPK modeling to assess interindividual variance. In: Toxicokinetics and Risk Assessment, Lipscomb, J. and Ohanian, E., Editors, Informa Healthcare, London, 167-183..

Nong, A. and Krishnan, K. (2007). Estimation of interindividual pharmacokinetic variability factor for inhaled volatile organic chemicals using a probability-bounds approach. Regul. Toxicol. Pharmacol. 48, 93-101.

Thomas, R.S., Allen, B.C., Nong, A., Yang L., Bermudez., E, Clewell III, H.J., and Andersen, M.E. (2007). A method to integrate benchmark dose estimates with genomic data to assess the functional effects of chemical exposure. Toxicol. Sci. 98, 240-248.

Nong, A. McCarverm D.G., Hines, R.N., and Krishnan, K. (2006). Modeling interchild differences in pharmacokinetics on the basis of subject-specific data on physiology and hepatic CYP2E1 levels: A case study with toluene. Toxicol. Sci. 214, 78-87.

Nong A., Krishnan, K. (2006). Mechanistic determinants and modeling of the inhalation pharmacokinetics of volatile organic chemicals. In: Inhalation Toxicology, Second Edition (Salem, H. and Katz, S., editors), pp. 439-456. CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida.

Nong A., Krishnan K. (2005). Route to route extrapolation of metabolic interactions among alkylbenzenes in humans: use of a physiological modeling approach. In: Proceedings of the 2005 International Health Sciences Simulation Conference (Anderson, J.G. and Katzper, M., editors), pp. 111-116. The Society for Computer Simulation International, San Diego, California.