Effects of food chemical pollutants in human health is a question of great interest in Europe today. However, the lack of integration of basic research and the experts in risk evaluation in multidisciplinary activities have prevented this field of knowledge from becoming important. Research projects in progress are on individual basis, too limited and they suffer from integration in a coherent structure. The European Commission is going to sign this week an agreement to the value of 14.4 millon € with 18 centres from different European countries, which form Network of Excellence of Food Safety, to fight against such fragmentation and unite in a synergyc way the efforts of the European research potential.
The Excellence Network, called CASCADE, coordinated by the Swedish Karolinska Institute, held a first meeting in Malaga, from 12th-14th February 2004, where nearly 70 scientists, EU managers and some other guests, coordinators of different European projects, laid the foundations for actions and programme in the future. It was agreed that CASCADE has the potential and lays down as an objective to be a world force in generating knowledge about health and food chemical pollutants.
Research will focus in the action of chemical pollutants complex mixtures in hormonal systems. It is well known that hormonal disruptors which act through nuclear recipients are involved in different pathologies like tumor growth or tumor development, metabolic diseases and obesity, coronary disease and, in general, in the main diseases which affect Europeans nowadays. During the first five years of the agreement, experts in molecular biology, chemists, epidemiologists, ecotoxicologists, physiologists y endocrinologists who merge to form CASCADE will focus on the study of action levels and mechanisms of chemical waste in the food chain, they will develop sampling common systems and will identify biological markers to evaluate the risks chemical pollutants mean for humans. They will pay special attention to women, newborns and other especially liable to suffer damage populations. A new point of view is the development of strategies to take into account the whole time any benefit from some food natural products, when evaluating the risk.
“We get enthusiastic about the opportunity of actively taking part in the establishment of a new, competitive infrastructure for European research in the field of food toxicology” Professor Jan-Åke Gustafsson, from the Department of Bioscience of the South Campus of the Karolinska Institute, in Huddinge, Sweden, announced. Vice-coordinator Ingemar Pongratz added “It is not just another research project. We are merging 16 institutes and two companies to make a unit. No EU country is competent to solve the problem on its own.” The objective is to provide training programs and supply society with reasonable, sensible information about risks of food pollutants. Several national and international organizations have already joined CASCADE to reinforce external contacts. In the annual forum, CASCADE will inform the public, authorities and associates, as network observers, of scientific achievements.
Financing
CASCADE is financed by the European Commission, Sixth Framework Programme, Thematic Priority 5: Food Quality and Safety. CASCADE will receive 14.4 million € for a period of five years to support scientific, integration, education, training and risk evaluation activities.
Further information:
Professor Ingemar Pongratz, Vice-Coordinator, Department of Bioscience at Novum, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.
Phone number: 46-86089113.
E-mail: ingemar.pongratz@biosci.ki.se
Professor Jan-Åke Gustafsson, Coordinator, Department of Bioscience at Novum, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.
Phone number: 46-858583746.
E-mail: jan-ake.gustafsson@mednut.ki.se
Professor Nicolás Olea Serrano (Coordinator of the CASCADE European Excellence Network in Spain). Department of Radiology and Physical Medicine. University of Granada.
Phone number: 650 766 482
E-mail: nolea@ugr.es
