Teratogenic reference books

A book of interest is "Chemically Induced Birth Defects," by Schardein (ref. 6). This reference book contains data on human and animal studies on birth defects and teratogens. Drugs are covered extensively. Chemicals discussed are pesticides, metals, industrial solvents, diagnostic agents, dyes, radioactive chemicals, plastics, toxins, food additives, air-water-soil pollutants, personal chemicals, etc. 

There are several excellent new books on safety in general (ref. 14-17). Although they usually do not single out teratogens from among other toxic chemicals, they are very worthwhile as the reference safety books. 

There are several books that are essential reference sources for those seeking summarized information on the teratogenicity of chemicals. 

Clinical Aspects of the Teratogenicity of Drugs (ref. 16) provides a tabular compilation of data extracted from teratology papers. The authors reviewed and interpreted more than 2000 references this book is a substantial aid to physicians and others working in health sciences. 

Another important source of information on the status of alternative test development, with particular emphasis on the requirements for cosmetics testing, is a review paper published in 2011 by Adler and coauthors [9], Table 1 summarizes those relevant for reproductive toxicity. Several assays refer to the detection of endocrine effects on steroidogenesis based on a variety of cell types, and, as already mentioned, they will be dealt with in another chapter of this book. The other tests can be subdivided in placental toxicity/transport, preimplantation toxicity, female and male toxicity, and developmental toxicity. The tests that are suitable for detecting developmental toxicity include the EST, the whole-embryo assay, the micromass test (all three already described above), the zebrafish embryo teratogenicity assay, and the frog embryo teratogenesis assay (FETAX). 

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