Quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) refers to the relationship between the chemical structure (or structure-related properties) and the biological activity (each toxicity endpoint) of chemicals. QSAR models can be built using the training dataset of tested chemicals. When there is a good correlation between structure-related properties and biological activity, the biological activity can be estimated with the QSAR model. Category approach is a method to predict the toxicity of untested chemicals by grouping chemicals with similar structural and hazard properties.
QSAR and category approach are recognized as alternative methods to testing with living organisms. These are being increasingly utilized in chemical management activities nationally and internationally. Recent activities and achievements of NITE for QSAR and category approach are as follows: