Dr. Helena Kandarova, ERT from the ONTOX team, won the prestigious Björn Ekwall Memorial Award for 2022. The award is annually presented to the cell toxicology scientists whose work significantly contributes to replacing animal experiments with alternative testing methods.
Björn Ekwall Memorial Award (BEMA) is an excellent recognition of Dr. Kandarovas’s valuable work in developing, validating, and implementing the in vitro non-animal testing methods into the European test guidelines and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) regulations. She substantially contributes to replacing the animal experiments with her work on 3D-reconstructed human tissue models for topical toxicity and phototoxicity testing of chemicals, cosmetics, pesticides and medical devices.
“I feel extremely honored and am thankful to the selection committee of the Björn Ekwall Memorial Award for choosing me as the awardee for the year 2022”
Dr. Kandarova is a Senior Scientist at the Institute of Experimental Pharmacology and Toxicology, Slovak Academy of Sciences and European Society of Toxicology In Vitro (ESTIV) president.
“I feel extremely honored and am thankful to the selection committee of the Björn Ekwall Memorial Award for choosing me as the awardee for the year 2022. I am looking forward to seeing you all at the ESTIV 2022 Congress in Barcelona in November, where the award will be handed over to me by the President of the Björn Ekwall Memorial Foundation, Prof. Stina Oredsson!” Dr. Kandarova commented.
BEMA ceremony at the ESTIV 2022 Congress will be followed by the lecture of the awardee.
ONTOX activities
Dr. Kandarova is well known for her popularizing activities that lead to better recognition and acceptance of alternative non-animal testing methods. As an experienced science communicator, she is the ONTOX’s Deputy coordinator for dissemination, exploitation, communication and data management and the Leader of the Communication Work Package.
Dr. Kandarova is also a member of the Communication and Dissemination team of the ASPIS cluster, formed by three Horizon 2020 funded projects (ONTOX, PrecisionTox and RISK-HUNT3R) that will help Europe towards improved safety chemical assessment without animal testing.