Vanden Heuvel points out that, while many other universities house toxicology programs in their pharmaceutical departments, the College of Agricultural Sciences has practical and historical connections for the program.

“Many examples of the toxic chemicals that we teach about in class—such as insecticides and herbicides—are from agriculture,” he says. “We explain how they cause toxicity and what types of health effects they produce. There’s a large environmental focus in our college, and toxicology fits in well between the two focus areas of ecology and animal sciences, so it builds on and complements existing programs.”

As a new major, toxicology doesn’t have many undergraduates enrolled yet. But, Vanden Heuvel says, the faculty is encouraged by the many students who have asked for and enrolled in individual toxicology courses.

“We knew that there was a group of students here at Penn State that really wanted to learn to apply the principles they’ve learned in class,” he says. “We get a lot of science students who want to learn the more practical side of their discipline—chemistry, biochemistry, or biology majors looking for some application of their knowledge. They already know how the cell functions so they want to understand how to curtail or enhance the function.”

Another good motivator for students is a job market that is demanding bachelor’s degree holders trained in toxicology.

“Pharmaceutical and chemical companies need someone who understands how disease is formed and how it’s prevented—not on a theoretical level but as applied science,” Vanden Heuvel says. “Our program is getting contacted by industry saying they want students trained in toxicology. The pharmaceutical industry requires that every new drug be tested for therapeutic properties as well as toxicological assessment; the drug discovery process averages 10 years and costs hundreds of millions of dollars to complete. Every drug company has a division on toxicology to determine if their products are safe. Agrichemical or industrial chemical manufacturers also need toxicologists that review employee procedures to make sure employees are healthy and not being exposed while developing products.

“From the consumer side, all you have to do is look at the growth of the organic market to see that people are concerned about pesticides and fertilizers in their foods. They want to limit their exposure to chemicals in the environment.” Coinciding with the major’s unveiling, the toxicology program moved into the new Life Sciences Building. Vanden Heuvel says the new facilities meet several needs. “Before, we were in two buildings,” he says. “This puts every toxicology faculty member in one area and gives us a state-of-the-art research space to explore ways chemicals cause disease. Our research has been energized and it increases our visibility. Now we can show pharmaceutical and chemical company representatives that we are doing important research and using cutting-edge technologies.” For more information on the toxicology program, contact the Department of Veterinary Science at (814) 865-7696 or visit the program’s Web site.