Dr. Raphael J. Witorsch

Consulting Experience and Objectives

Since 1984, I have provided consultation to numerous clients on the health effects of a variety of chemical exposures, among these endocrine disruptors, trichloroethylene, polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs), dioxins, ethylene oxide, formaldehyde, environmental tobacco smoke, alcohol, Red Dye No. 3, silicones (breast implants), oral contraceptives, arsenic based wood preservatives, statins, cox-2 inhibitors, anabolic steroids, and steroids in utero. Among the consultation services I have provided are critical analyses of published studies and expert witness testimony, presentation of position papers on behalf of clients at public hearings (such as, FDA, US EPA, California EPA, and OSHA), and as an expert witness at depositions and trials for defendants and plaintiffs. I have had considerable experience in advising clients as to whether associations between xenobiotic exposures and adverse health effects are causally related. My objective is to provide the client with sound advice, insight, and testimony as to whether or not an exposure causes an adverse health effect. My conclusions on causality are based upon objective scientific criteria, such as: reproducibility, strength of association, statistics, and scientific plausibility.

Education

New York University, New York, NY, AB (Biology), 1963
Yale University, New Haven, Conn., MS (Physiology), 1965
Yale University, New Haven, Conn., PhD (Physiology), 1968
University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, Postdoctoral Fellow, 1968 to 1970

Academic Appointments

Professor, Medical College of Virginia (MCV)/Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), 1988 to present.
Associate Professor MCV/VCU, 1979 to 1988.
Assistant Professor MCV/VCU, 1970 to 1979.

Awards/Recognition

1971, 1973, 1979, 1984-86 Awards for Medical School Teaching.
1992-93, Faculty Member of the Year, Physiology Graduate Students
Invited lectures at Columbia University, Roswell Park Memorial Institute, University of Minnesota, Rockefeller University, McGill University, RW Johnson Pharmaceutical Research Institute, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Johns Hopkins University, the Histochemical Society, and the Prolactin Gordon Conference.
Outstanding Teacher Award for High Evaluation in M-1 Physiology (2001-2002, 2004-2005) School of Medicine, Medical College of Virginia of Virginia Commonwealth University.
Outstanding Teacher Award in Department of Physiology (2003), School of Medicine, Medical College of Virginia of Virginia Commonwealth University
Invited speaker: "Endocrine disruption - history, fact and fantasy of gender bending chemicals." Third Annual Stephen and Mary Krop Lectureship in Pharmacology, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, D.C., November 22, 2002.
Invited speaker: "Physiological role and toxicological effects of glucocorticoids on reproduction." Continuing Education Course "The effects of non-reproductive hormones on the reproductive system, and the implications for toxicology." Society of Toxicology Annual Meeting, Salt Lake City, Utah, March 9, 2003.
Editorial Boards of the following journals:
Proceedings of the Society of Experimental Biology and Medicine, 1990-1996.
The Prostate, 1986 to 2000, Toxic Substances Mechanisms, 1996 to 2002.
Toxicology Mechanisms and Methods, 2002 to present.
Elected to the following societies:
Society of Toxicology, The Endocrine Society, American Physiological Society
Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine, International Society for Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology, Histochemical Society, American Society of Andrology, Society of Sigma Xi.

Publications

Authorship of more than 70 papers (peer reviewed research articles, review articles, and book chapters). Please visit my CV for a complete list. The following are examples of my publications:

Witorsch, R.J. (ed.): Reproductive Toxicology, Second Edition. Target Organ Toxicology Series, Hayes A.W., Thomas, J.A., and Gardner, D.E., Eds., Raven Press New York, 1995.

Sundaram, K., Witorsch, R.J.: Toxic effects on the testes. In: Reproductive Toxicology, Second Edition. Witorsch, R.J. (ed.) Target Organ Toxicology Series, Hayes A.W., Thomas, J.A., and Gardner, D.E., Eds., Raven Press New York, 1995.

Witorsch, R.J., Kalimi, M.Y., Hubbard, J.R., Reproductive toxic effects of alcohol, tobacco, and substance abuse. In: Reproductive Toxicology, Second Edition. Witorsch, R.J. (ed.) Target Organ Toxicology Series, Hayes A.W., Thomas, J.A., and Gardner, D.E., Eds., Raven Press New York, 1995.

LaVoie HA, Witorsch RJ. Investigation of intracellular signals mediating the anti-apoptotic action of prolactin in Nb2 lymphoma cells. Proc. Soc. Exptl. Biol. Med. 209: 257-269, 1995.

Witorsch, R.J. Toxic effects on the seminiferous epithelium and Sertoli cell. Toxic Substance Mechanisms. 15: 195-218, 1996.

Witorsch, R.J. and Witorsch P., Environmental tobacco smoke and birthweight of offspring: A critical review and analysis of the epidemiologic literature. Indoor + Built Environment 5:219-231, 1996.

Witorsch, R.J. Endocrine Disruption: A critical review of environmental estrogens from a mechanistic perspective. Toxic Substance Mechanisms. 19:53-78, 2000. (reprint available online or by mail on request ).

Witorsch, R.J. Low-dose in utero effects of xenoestrogens in mice and their relevance to humans: an analytical review of the literature. Food and Chemical Toxicology 40: 905-912, 2002. (reprint available online or by mail on request ).

Witorsch, R.J. Endocrine disruptors: can biological effects and environmental risks be predicted? Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology 36: 118-130, 2002. (reprint available online or by mail on request).

Witorsch, R.J., Endocrine Disruption - History, Fact and Fantasy of Gender Bending Chemicals. Update, Food and Drug Law Institute. Issue 6, November/December: 32-34, 2002. (reprint available online or by mail on request).

Borgert, C,J,, Lakind J.S., Witorsch R.J. A critical review of methods for comparing estrogenic activity of endogenous and exogenous chemicals in human milk and infant formula. Environmental Health Perspectives. 111: 1020-1036 2003. (reprint available online or by mail on request).

Witorsch, R.J. Hormone replacement therapy: clinical trials and controversy. Update, Food and Drug Law Institute, Issue 3, May/June, pp. 44-47, 2003 (reprint available online or by mail on request).

Cooke, PS, Holsberger DR, Witorsch RJ, Sylvester PW, Meredith JM, Treinen KA, and Chapin RE, Thyroid hormone, glucocorticoids, and prolactin at the nexus of physiology, reproduction, and toxicology. Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology.194: 309-335, 2004 (reprint available online or by mail on request).

Research, Teaching, and Scholarly Interests

For most of my academic career, my major research interest has been in the field of endocrinology, the study of hormones or chemical messengers of the body. My consulting activities peaked my interest in toxicology, the study of chemicals and processes involved in the production of adverse (or toxic) effects in the body. With my current research interest, endocrine disruption, the fields of endocrinology and toxicology come together. Endocrine disruption refers to the concept that environmental chemicals can interfere with the endocrine system. Since the reproductive system is dependent on hormones, endocrine disruption is frequently associated with reproductive abnormalities. Accordingly, endocrine disruption has been referred to as "gender bending." Much of the current interest in endocrine disruption focuses on the study of "hormonally active substances, " chemicals that interact with hormone receptors on target cells and thus mimic or antagonize hormones. Under the auspices of the US EPA, a screening program is underway to identify chemicals and mixtures that interact with estrogen, androgen, progestin, and thyroid receptors. Surprisingly, little attention has been paid to the possibility that environmental chemicals may interact with the glucocorticoid receptor (GR). Glucocorticoids (such as hydrocortisone) are secreted by the adrenal cortex and are critical for survival during stress and many other physiological functions including reproduction. An interaction between environmental chemicals and the GR is feasible since the GR is structurally similar to the above mentioned other hormone receptors in the body. My laboratory is addressing this oversight in the field of endocrine disruption. We have developed a "G-screen" assay, a highly sensitive and specific cell culture system for detecting GR interactions with environmental chemicals. More specific details about my research program can be found on my academic website. (http://www.vcu.edu/physio/faculty/Department/witorsch.htm)

The Endocrine System: Overview and Some Issues to Consider in Endocrine Disruption.
Presented at Workshop on Endocrine Screening sponsored by the International Society of Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology (ISRTP) at NIH, 2/20/08. (Click here)

Seminar Presentation on Endocrine Disruption

I have also prepared a seminar entitled "Endocrine Disruption: History, Fact and Fantasy of Gender Bending Chemicals." This talk covers the following: history, controversies, mechanistic aspects of endocrine disruption, plausibility, and significance to everyday situations. This seminar can be presented at any desired technical level. A synopsis of this talk can be found in the following link (Click here).

Press Coverage of My Work and Views on Endocrine Disruption

My work and views on endocrine disruption have been discussed in the following articles:

"Tea bone stakes." David Adam. 7 April 2000. Nature. Science Update .
(Teabonestakes.pdf)

"BPA Addendum: Witorsch questions human relevance of low dose research on mice. Cites major differences in hormone levels during pregnancy.." George Lawton. Endocrine/Estrogen Letter. Vol 9. No.5. 2003.
(Available as pdf on request)

"Q&A with RJ Witorsch on BPA Report" George Lawton. Endocrine/Estrogen Letter Vol. 9, No. 6, 2003.
(Available as pdf on request)

"A cause without a disease." Holger Breithaupt. EMBO (European Molecular Biology Organization) Reports Vol. 5, No. 1.16-18, 2004.
(http://www.nature.com/embor/journal/v5/n1/full/7400063.html).

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