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ExpoCast™
What is Exposure Science?
Exposure characterization is the risk analysis step in which human interaction with an environmental agent of concern is evaluated. Exposure is defined as the contact between an agent and a target (WHO, 2004). Although the primary application of this definition for risk assessment has been to the individual or human population as a target of exposure and a chemical as an agent of exposure, the target of exposure can be an organ, tissue or cell, and the agent of exposure can be a biological, physical, or psychosocial stressor or the byproduct of given exposure agent (Figure 1). Exposure assessment is defined as evaluation of exposure of a system, organism, or (sub)population to an agent (and its derivatives). The process may include estimating the magnitude, frequency, and duration of an exposure, along with characteristics of the exposed individual or population (WHO, 2004). In limited cases, exposure can be measured directly, but more often due to current scientific limitations exposure must be estimated.