Aldert H Piersma, Ph.D.

Aldert H. Piersma Ph.D. is an Emeritus Professor of reproductive toxicology at the Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences (IRAS) of Utrecht University in the Netherlands, and retired in 2024 as a senior scientist at the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment (RIVM) in the Netherlands. His work combined fundamental research in reproductive toxicology with advisory work in national and international advisory committees, such as of the Dutch Health Council, EU, OECD and WHO. Main theme was the innovation of hazard and risk assessment methodology in reproductive and developmental toxicology, including the design and implementation of animal-free alternative methods and molecular and computational approaches towards mechanism of action based understanding of toxicity. He is known for his work on alternatives to animal testing in developmental toxicology, using animal-free assays with embryonic stem cell lines, as well as zebrafish and rat embryos. He applied molecular approaches to understand mechanisms of action and to identify adverse outcome pathways, facilitating the understanding and implementation of alternative methods. He also invested in the design of alternative testing strategies, combining assays and applying computational systems toxicology approaches to enhance the prediction of developmental toxicity and to reduce and replace animal use in chemical and pharmaceutical risk assessment. He published over 270 original scientific papers, over 350 abstracts and around 10 book chapters.