The INHAND (International Harmonization of Nomenclature and Diagnostic Criteria for Lesions in Rats and Mice) project is a joint initiative of the Societies of Toxicologic Pathology from Europe (ESTP), Great Britain (BSTP), Japan (JSTP), and North America (STP) to develop an internationally accepted nomenclature and diagnostic criteria for nonproliferative and proliferative lesions in laboratory animals. The purpose of this publication is to provide a standardized nomenclature and diagnostic criteria for classifying lesions in the digestive system including the salivary glands and the exocrine pancreas of laboratory rats and mice. Most lesions are illustrated by color photomicrographs. The standardized nomenclature, the diagnostic criteria, and the photomicrographs are also available electronically on the Internet (http://www.goreni.org/). Sources of material included histopathology databases from government, academia, and industrial laboratories throughout the world. Content includes spontaneous and age related lesions as well as lesions induced by exposure to test items. Relevant infectious and parasitic lesions are included as well. A widely accepted and utilized international harmonization of nomenclature and diagnostic criteria for the digestive system will decrease misunderstandings among regulatory and scientific research organizations in different countries and provide a common language to increase and enrich international exchanges of information among toxicologists and pathologists.

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