Welcome to the openGUTS information pages
OpenGUTS is a user-friendly
software to perform analyses with GUTS: the General Unified
Threshold model for Survival. GUTS is the leading
toxicokinetic-toxicodynamic framework for the endpoint
survival (and other non-reversible all-or-nothing effects).
Version 1.0 was released in December 2019, followed by
Version 1.1. in February 2021.
This site hosts the software itself, as a standalone Windows
executable, with manuals and background documentation. Since
openGUTS is (as the name implies) open source, also the
source files can be obtained here. Additionally, you can
download the Matlab version, which served as the blueprint
for the standalone version. The Matlab version has basically
the same functionality, and can be easily adapted or
extended to perform customised analyses. Finally, we provide
(links to) further information on openGUTS and GUTS.
The main features of the software are:
- Open and free: the software is open source and
freely downloadable. The fully-functional Matlab version that
served as the prototype is also available.
- User-friendly: fit models and derive
confidence intervals without requiring user interaction
(e.g., no need for starting values).
- Robust: always find the global optimum and
relevant intervals, even for awkward data sets.
- Flexible: allow time-varying exposure, missing
data, simultaneous fitting on multiple data sets, etc.
- Efficient: rapid screening of exposure profiles
(e.g., FOCUS
output) by batch processing.
- Supportive: the software follows the workflow
as laid down in the 2018
EFSA opinion on TKTD models.
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openGUTS standalone Windows executable
openGUTS in Matlab
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Important warnings and messages
Error
in v1.0. The IT calculations use a shortcut
that does not work in all cases. This error will affect IT calibrations
for time varying exposure, where the exposure scenario
includes episodes of linear decrease over time (for constant
exposure and block pulses, it will be fine). It will also
affect IT LPx predictions when the exposure
scenario is specified with a crude resolution (the hourly
resolution of FOCUS profiles will lead to negligible
errors). This error is repaired in the update of the Matlab
version, to v. 1.1. Download
a PDF document explaining this error in detail. (posted
19 May 2020). This error is repaired in the update of
the standalone and Matlab version, to v. 1.1.
New version of the
standalone launched (v1.1). The openGUTS
standalone has been updated: the error has been fixed and
extended batch capabilities have been included.
New installation file for
the standalone (v1.1). The installation file
for the openGUTS standalone has been updated: the version of
Feb. 2021 triggered a (false-positive) trojan warning by
some virus scanners. We changed the packaged file docto.exe
(which creates the reports) to its latest version (v. 1.8),
which does not trigger this virus warning. The code for the
openGUTS calculations has not changed, and there was no new
compilation of the C++ code. The only change is thus a
re-packaging with the new docto.exe. Downside is that the
line spacing in the produced reports is increased, which
does not look so nice. However, that is easily modified
manually in the Word version of the report that is produced.
If you have successfully installed openGUTS v. 1.1 with the
previous installer, there is no need to update your
installation.
Matlab R2023a throws
errors (v1.1 and earlier). The newest
version of Matlab does not allow the cell-array format for
name-value pairs anymore, at least not in the way it was
used in the openGUTS Matlab version for formatting text in
figures. Matlab versions up to 2022b do not have this
problem. (thanks
to Amund for spotting and reporting this).
The update to v1.1a solves this issue (6
April 2023). However, the new version will
no longer support Matlab R2014b-R2016a. If
you are still on such an ancient platform, I
suggest to keep working with v1.1 (the
calculation engine has not changed with
v1.1a).
OpenGUTS
standalone produces error for missing
observation at last time point. The
openGUTS standalone (v1.0 and v1.1) throws
an error when using a data set for survival
in which there are one or more missing
values at the last time point. The error
occurs while the program tries to plot the
results after the calibration. The Matlab
version does not have this problem. A
workaround for the standalone would be to
split the data set in two, such that there
are observations at the last time point for
each data set. (thanks to
Jan for spotting and
reporting this).
News
- 6 April 2023: new version of the Matlab version of
openGUTS. This is a small update that makes openGUTS run
error-free under Matlab R2023a. No changes to the
calculation engine, only to the calls for plotting. See
download
page and the version log
for details.
- Heads up! At SETAC Europe 2023 (30 April), there are
two short course dealing with GUTS: general
and bee-specific.
- 3 March 2023: new installation file for version 1.1 of
the openGUTS standalone has been released. See download
page. This version does not trigger the
(false-positive) trojan warning that was thrown by some
virus scanners with the previous version. See more
detailed explanation above.
For old news items, click here.
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