Our research team is organized into 4 focal areas of research interest:
A) EXPOSURE ASSESSMENT within the context of environmental and occupational health;
B) ECOTOXICOLOGY with a focus on next-generation risk assessment, biomarkers, neurotoxicology;
C) ECOGENETICS with a focus on genetic polymorphisms (SNPs), gene-environment interactions, and epigenetics
D) GLOBAL HEALTH with a focus on capacity building, mining, and exposure assessments
Below, for each of these 4 focal areas of research interest, are a list of some representative active/recent grants. Project websites (as available) are listed below each grant. Collaborations are active with dozens of partners from across the world, and include key groups from: University of Michigan, University of Toronto, Michigan State University, Harvard University, University of Wisconsin, University of Ghana, Ghana Health Service, Environment Canada, Aarhus University, several Department of Natural Resource Sciences (e.g., Wisconsin, Michigan), and Biodiversity Research Institute.
A) EXPOSURE ASSESSMENT
Funder: NIH National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) R01 [2012-2017]
Title: Prenatal and Childhood Exposure to Fluoride and Neurodevelopment
Determine if population-wide levels of prenatal and/or childhood fluoride exposure is a significant risk factor for some forms of adverse neurobehavioral performance.
Click here for NIH grant listing
Click here for ELEMENT Cohort website
Funder: Michigan URC BLEEP Pilot Program [2013-2015]
Title: Evaluation of the Effects of Prenatal Exposure to Non‐Essential Heavy Metals on Hearing
Utilize neonatal blood spot samples to gauge in utero exposures to non-essential (lead, cadmium and mercury) and essential (calcium, iron, copper, zinc) elements in association with newborn hearing outcomes
Click here for BLEEP Announcement
Funder: U-M Office of Vice-President Research (OVPR) [2013-2015]
Title: Epigenetics, Cardiovascular Health, and Mercury Exposure in the American Dental Association Cohort
Explore associations/interactions between mercury exposure, cardiovascular health, and epigenetic markers in ADA members
Funder: NIH National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) R03 [2013-2015]
Title: Pilot Assessment of the effects of Noise, Lead, and Cadmium on Hearing in Mice
Explore interactions of noise and metals on hearing in a mouse model.
Click here for NIH grant listing
Funder: Gerber Foundation [2013-2015]
Title: Prenatal Exposure to Metals and Nutrients and Hearing
Neonatal blood spot samples to gauge in utero exposures to non-essential (lead, cadmium and mercury) and essential (calcium, iron, copper, zinc) elements in association with newborn hearing outcomes
B) ECOTOXICOLOGY
Funder: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency STAR Program [2012-2017]
Title: Cell-Free Neurochemical Screening Assays to Predict Adverse Effects in Mammals, Fish, and Birds
Advance a high-throughput in vitro screening platform to assess risks across multiple species, toxicants, and neurological endpoints critical in reproduction and behavior.
Link to US EPA grant listing
Funder: Environment Canada [2012-2015]
Title: Research on the potential persistence, accumulation, and toxicity of newly emerging (flame retardant) chemicals on birds
Utilize in vitro and in vivo (egg-injection) methods to assess the risks associated with exposure to newly emerging organophosphate flame-retardants
Funder: NSERC-Canada Discovery Grant [2013-2018]
Title: Neuroexcitatory environmental stress
Avian models to study the mechanisms by which developmental exposure to physiologic and real-world excitatory stressors affect NMDA receptor plasticity and shape early-life behaviors.
Link to NSERC grant listing
Funder: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - Great Lakes Restoration Initiative [2011-2015]
Title: Scaling the subtle effects of MeHg to perch population dynamics.
Develop a multi-tiered experimental approach that is guided by an adverse outcome pathway (AOP) framework which can be used to eventually assess ecological exposures and effects of mercury (and other contaminants) on Great Lakes fish and their potential impacts on their population dynamics.
Funder: Danish Environmental Protection Agency’s BearHealth Program [2009-2013]
Title: Does mercury pollution cause neurological stress in Arctic marine mammals?
Conduct field and laboratory experiments to characterize mercury exposure and neurochemical biomarkers in distinct brain regions of polar bears, ringed seals, narwhal, and pilot whales collected off Danish waters.
C) ECOGENETICS
Funder: UM-NIH National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) P30 CORE [2012-2015]
Title: Mercury Exposure, Epigenetics, and Cardiovascular Health in the American Dental Association Cohort
Use Illumina Infinium HumanMethylation450 Beadchip to explore associations/interactions between mercury exposure, cardiovascular health, and epigenetic markers in ADA members
Funder: Northern Contaminants Program [2013-2015]
Title: Genetic polymorphisms to improve interpretation of contaminant exposure and risk in Inuit
Gene-environment research program is to better understand how Inuit process contaminants so that biomarker information and linkages to health outcomes can be improved
D) GLOBAL HEALTH (incl. Indigenous Peoples' Health)
Funder: NIH Fogarty International Center [2012-2014]
Title: The West Africa-Michigan Collaborative Health Alliance for Reshaping Training, Education, and Research in Global Environmental and Occupational Health (WAM-CHARTER-GEOHealth)
Establish Ghana as a regional GEOHealth Hub of occupational and environmental health in West Africa.
Click here for NIH grant listing
Click here for our project website
Funder: U-M Center for Global Health and U-M Graham Environmental Sustainability Institute [2012-2015]
Title: Integrated Assessment of Water Sustainability, Infrastructural Inequity, and Health in Small-Scale Gold Mining Communities in Ghana
Integrated assessment of maternal-child health impacts associated with water quality and use from environmental, medical, anthropological, and economical perspectives
Click here for our project website
Funder: NIH Fogarty International Center [2012-2017]
Title: The Ghana-Michigan Post-doctoral and Research Trainee NEtwoRK – Investing in Innovation (PARTNER II)
“Framework Programs for Global Health Signature Innovations Initiative” to advance training of Ghanaian mid-level career professionals.
Click here for NIH grant listing
Funder: NSERC CREATE [2014-2019]
Title: Environmental Innovation training and research program
Program to train the next generation of natural resource consultants, managers, landuse planners, and policy makers so they are market-ready to enhance Canada's reputation as a country that efficiently develops its natural resources while maintaining rigorous environmental standards.
Click here for CREATE grant listing
Funder: First Nations Environmental Contaminant Program (FNECP) [2014-2015]
Title: Trusting our Food-Bigstone Cree Nation Community-based Monitoring
Community-based study to characterize contaminants in local wild food systems
A) EXPOSURE ASSESSMENT within the context of environmental and occupational health;
B) ECOTOXICOLOGY with a focus on next-generation risk assessment, biomarkers, neurotoxicology;
C) ECOGENETICS with a focus on genetic polymorphisms (SNPs), gene-environment interactions, and epigenetics
D) GLOBAL HEALTH with a focus on capacity building, mining, and exposure assessments
Below, for each of these 4 focal areas of research interest, are a list of some representative active/recent grants. Project websites (as available) are listed below each grant. Collaborations are active with dozens of partners from across the world, and include key groups from: University of Michigan, University of Toronto, Michigan State University, Harvard University, University of Wisconsin, University of Ghana, Ghana Health Service, Environment Canada, Aarhus University, several Department of Natural Resource Sciences (e.g., Wisconsin, Michigan), and Biodiversity Research Institute.
A) EXPOSURE ASSESSMENT
Funder: NIH National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) R01 [2012-2017]
Title: Prenatal and Childhood Exposure to Fluoride and Neurodevelopment
Determine if population-wide levels of prenatal and/or childhood fluoride exposure is a significant risk factor for some forms of adverse neurobehavioral performance.
Click here for NIH grant listing
Click here for ELEMENT Cohort website
Funder: Michigan URC BLEEP Pilot Program [2013-2015]
Title: Evaluation of the Effects of Prenatal Exposure to Non‐Essential Heavy Metals on Hearing
Utilize neonatal blood spot samples to gauge in utero exposures to non-essential (lead, cadmium and mercury) and essential (calcium, iron, copper, zinc) elements in association with newborn hearing outcomes
Click here for BLEEP Announcement
Funder: U-M Office of Vice-President Research (OVPR) [2013-2015]
Title: Epigenetics, Cardiovascular Health, and Mercury Exposure in the American Dental Association Cohort
Explore associations/interactions between mercury exposure, cardiovascular health, and epigenetic markers in ADA members
Funder: NIH National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) R03 [2013-2015]
Title: Pilot Assessment of the effects of Noise, Lead, and Cadmium on Hearing in Mice
Explore interactions of noise and metals on hearing in a mouse model.
Click here for NIH grant listing
Funder: Gerber Foundation [2013-2015]
Title: Prenatal Exposure to Metals and Nutrients and Hearing
Neonatal blood spot samples to gauge in utero exposures to non-essential (lead, cadmium and mercury) and essential (calcium, iron, copper, zinc) elements in association with newborn hearing outcomes
B) ECOTOXICOLOGY
Funder: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency STAR Program [2012-2017]
Title: Cell-Free Neurochemical Screening Assays to Predict Adverse Effects in Mammals, Fish, and Birds
Advance a high-throughput in vitro screening platform to assess risks across multiple species, toxicants, and neurological endpoints critical in reproduction and behavior.
Link to US EPA grant listing
Funder: Environment Canada [2012-2015]
Title: Research on the potential persistence, accumulation, and toxicity of newly emerging (flame retardant) chemicals on birds
Utilize in vitro and in vivo (egg-injection) methods to assess the risks associated with exposure to newly emerging organophosphate flame-retardants
Funder: NSERC-Canada Discovery Grant [2013-2018]
Title: Neuroexcitatory environmental stress
Avian models to study the mechanisms by which developmental exposure to physiologic and real-world excitatory stressors affect NMDA receptor plasticity and shape early-life behaviors.
Link to NSERC grant listing
Funder: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - Great Lakes Restoration Initiative [2011-2015]
Title: Scaling the subtle effects of MeHg to perch population dynamics.
Develop a multi-tiered experimental approach that is guided by an adverse outcome pathway (AOP) framework which can be used to eventually assess ecological exposures and effects of mercury (and other contaminants) on Great Lakes fish and their potential impacts on their population dynamics.
Funder: Danish Environmental Protection Agency’s BearHealth Program [2009-2013]
Title: Does mercury pollution cause neurological stress in Arctic marine mammals?
Conduct field and laboratory experiments to characterize mercury exposure and neurochemical biomarkers in distinct brain regions of polar bears, ringed seals, narwhal, and pilot whales collected off Danish waters.
C) ECOGENETICS
Funder: UM-NIH National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) P30 CORE [2012-2015]
Title: Mercury Exposure, Epigenetics, and Cardiovascular Health in the American Dental Association Cohort
Use Illumina Infinium HumanMethylation450 Beadchip to explore associations/interactions between mercury exposure, cardiovascular health, and epigenetic markers in ADA members
Funder: Northern Contaminants Program [2013-2015]
Title: Genetic polymorphisms to improve interpretation of contaminant exposure and risk in Inuit
Gene-environment research program is to better understand how Inuit process contaminants so that biomarker information and linkages to health outcomes can be improved
D) GLOBAL HEALTH (incl. Indigenous Peoples' Health)
Funder: NIH Fogarty International Center [2012-2014]
Title: The West Africa-Michigan Collaborative Health Alliance for Reshaping Training, Education, and Research in Global Environmental and Occupational Health (WAM-CHARTER-GEOHealth)
Establish Ghana as a regional GEOHealth Hub of occupational and environmental health in West Africa.
Click here for NIH grant listing
Click here for our project website
Funder: U-M Center for Global Health and U-M Graham Environmental Sustainability Institute [2012-2015]
Title: Integrated Assessment of Water Sustainability, Infrastructural Inequity, and Health in Small-Scale Gold Mining Communities in Ghana
Integrated assessment of maternal-child health impacts associated with water quality and use from environmental, medical, anthropological, and economical perspectives
Click here for our project website
Funder: NIH Fogarty International Center [2012-2017]
Title: The Ghana-Michigan Post-doctoral and Research Trainee NEtwoRK – Investing in Innovation (PARTNER II)
“Framework Programs for Global Health Signature Innovations Initiative” to advance training of Ghanaian mid-level career professionals.
Click here for NIH grant listing
Funder: NSERC CREATE [2014-2019]
Title: Environmental Innovation training and research program
Program to train the next generation of natural resource consultants, managers, landuse planners, and policy makers so they are market-ready to enhance Canada's reputation as a country that efficiently develops its natural resources while maintaining rigorous environmental standards.
Click here for CREATE grant listing
Funder: First Nations Environmental Contaminant Program (FNECP) [2014-2015]
Title: Trusting our Food-Bigstone Cree Nation Community-based Monitoring
Community-based study to characterize contaminants in local wild food systems