Department of Environmental Health, University of Cincinnati

Departmental Faculty

Atin Adhikari Assistant Professor 558-0500
Research Description:
Dr. Adhikari’s research focuses on the exposure assessment and characterization of airborne microorganisms, aeroallergens, endotoxin, and(1→3)-β-d-glucan in occupational, residential, and ambient environments, which are relevant to respiratory allergy, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, infectious diseases, and biodeterioration. Additionally, he has been involved with several projects focusing indoor air pollution and biohazard control using air ionization and photocatalytic oxidation methods, application of halogen-enriched filled nanocomposite materials for inactivating airborne bacteria and viruses, influences of air pollutants and meteorological changes on airborne microbial flora, and respiratory protection against airborne microorganisms.

Howard Ayer Emeritus
Research Description:
Professor Emeritus Howard E. Ayer, CIH, C.S.P., has experience in industrial hygiene laboratory and field research, practice and training. His laboratory and field studies have included aerosols (oil mist, silica dust and asbestos), radiation (uranium mine radon studies), noise (airport and industrial) and ventilation

C. Stuart Baxter Associate Professor 558-1704
Research Description:
Dr. Baxter’s research interests are in the application of computational methods to research problems in toxicology. Current topics of particular interest are the identification of common genetic elements that regulate the response of gene clusters to environmental agents, and the identification of functional and regulatory sequences in environmental susceptibility genes by phylogenetic analysis. Other interests are mechanisms of skin and lung carcinogenesis.

David Bernstein
Professor - Secondary

Amit Bhattacharya Professor, Director of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics Graduate Program 558-0503
Research Description:
Professor Amit Bhattacharya, Ph.D., CPE, is trained in the field of mechanical engineering with specialization in biomedical engineering and stress physiology. Dr. Bhattacharya’s research activities since 1971 involved projects with multidisciplinary approaches. A majority of his research activities involved collaborative projects (as P.I. or as Co-Investigator) with researchers having a wide range of expertise such as, biomechanics, engineering, medicine, physiology (human and animal), epidemiology, toxicologist, neuropsychologist and genetics. His recent research interest in collaboration with faculty in neurology, geriatric medicine, BioMEMS/nano-technology engineering, population epidemiology and genomic information center, has focused in the areas of 1) Early/sub-clinical detection of human health/impairment when exposed to multiple risk factors of chemical (e.g. exposures to neurotoxic agents), physical (workload, physical environment) as well as personal (age, obesity, genetic) origin 2) He is also investigating the role of gene-environment interaction for determining individual susceptibility to chemical risk factors associated impairment in neurobehavioral performance.This project area has application to counter-terrorism 3) Design and development of BIOMEMS (and/or nano-technology) based sensors for remote health monitoring (tele-metered) and early detection of certain neurological and musculoskeletal disorders (bone disorders) among the elderly with special emphasis on the role of gene-environment interaction based individual susceptibility to these disorders.

Eula Bingham Emeritus Professor 558-5728
Research Description:
Dr. Bingham’s research interests include: •methods of improving worker recall of specific worksites (buildings) at large complexes consisting of hundreds of buildings and outside work areas where construction workers may have been; •develop institutional histories of buildings and other facilities at nuclear weapons production sites to help determine potential exposures and appropriate medical screening modules. •medical screening of construction workers at nuclear weapons production sites, e.g. Oak Ridge, Portsmouth and Paducah Gaseous Diffusion Plants, who may have been exposed to a wide range of hazards including radiation, toxic chemicals, and noise.

Michael Borchers Assistant Professor 558-6424
Research Description:
Our laboratory examines the effects of acute and chronic environmental exposures (aldehydes, oxidants, and tobacco smoke) on mucosal immune function specifically in terms of the mechanisms of pulmonary epithelial cell-lymphocyte interactions. In vitro data suggests that the induction of MHC1-like molecules, in response to stress, on the surface of epithelial cells represents a mechanism linking the response to environmental exposures with the activation of the local pulmonary immune system. The development of an inducible transgenic mouse model expressing MHC1-like molecules displays an emphysematous phenotype, supporting the hypothesis of its role in COPD and represents the basis of future studies into the innate and adaptive immune function in the lung. We have developed mouse models to express genes specifically on the airway epithelium and to conditionally ablate the expression of the cognate receptors for these genes on lymphocyte subpopulations. Data from these models reveal that the mucosal immune response in the lung is unique from the response in the skin and GI tract in terms of the response to injury and infection. Therefore, we are currently expanding these models to investigate lung-specific immune responses to epithelial cell hyperplasia and lung tumor development. This research should lead to an increased understanding of the immunological mechanisms that recognize the signals expressed during tissue remodeling/repair and aberrant cell growth in the context of chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD), chronic infection, and cancer.

Robert Bornschein Professor 558-0996
Research Description:
Dr. Bornschein’s research interests focus on sources of childhood lead exposure, causes of lead poisoning, its developmental consequences, primary prevention and evaluation of chelation therapy. He has also conducted numerous exposure assessments of communities living adjacent to Superfund sites, with an emphasis on heavy metal exposures, residential soil and dust contamination and biomarkers of exposure. He is currently working with the City of Cincinnati to reduce lead paint sources in inner city neighborhoods.

M. Kathryn Brown Assistant Professor 558-0092
Research Description:
Dr. Brown is active in participatory research and collaborative education activities which assist minority and environmentally-impacted communities in the conduct of community health assessments which can be used to develop community-based approaches to abating environmental pollution and targeting health education. She has begun work on the development of a GIS-based system for generating neighborhood-specific health profiles. In addition, she is working with minority health organizations to explore the public’s knowledge and concerns about environmental exposures and genetic-linked diseases as well as the social and legal aspects of genetic testing. Dr. Brown has extensive experience in conducting population-based studies of childhood lead exposures in communities with Superfund sites.

C. Ralph Buncher Professor 558-1410
Research Description:
Dr. Buncher’s research covers many aspects of biostatistics and epidemiology. This includes the subareas of these fields related to environmental and occupational studies such as the effects of exposure to lead, clinical trials especially of pharmaceutical products, evaluating imaging systems, cancer studies especially with relation to Cincinnati and Ohio, and studies of the effects of radiation.

Guy Burroughs
Adjunct Assistant Professor

Ranajit Chakraborty Professor 558-4925
Research Description:
Dr. Chakraborty’s research interests are in the following areas: development of statistical methodology to detect the role of genetic factors in susceptibility to complex diseases; use of mitochondrial and nuclear gene sequences to determine origin and migration of populations, and origin and spread of human diseases; stochastic theory of populations differentiation; analysis of DNA typing data for forensic applications; and estimation of radiation risks, susceptibility genes and radiosensitive genetic variation.

Divaker Choubey Assoc Professor 558-1014
Research Description:
Dr. Choubey's research primarily focuses on the role of the p200-family proteins in cell growth regulation, cell survival (apoptosis) and aging-related diseases. In particular, his laboratory is interested in understanding the role of p200-family proteins in inflammation-associated diseases, such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and cancer. Additionally, his laboratory is also interested in understanding the molecular mechanisms by which the environmental factors contribute to sex bias in the development of SLE and certain cancers. Research Interests: Inflammation, Autoimmunity, and Cancer. MEMBERSHIPS: The American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS) The American Association for Immunologists (AAI) The International Society of Interferons and Cytokine Research (ISICR) The Society For Basic Urologic Research (SBUR)

Scott Clark Director of Environmental and Industrial Hygiene 558-1749
Research Description:
Professor Scott Clark, Ph.D., P.E., CIH, has a background in environmental health engineering and has been focusing his efforts on exposure pathways and intervention evaluation for environmental lead and on and exposure assessments in residential and occupational environments. He is also involved in health risk assessment and occupational hygiene education program development.

Kermit Davis Associate Professor 558-2809
Research Description:
Associate Professor Kermit Davis, Ph.D., CPE, was trained in Industrial Engineering with specialization in occupational ergonomics and low back biomechanics with special interest in multiple exposures, both physical and psychosocial stressors. Recently, many of his research projects have evaluated products and interventions in real world situation (research to practice).

Ranjan Deka Professor 558-5989
Research Description:
Dr. Deka’s primary research areas are human genetic variation, population genetics and genetics of complex disease. Current research interests are: (1) understanding genetic variation in small, isolated and inbred human populations; (2) understanding the genetic basis of common and complex human diseases, where evidence has been presented for the presence of genetic and environmental components to disease susceptibility. Of particular interests are: identifying genetic variants associated with type 2 diabetes, obesity, metabolic syndrome, stroke and prostate cancer.

Kim Dietrich Professor 558-0531
Research Description:
Dr. Dietrich is Professor of Environmental Health and Director of the Division of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Department of Environmental Health. Dr. Dietrich has also served as Associate Director of the Cincinnati Children’s Center for Environmental Health and Disease Prevention at the Children’s Hospital Medical Center of Cincinnati. Dr. Dietrich has served as a consultant to numerous local, state, national and international agencies and organizations concerned with the impact of environmental chemical exposures on the health and development of young children. These agencies and political entities have included the National Institutes of Health, National Academy of Sciences, the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Health and Welfare Canada, the European Economic Community, the Australian Government, the World Health Organization, the United States White House Office of Science and Technology, Physicians for Social Responsibility, Sierra Club, and Environmental Defense Fund. Dr. Dietrich currently serves as a chartered member of the NIH/CSR study section NAME - Neurological, Aging, and Musculoskeletal Epidemiology. Dr. Dietrich’s research has focused on the developmental effects of prenatal and early postnatal exposure to lead in infants, toddlers, school-age children, adolescents, and young adults. He is presently examining the relationship between early exposure to lead and adult criminality in a longstanding prospective longitudinal birth cohort study. His other studies include an examination of the developmental benefits of chelation therapy with succimer in a multi-center clinical trial and an investigation of the effects of prenatal exposure to prevalent developmental toxicants including lead, manganese, pesticides, mercury, PCBs, tobacco smoke, drugs and alcohol in several birth cohorts. He is also examining the relationship between environmental factors that may determine pathways through puberty in girls as a risk factor for early developmental psychopathology and later pre- and post-menopausal breast cancer. Dr. Dietrich uses a wide range of neuroassessment tools and biomarkers in his studies. Neurodevelopmental assessments include standardized psychometrics, measures of neuromotor functions, and advanced neuroradiological techniques including volumetric and functional magnetic resonance imaging, magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and diffusion tensor imaging. Biomarkers of environmental exposure have included analyses of a wide range of metals, persistent organic pollutants, and other environmental toxicants in a variety of tissues including blood, bone, meconium, urine, and hair.

James Donovan Assistant Professor 558-0030
Research Description:
Dr. Donovan is Medical Director of the Residency Program in Occupational and Environmental Medicine. As an internist, occupational physician and industrial hygienist, Dr. Donovan is uniquely qualified to assess both health hazards and clinical outcomes in populations exposed to occupational and environmental toxicants. Dr. Donovan’s research interests include occupational and environmental clinical epidemiology, case reports, worker exposures, and systemic illnesses related to chemicals and other toxins.

Kari Dunning
Professor - Aff

Mark H Eckman
Professor - Secondary

Ernest Foulkes Emeritus Professor 558-0368
Research Description:
Dr. Foulkes trained as a Biochemist at the Universities of Sydney and Oxford in England. In 1952, he joined the May Institute of the Jewish Hospital in Cincinnati and the Department of Physiology at UC. He was an avid spelunker and it has been claimed that his coming to Cincinnati was not unrelated to proximity of the cave country of Kentucky. After a five-year tenure as an established investigator of the American Heart Association, he transferred to the Department of Environmental Health. His research interests focused on heavy metal metabolism and renal toxicology, and he chaired the Metals Specialty Section of the Society of Toxicology. In 1967, Dr. Foulkes was appointed Interim Director of the Department of Environmental Health, where he finished the transformation of the University Affiliated Kettering Laboratory into the regular academic Department of Environmental Health within the College of Medicine. Dr. Foulkes remained involved in administrative activities as Associate Director under the next two departmental chairs. In 1994, he was again asked to serve as Interim Director, until the appointment of a new director, Dr. Marshall Anderson in 1996. In 1998, Dr. Foulkes retired as Emeritus Professor, but continues to be an active member in Departmental affairs.

Andrew Freeman Assistant Professor of clinical-geo 558-0037
Research Description:
Dr. Freeman is Director of the Center for Occupational Health at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center and the Associate Director of the Occupational and Environmental Medicine Residency Program. His research interests include hypersensitivity pneumonitis, the prevention of cumulative trauma injuries, and occupational health outcomes analysis. Dr. Freeman has extensive experience in the development and implementation of medical surveillance systems and databases.

Richard Fulwiler
Adj. Professor
558-7501

Mary Beth Genter Associate Professor 558-6266
Research Description:
Dr. Genter’s research focuses on tissue-specific metabolism and toxicity of environmental toxicants, with emphasis on the olfactory and auditory systems. My lab has worked for a number of years to understand the mechanisms by which compounds such as as the analgesic acetaminophen and antihyperthyroid drugs cause toxicity to the olfactory system. Similarly, we have also worked for a number of years to understand how certain pesticides cause tumors in the olfactory system. More recently, we have initiated studies to understand how metals can accumulate in the brain, by studying metal transporter expression in nasal tissues. These studies of metal transporters have also taken us into a new area of study for our lab, that is in the transport of metals into the ear. This opens up an exciting area of study, as certain metals are currently linked to hearing loss, and there are many workplace environments wherein co-exposures to metals and noise potentially contribute to occupational hearing loss.

Sergey Grinshpun Professor 558-0504
Research Description:
Professor Sergey Grinshpun, Ph.D. was trained as a physicist with focus on aerosols. He is involved in research on aerosol measurement, characterization and control of airborne particles and microorganisms in indoor and outdoor environments. Since 2000, he has been directing the Center for Health-Related Aerosol Studies

Peixuan Guo
Professor - Secondary

Erin Haynes Assistant Professor 558-5427
Research Description:
Dr. Haynes’ primary research interest is to examine the effect of low-level toxicant exposures on neurobehavioral outcomes. Specific research interests include evaluating biological and health outcomes in children resulting from exposure to multiple metals, such as lead and manganese, evaluating gene-environment interactions that may influence the neurobehavioral effect of metal exposure, and increasing public knowledge of environmental toxicants that threaten public health. She is currently working on an NIEHS-funded community-based participatory research R01 to study the neurobehavioral effects of metal exposure in two rural Appalachian communities: Marietta and Cambridge, Ohio. She is also leading an NIEHS R03 to further the partnership between the communities and the University of Cincinnati researchers. She is the Director of the Master of Science in Clinical and Translational Research Training Program.

Shuk-mei Ho Professor and Director 558-5701
Research Description:
Dr. Ho is the Jacob G. Schmidlapp Chair of the Department of Environmental Health, Director of the Center for Environmental Genetics, and Co-Leader of the Hormonal Malignancies Program in the Joint Cancer Center, at the College of Medicine in the University of Cincinnati,Cincinnati, OH. An expert in hormonal carcinogenesis, Dr. Ho’s research focuses on the significance of hormones and endocrine disruptors on carcinogenesis in the prostate, ovary, endometrium and mammary gland. Her research utilizes innovative genomic, epigenomic, proteomic, and bioinformatic approaches for the discovery of diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers, novel signaling pathways, mechanism-based therapeutics and interventions, and translational strategies for predicting patients’ responses. Her current programs center on developmental origins of complex diseases including cancer, effects of cadmium and polyaromatic hydrocarbon, oxidative stress, and inflammation-mediated cellular changes. She has served as the Scientific Counsel Member of the National Toxicology Program between 2001-2004, President-Elect of the Society of Basic Urological Research in 2005, Integration Panel Member of the Department of Defense Prostate Cancer Program since 2007, and is the recipient of the 2007 Women in Urology Award for Excellence in Urologic Research. She has been invited to chair numerous National Institutes of Health and Department of Defense study sections and strategic committees. Dr. Ho has published over 140 scientific articles in peer-reviewed journals. Her current and past research projects have been continuously funded by the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, American Cancer Society, the Department of Defense, and a number of private foundations.

Judy L. Jarrell field service professor 558-1729
Research Description:
Dr. Jarrell’s research interests have focused on transfer of learning outcomes to on-the-job behaviors, effective training techniques, and adult attitudes toward mandatory continuing education.

Susan Kasper Assoc Professor 558-2126
Research Description:
Dr. Kasper’s research interests include mechanisms which promote tumorigenesis, metastasis and development of treatment resistant disease. A major focus of her lab is the function of cancer stem/progenitor cells. The unique HPET cell lines developed in her laboratory exhibit stem cell characteristics in vitro and they reconstitute the histopathology of the original tumor they were derived from in vivo. The HPET cancer stem cell model is being utilized to study emergence of the heterogenous cell populations that constitute a tumor. Furthermore, they serve as models for: i) analyzing the mechanisms that facilitate the emergence of metastasis and treatment-resistant cancer and ii) designing more effective therapies to specifically target cancer stem cells. Other areas of interest include androgen receptor (AR):coregulator interactions and the process of epithelial to mesenchymal (EMT) transition. In particular, the role of the AR coactivator DJ-1 in the development of threatment-resistant prostate cancer is being investigated. DJ-1 is also known to display multiple cytoprotective functions through the regulation of cell survival signaling and oxidative stress responses. Thus, studies are being initiated to analyze the cytoprotective functions of DJ-1 in the aging prostate.

Ying Wai Lam RESEARCH ASSISTANT PROFESSOR 558-5148
Research Description:
Our research focuses on the application of proteomic techniques in investigating the mechanisms of disease development. We have previously established a mass spectrometry-based cancer biomarker discovery platform, and identified a serum marker for metastatic prostate cancer (Proteomics, 5, 2927-2938). In order to elucidate the mechanisms of prostate aging, we applied quantitative proteomics (isotope-coded affinity tags and shotgun sequencing) to comprehensively profile the global changes in protein expression in the aged animal prostates(Proteomics, 8, 2750, 2763). Currently, we are studying the role of oxidative stress-induced protein modifications (nitration/nitrosylation) in cancer development and the aging process. While the protein targets of oxidative stress remain largely unknown, identification of such proteins and their modification sites by mass spectrometry will provide insights into the role oxidative stress plays in disease development.

Bruce P Lanphear
Associate professor

Grace LeMasters Professor 558-0045
Research Description:
Dr. Grace LeMasters is a Professor of Epidemiology. For over two decades she has conducted research on epidemiological studies related to respiratory disease, cytogenetic effects, reproductive effects of children's health, and musculoskeletal research. She has received funding as the principle investigator of a 8 year study on diesel exposure and allergic diseases including asthma in children which examines the relationship between gene:gene and gene:environment interactions. She has conducted research on men and women in the military for over 15 years examining the effects of exposures to fuels and solvents on neurological conditions, hearing loss and male and female reproduction. Other areas of research include an 18 year pulmonary longitudinal study of health effects of refractory ceramic fiber exposure and lung cancer and lung disease. Her laboratory has examined the effects of caffeine ingestion and hormones during pregnancy and occupational risk factors related to falls and injuries during pregnancy. She serves as the director of an NIEHS training grant on Molecular Epidemiology in Children’s Environmental Health, trains predoctoral and postdoctoral PhD students and physician fellows. She serves on several national advisory committees and has published over 100 articles and book chapters in the area of occupational and environmental epidemiology.

Yuet-Kin Leung RESEARCH ASSISTANT PROFESSOR 558-5181
Research Description:
Dr. Leung’s research interest focuses on the impact of natural and xeno-/environmental estrogens on hormone-dependent tissues. Specifically, biochemical and receptor-mediated pathways involved in carcinogenesis of the breast, ovary and prostate are under current investigation. A major interest of his research is in the metabolic activation of estrogen in disease development. He recently discovered a novel cytochrome P450 1A1 spliced variant with unconventional intracellular localization. Ongoing research is devoted to analysis of its structure and functions. This research would be of great importance to hormonal carcinogenesis since this variant is overexpressed in prostate and ovarian cancers. In addition, the selective role of estrogen receptor-beta isoforms in mediating the actions of estrogens and endocrine disruptors is another key emphasis of his work.

Linda Levin Research Assistant Professor 558-0050
Research Description:
As a biostatistician, my focus has been the study of methodologies for analyzing longitudinal discrete and continuous data, and investigation of the effect ofmeasurement error and misclassification on estimates of association between environmental exposure and respiratory health. Specifically, an area of interest in longitudinal analysis is the assessment of pulmonary function change over time. As chief statistician in a large industry-wide study of the effect of an occupational exposure, I have computerized spirometric trend reports which are being used to measure pulmonary function change for large numbers of workers. I have co-authored many publications in which longitudinal data analysis was used, including Generalized Estimating Equations and mixture modeling approaches. Extensive experience in exposure modeling has led to research on quantifying measurement error and determining its effect under various statistical models on estimating health effects. Currently I am teaching a graduate level course called Categorical Data Analysis. These methods are used to analyze binary (yes/no) outcomes such as disease presence/absence, as well as categorical data.

James Lockey Professor 558-0030
Research Description:
James Lockey, MD, MS, is currently a Professor, Department of Environmental Health, Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine and Department of Internal Medicine, Pulmonary Division, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. Dr. Lockey is currently principal or co-principal investigator of numerous research studies including a respiratory morbidity and mortality study of workers exposed to refractory ceramic fiber, a study investigating the relationship of diesel exhaust exposure and the risk in young children for developing allergic rhinitis and asthma, a follow up study of workers exposed to asbestiform contaminated vermiculite ore, and the development of environmental sensors for personal exposure assessment of PM1.0 in collaboration with Mechanical, Industrial and Nuclear Engineering at the University of Cincinnati. Dr. Lockey received presidential appointment to the National Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health, and is a member of the UAW-GM Occupational Health Advisory Board. Dr. Lockey is a member of the Center for Asbestos Related Diseases, a scientific advisory board involved in investigating the community effects of asbestiform fiber exposure in Libby, Montana.

Long (Jason) Lu
Assistant Professor

Michael (Andrew) Maier
Adj. Assoc Professor

Roy McKay research assistant professor 558-1234 ext 88
Research Description:
As a pulmonary toxicologist, Dr. McKay’s research includes the development and evaluation of respirator fit test methods, user seal checks, respirator use, and selection. In addition, Dr. McKay is actively involved in respirator training issues. Dr. McKay’s research also includes longitudinal analysis of pulmonary function data for epidemiologic and individual analysis. This analysis is conducted to distinguish true change in lung function that may be caused by workplace exposure. This analysis permits the identification of individuals who have accelerated loss in FVC or FEV1.

Mario Medvedovic Associate Professor 558-8564
Research Description:
Dr. Medvedovic is developing and applying new statistical and computational procedures for the analysis of complex genomic, functional genomic data. His recent work is focused on protocols for analyzing microarray data, and the development and application of unsupervised statistical learning approaches based on the Bayesian infinite mixture model.

Jareen Meinzen Derr
Research Assistant Professor Aff (Secondary)

Jarek Meller Associate Professor 513-558-1958
Research Description:
Our research is focused on developing and applying computational approaches for biomedical research. In particular, we developed a number of novel methods for analysis and predictions of protein interactions, including those for membrane proteins. Based on these methodological advancements, we are also developing bioinformatics tools, e.g., for functional and structural annotation of proteins and their complexes. Several of these tools, including SABLE (http://sable.cchmc.org), SPPIDER (http://sppider.cchmc.org), and POLYVIEW-3D (http://polyview.cchmc.org/polyview3d.html), are available to the community as web servers (and source codes) and are widely used: to date we recorded over 350,000 submissions from over 25,000 different users in more than 80 countries. We are also developing methods for the identification of predictive fingerprints of disease states, e.g., in the context of autoimmunity and cancer. In collaboration with biologists, biochemists and physicians, we are applying standard and our own methods to particular problems at hand. For example, in collaboration with Dr. Czyzyk-Krzeska and her group, we have we were able to establish a link between tumor suppressor pVHL and the major transcription enzyme RNA Polymerase II in the context of hypoxia and oxidative stress (Kuznetsova et al., 2003). The interaction between pVHL and the largest subunit of RNA Pol II (Rpb1), which has been confirmed experimentally, was predicted by combining fold recognition techniques with mapping of interactions into structural homologs. In collaboration with Jason Jiang and his group, using combination of modeling, virtual screening and experimental approaches, we are working on the design of inhibitors of Norwalk virus, one of the leading causes of gastroenteritis. Search Google Scholar with [ (Jaroslaw OR Jarosław OR Jarek) Meller ] to see more stories.

Arthur Michaelson
Emeritus

Marian Miller Research Associate Professor 558-1715
Research Description:
Dr. Miller examines cellular and organellar spatial relationships, at the ultrastructural level, as they relate to cell function, cell cycle, differentiation, and apoptosis, as well as with toxic and malignant states. This research has been conducted using the mouse back skin carcinogenesis model, and in vitro systems working with common environmental carcinogens. In addition, in collaboration with other faculty, numerous methods for quantifying cellular and organellar spatial relationships in a variety of organs and organ systems have been developed to determine the phenotypic effects of single or multiple gene deletions in transgenic mice. Many of these transgenic mice have heightened sensitivity to environmental agents, and stress factors related to aging.

Ardythe Morrow
Professor - Aff

Daniel Nebert Professor 821-4664
Research Description:
The research program of Dr. Nebert studies the diversity, specificity and evolution of metabolism-gene, receptor-gene and transporter-gene superfamilies, and their roles in metabolism of endogenous regulators of homeostasis as well as foreign chemicals. Additional directions of research include the genetics of oxidative stress, programmed cell death (apoptosis), heavy metal toxicity, human & mouse gene nomenclature, pharmacogenetics, and clinical pharmacogenomics. The main theme being addressed by his laboratory has always been: Given the same dose of a particular drug or environmental agent, why do individual mice (or humans) respond differently in developing toxicity or cancer?

Ellen O'Flaherty
Emeritus

Susan Pinney Associate Professor 558-0684
Research Description:
Dr. Pinney’s primary area of research is in cancer epidemiology, both genetic susceptibility and traditional incidence and prevalence studies. She is a member of the Genetic Epidemiology of Lung Cancer Consortium, a nationwide study of gene-environment interaction of cigarette smoking and lung cancer. Dr. Pinney also has conducted studies of cancer incidence in both worker and community populations with exposures to ionizing radiation and chemical mixtures, and of nephrotoxicity in populations exposed to uranium. Past studies have included analyses of reproductive effects of occupational glycol ether exposure and pulmonary effects of super-absorbent polymer exposure in paper products industry.

Alexey Porollo Research Asst. Professor 558-1945
Research Description:
Research focuses on developing algorithms and computational methods for protein function prediction, folding recognition, protein structure analysis and annotation. This involves data mining, machine learning and software developing. Projects deal with both large scale data analysis and case studies. To bring successful methods to research community, dedicated web-servers are being developed, for example SABLE - solvent accessibility and secondary structure prediction, SPPIDER - protein interaction sites prediction and protein interface analysis, POLYVIEW-3D - versatile protein structure annotation and high quality rendering, and others.

Alvaro Puga Professor 558-0916
Research Description:
My laboratory investigates the response of individuals or populations to toxic or carcinogenic environmental agents. The long-term objective of this work is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms that underlie this response. Many chemical compounds interfere with the control mechanisms that regulate gene expression causing the overexpression of some genes and the repression of others. The ultimate effect of this process is an alteration of the steady-state levels of the proteins encoded by the genes affected. Potentially, if exposures to the agents occur during embryonic development, their ultimate effect may be the sensitization of the organism to develop adult diseases. In recent years, it has become increasingly clear that fetal exposure to environmental agents is indeed one of the major causes of environmental disease in the adult. My interests are centered, on the one hand, on the molecular mechanisms of action of several toxic environmental agents, including the dioxins and several heavy metals, and on the other, on the analysis of epigenetic responses to these agents as they interact with environmentally relevant genes. The genes on which we focus this work are those that respond transcriptionally to activation of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor, a transcription factor with a regulatory role in the expression of detoxification enzymes that also functions as a cell cycle environmental checkpoint. We are actively studying the molecular mechanisms associated with disruption of chromatin remodeling when gene induction is derailed by exposure to mixtures of carcinogenic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and heavy metals. In this regard, my interests are focused on the analysis of chromatin modifications taken place during differentiation that are derailed by environmental exposure.

Marepalli Rao Professor 558-3602
Research Description:
Dr. Rao’s research interests include applications of statistical methodologies in bioinformatics; calibrating an electronic nose in testing food safety; classification and clustering techniques in medical diagnostics; sample size determination in biomedical research; analysis of familial data and longitudinal data analysis; false discovery rates.

Tiina Reponen Professor 558-0571
Research Description:
Dr. Reponen’s research is focused on the exposure assessment of bioaerosols in indoor and industrial environments, including physical and microbiological characterization of airborne actinomycete and fungal spores, the dispersion of bioaerosols under natural and laboratory conditions, and the control of airborne microorganisms by filtration. She is a Certified Indoor Air Quality Professional, and in her field studies, she is collaborating with epidemiologists in investigating the health effects of particle and bioaerosol exposures.

Carol Rice Professor, Deputy Director Environmental and Occupational Hygiene 558-1751
Research Description:
Professor Carol Rice, Ph.D., CIH, specializes in the assessment of current industrial exposures and the evaluation of working lifetime exposures. She has a special interest in the use of historical exposure data to reconstruct past human exposures for occupational epidemiology studies; since 1987, she has been directing the Midwest Consortium for Hazardous Waste Worker Training

Amy Marie Rohs Assistant Professor 558-1023
Research Description:
The current focus of my research interests is in regard to the health and physiological effects, and genetic predisposition in relation to exposure to vermiculite ore which contains asbestiform fibers. From the 1921 until 1990, this vermiculite from Libby, Montana was mined and shipped, both unprocessed and processed, all over the United States and around the world. This ore was exploited for its heat resistant and fire retardant properties. It was in products such as home and commercial insulation, fertilizers, insecticides, animal feed, etc. There are many people ill in Libby, Montana, and this area has been declared a superfund site and undergoing clean-up by the EPA. There are many people ill in Libby from exposure to this ore and its airborne fibers. The concern is the millions of others who have been exposed around the United States already or will be potentially exposed in the future when handling this material during renovations and demolitions. I am currently heavily involved in the follow up study of a cohort of workers who were exposed to Libby vermiculite.

Clara Sue Ross Occupational Medicine Residency Program Director 558-0687
Research Description:
Dr. Ross is the Director of the Occupational Medicine Residency Program. She has practiced in a variety of occupational health settings, including employee health in hospital settings. Her research interests include healthcare worker occupational issues, occupational and environmental exposures, regulatory and public health issues and disability issues in the workplace.

Patrick H. Ryan Research Assistant Professor 558-0229
Research Description:
Dr. Ryan’s research focus is primarily related to air pollution epidemiology, and in particular, the development and application of spatial models using geographic information systems (GIS) for exposure assessment. Dr. Ryan is currently involved with the Cincinnati Childhood Allergy and Air Pollution Study (CCAAPS), a longitudinal birth cohort whose purpose is to determine if children exposed to diesel exhaust are at increased risk for the development of allergic disease and asthma. In addition, Dr. Ryan is involved in several other environmental and occupational epidemiologic studies including the analysis of the elemental composition of PM2.5, exposure to traffic-related air pollution at schools, exposure to ambient manganese and neurobehavioral development, and exposure to erionite in North Dakota.

Bernard Saltzman
Emeritus

Howard G. Shertzer Professor, Director, Environmental Genetics & Molecular Toxicology Division 558-0522
Research Description:
1. Oxidative stress and redox homeostasis, as related to gene expression and human diseases. 2. Mitochondrial electron transport pathways related to oxidative stress and environmental diseases 3. Intervention and prevention of cancer, inflammatory diseases and metabolic syndrome. 4. Design and synthesis of novel compounds for intervention and treatment of cancer, inflammatory diseases and metabolic syndrome.

Rakesh Shukla Professor 558-0108
Research Description:
Dr. Shukla has been researching the Statistical Issues in Regulatory Toxicology, in particular the issues surrounding application of statistical equivalence approach to assess safe levels of environmental exposures of effluents and toxicants. Currently, he is serving as chief statistical Investigator on research grants dealing with risk factors of Stroke. Dr. Shukla also provides expertise in optimum designs for exposure assessment studies, design and analyses of studies using longitudinal data as well as case-control studies dealing with Pediatric allergy and childhood Asthma. He is also recently interested in Methodological issues of research in Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

Paul Succop Professor 558-0525
Research Description:
Dr. Succop’s research interests are in the areas of multivariate analysis, specifically structural equations modeling; and the study of techniques for handling missing data. He has also studied methods for transforming non-normal data and the use of the method of moments for transformation or parameter estimation for non-normally distributed data. Another recent interest is the development of methods for employing empirical likelihood for producing nonparametric tests of statistical hypotheses.

Jozef Svetlik
Emeritus

Glenn Talaska Professor 558-0519
Research Description:
Professor Glenn Talaska, Ph.D., CIH, has a background in industrial hygiene, genetic toxicology, and carcinogenesis. His research is related to biological monitoring, chemical carcinogens and includes DNA adduct analysis, cytogenetics and metabolite analysis. He is the Vice Chair of the ACGIH Biological Exposure Indices Committee.

Neville Tam RESEARCH ASSISTANT PROFESSOR 558-5194
Research Description:
Dr. Tam’s research interest is to understand the early events of prostatic carcinogenesis, with emphasis on the role of oxidative/nitrosative stress and the related tissue injuries. He currently focuses on the role of risk factors contributing to redox imbalance in prostate gland: (1) aging, (2) change in sex hormone milieu, (3) inflammation, (4) genetic aberrations and (5) diet. Genomic and proteomic approaches are used to uncover the spectrum of redox-sensitive genes/proteins that are modified by cancer-associated prooxidant status in the prostate. New chemoprevention or intervention strategies with anti-hormonal, anti-oxidant or anti-inflammatory approaches are conducted to abrogate the risk of cancer development.

Joel Tsevat
Professor - Secondary

Peter D Walzer
Professor - Secondary

David Warshawsky Emeritus Professor 558-0152
Research Description:
Dr Warshawsky’s research focuses on the early events in the carcinogenic process for polyaromatic compounds (PACs) and mixtures thereof, the development of biomarkers of exposure and effect and methods for the microbial biodegradation of these recalcitrant compounds. He has investigated mechanisms of chemical carcinogenesis in target tissues liver,lung,and breast. This research involves the metabolism, binding to DNA and protein, gene expression and growth factor regulation. The relationship of DNA adducts with specific mutations in the activated ras oncogene and p53 tumor suppressor gene in target tissues is being assessed. Research is focused on inhibitors of angiogenesis for breast cancer in high risk women. In addition, biomarkers of exposure are being developed to assess the risk of exposure to carcinogens. The biodegradation pathway for benzo[a]pyrene an environmental recalcitrant carcinogen is being investigated.

Klaus Willeke
Emeritus

Tianying Wu Assistant Professor 556-6229
Research Description:
Dr. Wu’s research focus is to understand the biologic pathways leading to the development of chronic diseases and to explore dietary/lifestyle factors that can modify these pathways for future prevention. Dr. Wu’s current research base is the Health Professionals Follow-up Study and the Nurses’ Health Study, where thousands of plasma samples are available for determining biochemical predictors of diseases. Dr. Wu has evaluated several oxidative stress biomarkers and established the fluorescent oxidation marker in her lab for large epidemiologic studies (see papers 2, 5, and 6 in the publication). Dr. Wu’s research is closely integrated with basic research, and she has a laboratory focusing on exploring and applying new biomarkers into large-scale human studies. Dr. Wu’s current projects include studies on biomarkers, especially oxidative stress related biochemical predictors of cancer and coronary heart disease in non-diabetic and diabetic men and women, and on dietary predictors of biomarkers related to carcinogenesis, insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome. Dr. Wu also has long-standing interests in modification of diet to improve health through nutrition interventions and the implication of nutrition epidemiology methods in environmental epidemiology, focusing on the interaction between nutrition and occupational exposures in the development of complex diseases. Specialty Molecular epidemiology Nutrition epidemiology

Ying Xia Associate Professor 558-0371
Research Description:
Dr. Xia’s laboratory will study intercellular signaling pathways involved in cell responses to various environmental agents. Many environmental agents cause activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs), which in turn phosphorylate transcription factors and affect gene expression. Their studies showed that dioxin-activated ERK and JNK MAPKs play an important role in activation of transcription factor Ah receptor, a dioxin receptor responsible for most of the toxic effects of this environmental toxin. They will use genetic and molecular approaches to investigate the mechanisms of MAPKs in Ah receptor activation and dioxin toxicity and will extend these studies to other environmental insults.

Jagjit Yadav Associate Professor 558-4806
Research Description:
Dr. Yadav’s research program focuses on microbial pathogenesis and toxicogenomic research as related to environmental health and biodefense. His laboratory is involved in the following major areas of research: 1. Molecular characterization and development of fungal P450 enzyme biocatalysts for xenobiotic detoxification and bioremediation of environmental carcinogens and toxicants. 2. Research on respiratory bacterial pathogens and biothreat agents for pathogenesis mechanisms & diagnostics and for understanding the host genetic susceptibility to pulmonary pathogenesis. 3. Characterization of molecular and cellular signaling events underlying respiratory pathogenesis due to mold toxins and nanotoxicants.

Glendon Zinser
Research Assistant professor