NIEHS Spotlight

Birnbaum Appears Before Subcommittee on Health

Lawmakers turned once more to NIEHS/NTP Director Linda Birnbaum, Ph.D., on Earth Day April 22 for expert advice about the environment and human health.

Group Issues White Paper on Climate Change

A report by a federal working group led by NIH highlights 11 key categories of diseases and other health consequences that are occurring or will occur due to climate change.

Grantee Honored for Online Science Education Resources

An NIEHS-funded project at Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) is enjoying high-profile recognition for its exceptional efforts to redefine science education for young learners.

Women's Health Advocates Honored

Two breast cancer advocates with ties to NIEHS are being honored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency with its 2010 Environmental Quality Award.

Environmental Stewards Gather at NIEHS

As it has each year since 2007, NIEHS hosted the annual North Carolina Environmental Stewardship Initiative (ESI) Members Meeting on March 23 in Rodbell Auditorium.

NIEHS Gains Senior Medical Advisor

NIEHS expanded its Bethesda presence in April with the appointment of Aubrey Miller, M.D., as senior medical advisor and liaison to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Collman Honored by UNC

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) recently conferred its distinguished alumni award on one of the top scientists at NIEHS - Gwen Collman, Ph.D.

Simulation Technology Wins Award

Developers of NIEHS-funded software for virtual emergency-responder training are winners of a 2009 Adobe Max award.

Rogan to Head Epidemiology Group

The prestigious American Epidemiological Society (AES) recently announced the election of NIEHS epidemiologist Walter Rogan, M.D., as its next president.

Wetterhahn Awardee Turns Attention to Schools

Former Superfund Research Program Trainee and Karen Wetterhahn Memorial Award winner Laura Senier, Ph.D., recently paid a visit to NIEHS to discuss community-based outreach.

Obama to Appoint Former Council Member

If Congress agrees, the new chair of the Chemical Safety Board will be a scientist and labor specialist with ties to NIEHS - Rafael Moure-Eraso, Ph.D.

Grantees Grapple with Harmonizing Air Pollution Studies

Investigators with clinical air chamber facilities gathered at NIEHS to discuss how to design their air pollution studies to better facilitate regulatory decisions that affect public health.

Ethics Works Both Ways for NIEHS Employee

For NIEHS Bioethicist David Resnik, J.D., Ph.D., applying ethical standards recently helped him protect his intellectual property from improper use by a professor at a foreign university.

NIEHS at Latino Worker Summit

NIEHS and federal partners brought together nearly 1,000 participants for the National Action Summit on Latino Worker Health and Safety April 14-15 in Houston.

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Inside the Institute

Lab Staff Group Gets Promotions Update

Members of the Assembly of Laboratory Staff (AoLS) heard some welcome news about promotions, during their spring meeting on April 14.

Trainees Assembly Holds Spring Meeting

In the NIEHS Trainees Assembly (NTA) spring meeting on April 19, trainees learned about how NTA functions, new programs, and upcoming events.

NIEHS Recognizes Administrative Staff

NIEHS celebrated Administrative Professionals Day on April 20 with a day of events honoring the Institute's clerical, administrative, secretarial, and technical employees.

Going Green at the EPA Green Vendor Fair

The sun was shining, the music was playing, and the vendors had information galore for increasing sustainability in daily living at the EPA Green Vendor Fair on April 20.

Environmental Heroes Speak at EPA

Staff of the Environmental Protection Agency invited their NIEHS neighbors to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day April 21-22 at EPA.

Sustaining a Healthy Planet and Healthy People

During the month of May, NIEHS will have many opportunities for staff to learn about what is being done at the Institute and what they can do at home.

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Science Notebook

Illuminating Dark Mysteries of Intracellular Organelles

"Seeing is knowing," explained Jennifer Lippincott-Schwartz, Ph.D., at the beginning of her Rodbell Lecture Series Seminar on "Advances in Super-Resolution Imaging."

DNA Strand Break Repair and Human Disease

On April 13, Steve West, Ph.D., of the London Research Institute, presented "Defects in DNA Strand Break Repair and Links to Human Disease."

Chromosome Replication Stress and Health

New findings about genome instability were front and center during a talk at NIEHS presented March 25 by grantee Thomas Glover, Ph.D.

Discovery Through Computational Biology

According to Harvard University biophysicist Martha Bulyk, Ph.D., molecular genetics is poised to take a big step forward thanks to applications of computational biology and 'omics technologies.

Study Well Positioned to Look at Age-Related Disease

The established aging cohort of the Agricultural Health Study continues to be a prime resource for studying associations between pesticides and diseases of aging.

Red Tide May Break Records

NIEHS-funded scientists are monitoring a potentially significant regional bloom of toxic algae, popularly known as the New England "red tide."

Herbal Remedy Threatens Millions

Recently, the widely used herb Aristolochia has become a major topic of discussion because of its potent toxicity.

Metabolomics - A New Direction in Toxicology?

NTP welcomed guest lecturer Sury Vulimiri, D.V.M., Ph.D., April 9 to speak on the potential of integrating metabolomics into the emerging science of predictive toxicology.

Stanford Scientist Discusses Macrophage Activation

On April 20, Ajay Chawla, M.D., Ph.D., discussed his research on the role of nuclear receptors in macrophage activation and inflammatory disease.

Ground-breaking Research Leads to New Cancer Theory

Tufts University physician scientists report on investigations into the signals that mediate cellular proliferation and their new theory of cancer.

Study Confirms Link Between Environmental Exposure and Allergy

New findings by NIEHS-funded University of Cincinnati researchers indicate that environmental exposures and prolonged breast feeding are critical determinants of childhood allergic rhinitis.

This Month in EHP

The May 2010 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP) revisits the issue of water quality, with news section feature stories on lead and pharmaceutical contamination.

Ronald Evans to Present Distinguished Lecture

The NIEHS Distinguished Lecture Series welcomes Ronald Evans, Ph.D., a professor at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, as its next speaker on May 11.

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Extramural Research

Extramural Papers of the Month

• Flame Retardants Linked to Reduced Human Fertility
• Beauty Chemicals Tied to Early Puberty in Girls
• Mother's Exposure to Urban Air Pollutants Affects Children's Cognitive Abilities
• Key to Hormone-Resistant Prostate Tumors Discovered

Intramural Research

Intramural Papers of the Month

• PPAR gamma Protects Lungs Against Inflammation and Oxidative Stress
• Dust Mite Allergen Der p 7 Is Structurally Similar to Innate Immune Proteins
• Early-life Exposures Are Linked to Development of Uterine Fibroids
• Orphan G Protein-coupled Receptor Mediates the Regulation of ERRa Gene Expression in Breast Cancer Cells

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Calendar of Upcoming Events

• May 6 in Rall D-450, 10:00-11:00 - Laboratory of Molecular Carcinogenesis Seminar Series featuring Carey Anders, Ph.D., speaking on "Breast Cancer Brain Metastases: Clinical and Translational Research Efforts"
• May 10 in Rodbell Auditorium, 8:00-4:30 - NTP Board of Scientific Counselors meeting (http://ntp.niehs.nih.gov/index.cfm?objectid=720164A4-BDB7-CEBA-F5B86E9B53D26DED)
• May 11 in Rodbell Auditorium, 1:00-2:00 - NIEHS Distinguished Lecture Series featuring Ronald M. Evans, Ph.D., addressing "Nuclear Hormone Receptors: Biosensors of the Environment"
• May 12-13 in Rodbell Auditorium, 8:00-4:30 - National Advisory Environmental Health Sciences Council meeting (http://www.niehs.nih.gov/about/boards/naehsc/index.cfm)
• May 17 (Offsite Event) at the North Carolina Biotechnology Center, 8:00-3:45 - "High Throughput Screening for Chemical Genomics and Computational Toxicology" GEMS Annual Spring Meeting, registration required.
• May 17 (Offsite Event) in the Natcher Auditorium on the NIH Bethesda Campus, 9:00 - Commemoration of the life and accomplishments of Ruth L. Kirschstein, M.D. (http://videocast.nih.gov/summary.asp?live=8700), the first woman to direct an NIH institute, the National Institute of General Medical Sciences.
• May 20 in Rall D-450, 10:00-11:00 - Laboratory of Molecular Carcinogenesis Seminar Series presentation on "Good Breast Gone Bad: Early Detection of Breast Cancer from the Bench to the Community," by Victoria Seewaldt, M.D.
• May 21 in Rodbell Auditorium A, 11:00-12:00 - Laboratory of Reproductive and Developmental Toxicology Lecture Series featuring Melissa Mann, Ph.D., discussing "Susceptibility of Genomic Imprinting to Assisted Reproductive Technologies"
• May 25 in Rodbell Auditorium, 10:00-11:00 - Laboratory of Molecular Genetics Fellows Invited Lecture Series featuring Joanne Stubbe, Ph.D., exploring "Class I Ribonucleotide Reductases: Use of Unnatural Amino Acids to Probe Proton-Coupled Electron Transfer"
• May 27 in Rodbell Auditorium, 10:00-11:00 - Keystone Lecture Seminar Series presentation on "SEMINAR: Bioinformatics Strategies for Gene-Environment Interaction Analysis," by Jason Moore, Ph.D.

View More Events: NIEHS Public Calendar

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The Environmental Factor is produced monthly by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) (http://www.niehs.nih.gov/), Office of Communications and Public Liaison. The content is not copyrighted, and it can be reprinted without permission. If you use parts of Environmental Factor in your publication, we ask that you provide us with a copy for our records. We welcome your comments and suggestions. (bruskec@niehs.nih.gov)