Summer 2023 | Issue 15

We are inviting POSTER PRESENTATIONS on all aspects of Environmental Health Sciences broadly conceived. If you are interested in presenting, please submit your abstract using the RSVP link by Sep 31, 2023.

Beth Rose Middleton Manning's project is titled Planning Landscape Resilience for California Indian Allotment Lands.

Shehnaz Hussain's project is titled Exposure Assessment, Health Monitoring, and Cancer Control in Wildland Firefighters.

Using Glowing Fish to Detect Harmful Pesticides

Dr. Sean Burgess's and Dr. Bruce Draper's research on how zebrafish can help to identify chemicals which cause birth defects was the focus of a UCD College of Biological Sciences feature article. Dr. Burgess and Dr. Draper are the recipients of a 2023 Pilot Award.



Studying the Placenta & neurodevelopment

Dr. Janine LaSalle, UC Davis EHSC Deputy Director, was interviewed on NPR's Insight with Vicky Gonzalez. Dr. LaSalle discussed the importance of studying the placenta for deepening our understanding of neurodevelopment and causes of autism.

New Study Measures Pollution from Coal Trains

Dr. Nicholas Spada research on mobile sources of air pollution - and, specifically, pollution from trains transporting coal - was featured in The San Francisco Chronicle. Dr. Spada is the recipient of an EHSC 2023 pilot award. 



What Chemicals are in Household Dust?

Dr. Bennett is continuing her study tracking chemicals that children may be accidentally ingesting through household dust and to find strategies to reduce toxic exposures.

Well Water Quality Awareness Campaign

Dr. Hussain and Dr. Peña are teaming up to study the potential impacts of wildfire smoke on surface water and groundwater supplies, especially in fire-affected regions.

WHAT-NOW? Wildfires and Health

Researchers are working with communities across California to study the physical and emotional impacts wildfires have had on survivors over the past several years.

PESTICIDES AND CIVIL RIGHTS IN CALIFORNIA

-September 12, 2023-

Nayamin Martinez (CSTAC Co-Chair) and Irva Hertz-Picciotto (Center Director) will take part in the People's Tribunal on Pesticide Use and Civil Rights in California. The goal of the event is to bring the experience of agricultural workers and families to the forefront of policy conversations.

CALL FOR PAPERS ON ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE

-November 30, 2023-

Marilyn Silva (CSTAC Co-Chair) is the invited editor for a special issue of the Birth Defects Research Journal. This special issue will focus on the need for research and policy to address environmental justice support and community-based partnerships to mitigate health disparities. 

Visit our events webpage to explore more upcoming events!

Gino Cortopassi co-authored a paper on quaternary ammonium compounds. The paper summarizes current findings on QACs and briefly describes chemical management strategies in the U.S. The conclusion of the paper identifies the most pressing knowledge gaps and makes recommendations for research and policy actions to address these chemicals of emerging concern.

Quaternary Ammonium Compounds: A Chemical Class of Emerging Concern. Environmental Science & Technology 57(20), 7645-7665 (2023).

Thomas Young (Exposure Core) co-authored a paper on chemical space mapping. Scientists without a priori chemical knowledge often rely on non-targeted analysis (NTA), allowing them to detect and identify a broad range of compounds. However, it's challenging to understand which region of chemical space is extractable. The paper proposes a ChemSpace tool to tackle this challenge.

Exploring chemical space in non-targeted analysis: a proposed ChemSpace tool. Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry 415, 35–44 (2023).

Cristina Davis was a part of the team that developed a protocol to evaluate air cleaning devices' ability to remove VOCs. Indoor Air Quality is negatively impacted by volatile organic compounds (VOCs) which are often contained in household products like cleaning agents, air fresheners, and wood preservatives.

Controlled air exchange rate method to evaluate reduction of volatile organic compounds by indoor air cleaners. Chemosphere 313, 137528 (2023).

• Thomas Young et al. - Exploring chemical space in non-targeted analysis: a proposed ChemSpace tool
• Michele La Merrill, Pamela Lein, Rebecca Schmidt, Janine LaSalle et al. - Networks of placental DNA methylation correlate with maternal serum PCB concentrations and child neurodevelopment
• Thomas Young et al. - Batch correction methods for nontarget chemical analysis data: application to a municipal wastewater collection system
• Irva Hertz-Picciotto et al. - Parental occupational exposure to solvents and autism spectrum disorder: An exploratory look at gene-environment interactions
• Janine LaSalle et al. - Pregnant in a Pandemic: Mental Wellbeing and Associated Healthy Behaviors Among Pregnant People in California During COVID-19
• Thomas Young et al. - UAV-Based Wildland Fire Air Toxics Data Collection and Analysis
• Irva Hertz-Picciotto, Janine LaSalle et al. - Associations of prenatal exposure to a mixture of persistent organic pollutants with social traits and cognitive and adaptive function in early childhood: Findings from the EARLI study
• Kent Pinkerton et al. - Impact of Global Climate Change on Pulmonary Health: Susceptible and Vulnerable Populations
• Kent Pinkerton et al. - Animal models and mechanisms of tobacco smoke-induced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
• Cristina Davis et al. - Exhaled breath condensate profiles of U.S. Navy divers following prolonged hyperbaric oxygen (HBO) and nitrogen-oxygen (Nitrox) chamber exposures
• Cristina Davis et al. - Active sampling of volatile chemicals for non-invasive classification of chicken eggs by sex early in incubation
• Keith Bein, Chris Vogel et al. - Regulation of IDO2 by the Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor (AhR) in Breast Cancer
• Clare Cannon et al. - Along the energy justice continuum: An examination of energy disposal through the lens of feminist community based participatory action research
• Cristina Davis, Nicholas Kenyon et al. - Oxylipin concentration shift in exhaled breath condensate (EBC) of SARS-CoV-2 infected patients