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Environmental Toxicology Growing public awareness of the potential risks to humans from toxic chemicals in the environment has generated demand for new methods for toxicity assessment and rational means for estimating health risk. Many diseases have been linked to environmental chemicals and their effects appear to be complex due to the multigenic nature of risk factors. Low level exposures to environmental chemicals such as metal ions, food additives, and pesticides are essentially unavoidable. Several of these chemicals are known to cause tissue injury and cancer under specific exposure conditions. The primary
research focus in Dr. Tchounwou’s laboratory has been to elucidate
the mechanisms of the toxic action of these compounds. At the cellular
and molecular levels, and to utilize the knowledge gained to recommend
cost-effective control and prevention strategies. Over the years, his
research group has secured external funds from the Department of Education,
the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the U.S. Department of the Army,
the U.S. Department of Energy, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA), and has applied basic concepts and principles in molecular biology,
genetics, physiology, pharmacology and toxicology to study the molecular
events leading to toxicity, mutagenesis and carcinogenesis. |
