Phillips, Rose A – Environmental Health Sciences Research Center

The Analytical Toxicology Laboratory has moved!

July 30, 2026 By Phillips, Rose A

The Analytical Toxicology Laboratory, part of the EHSRC’s Exposure Science Facility (ESF), has moved to a newly renovated laboratory space in the Iowa Bioscience Innovation Facility (IBIF). This purpose-built laboratory space supports cutting-edge research on environmental exposures, the human microbiome, and molecular mechanisms of disease. It includes dedicated laboratories for molecular biology, microbiome research, sample preparation, chemical synthesis, and cell culture to support biomonitoring studies. The move was made possible by $7.5 million in institutional commitment and philanthropic funds. Several state-of-the-art instruments are available to analyze various chemical compounds in complex matrices, including water, food, air, blood and tissue samples:

SCIEX Triple Quad 7500 System – QTRAP Ready (AB SCIEX, California) with an LC system (Agilent, Santa Clara, California) consisting of a High-Speed Pump solvent delivery system, Multicolumn Thermostat column oven, and Multisampler with Thermostat autosampler.
Agilent Technologies 8890 gas chromatograph with 7693A Autoinjector and a 7000E Quadrupole MS/MS. This GC-MS/MS instrument is installed with Masshunter software on a dedicated, networked personal computer.
Agilent Technologies 7890 gas chromatograph with 5975 single quadrupole mass spectrometer, inert EI ion source, and a CombiPAL sampler with SPME capability and an SPME fiber conditioning station. This instrument is operated with Masshunter software installed on a dedicated, networked personal computer.
Agilent Technologies 6890N gas chromatograph with 5975 inert mass selective detector with EI or NCI ion sources, a micro electron capture detector, and a Gerstel MPS MulitPurpose Sampler with SPME capability. The instrument is operated with Masshunter software installed on a dedicated, networked personal computer.
Shimadzu high pressure-liquid chromatography system consisting of a DGU-14A degaser, LC-10ATvp liquid chromatograph, SIL-10ADvp auto injector, SCL-10Avp system controller, CTO-20AC column oven, SPD-10Avp UV-VIS detector and FRC-10A fraction collector. This instrument operates with LabSolutions software and is installed on a dedicated personal computer.

Click here for more information about the EHSRC’s Core Facilities, including the Exposure Science Facility (ESF) and its Analytical Toxicology Laboratory (ATL).

EHSRC Member David Cwiertny to lead the Iowa Integrated Network for Science, Information, and Geospatial Health Tracking (INSIGHT) initiative

July 1, 2026 By Phillips, Rose A

A new University of Iowa research initiative is launching July 1, 2026, to study environmental risk factors and improve health outcomes for Iowans. The Iowa Integrated Network for Science, Information, and Geospatial Health Tracking (INSIGHT) program will produce scientific evidence needed to understand how environmental exposures affect human health, from the air we breathe to the water we drink. A generous $5 million founding gift from Sharon and Kyle Krause supports Iowa INSIGHT, which is a collaboration between the UI Center for Health Effects of Environmental Contamination (CHEEC) and IIHR—Hydroscience and Engineering (IIHR).

David Cwiertny, the Rose and Joseph Summers Chair in Water Resources Engineering, co-leader of the EHSRC Water Quality Thematic Area, and CHEEC Director, will lead the initiative. His research focuses on watersheds, water treatment, and the movement and fate of pollutants such as pesticides and “forever chemicals” in the environment.

Iowa is one of only a few states where cancer rates continue to rise; currently, Iowa has the second highest cancer rate in the country. Data gathered through Iowa INSIGHT will support epidemiological studies to establish associations between environmental exposures and adverse health outcomes, especially cancer, to potentially power future solutions and innovations.

“There’s an opportunity here to make sure we can contribute to help Iowa, the place that we came to and never wanted to leave,” says Cwiertny, who moved his family to Iowa from California in 2011. “It’s very fulfilling.”

To learn more, read the news release from IIHR.

EHSRC Member Jun Wang leads study linking wildfires to worsened ozone pollution in the US

June 24, 2026 By Phillips, Rose A

Jun Wang , EHSRC Member and Lichtenberg Family Chair in the Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, is the corresponding author for a study published in the journal Science that found that ozone pollution has worsened in much of the continental United States over the past decade, fueled by wildfires and the long-distance transport of unhealthy air.

The study also found that the increase in wildfire-driven ozone pollution over the past decade has undercut air-quality improvements achieved before 2015, largely through reductions in automobile emissions, which are a main contributor to surface ozone.

To read more about this study and its implications, click here.

EHSRC Associate Member Snehajyoti Chatterjee leads a PCB study published in Molecular Psychiatry (Nature Publishing Group)

February 6, 2026 By Phillips, Rose A

EHSRC Associate Member Snehajyoti Chatterjee, an Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, led a study using spatial transcriptomic profiling to uncover the effects of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) on gene expression related to spatial memory, a relevant factor in cognitive decline. The study, recently published in Molecular Psychiatry, a journal published by the Nature Publishing Group, found that mice exposed to PCBs exhibited deficits in long-term spatial memory.

To examine the molecular effects of PCB on the brain, the team used a spatial transcriptomics technique to analyze gene expression changes in five brain regions: the hippocampus, neocortex, thalamus, caudal putamen, and fiber tracts. Their analysis of spatial gene expression revealed the molecular signatures influenced by PCB in these susceptible brain regions of mice. Network analysis suggested that these changes are associated with higher chlorinated PCBs present in the brain. Additionally, the team showed that PCB exposure disrupts the expression of tight junction proteins, which are crucial for maintaining the integrity of the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Thus, the study results offer mechanistic insights into how PCB exposure affects brain function and cognition.

Long-term spatial memory assessment of wild-type mice exposed to the HR-PCB mixture.

2025 Iowa Climate Statement available now!

November 19, 2025 By Phillips, Rose A

EHSRC members who were Iowa Climate Statement co-authors in 2025: Peter Thorne, Emma Stapleton Thornell, Jerald Schnoor — EHSRC Members Peter Thorne, Emma Stapleton Thornell, and Jerald Schnoor were among the co-authors of the 2025 Iowa Climate Statement.

Iowa Climate Statement 2025: Climate Change Fuels Higher Insurance Costs

Read the Iowa Climate Statement 2025

Press release: Iowa Climate Statement 2025 News Release

Click here to view media coverage of the 2025 Iowa Climate Statement.

For questions email rose-phillips@uiowa.edu

As of 2025, the EHSRC no longer supports the Iowa Climate Statement with federal funds.

Previous Iowa Climate Change Statements

Iowa Climate Change Statements:

Iowa Climate Statement 2024: Individual Actions to Help Solve the Climate Crisis

Iowa Climate Statement 2023: It’s Time to Tap Iowa’s Vast Solar Energy Resources

Iowa Climate Statement 2022: The Many Benefits of Our Trees

Iowa Climate Statement 2021: Strengthening Iowa’s Electric Infrastructure

Iowa Climate Statement 2020: Will COVID 19 Lessons Help Us Survive Climate Change

Iowa Climate Statement 2019: Dangerous Heat Events Will Be More Frequent and Severe

Iowa Climate Statement 2018: Extreme Weather Events

Iowa Climate Statement 2018: Designing Buildings and Communities for Iowa’s Future Climate

Iowa Climate Statement 2017: It’s not just the heat, it’s the humidity!

Iowa Climate Statement 2016: The Multiple Benefits of Climate-Smart Agriculture

Iowa Climate Statement 2015: Time for Action

Iowa Climate Statement 2014: Impacts on the Health of Iowans

Iowa Climate Statement 2013: A Rising Challenge to Iowa Agriculture

Iowa Climate Statement 2012: The Drought of 2012

Iowa Climate Statement 2011: Climate Science and Public Policy in Iowa

Iowa Climate Statement 2010: Impacts on Iowa

EHSRC Member Michael Welsh receives prestigious Lasker Award for cystic fibrosis research

September 11, 2025 By Phillips, Rose A

Dr. Michael Welsh, Professor of Internal Medicine and longtime EHSRC member, has won the 2025 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award for his fundamental research on cystic fibrosis (CF), which paved the way to new therapies that have transformed the health and life expectancy of people with CF.

Lasker Awards, sometimes called “America’s Nobels,” are among the world’s most prestigious biomedical and clinical research awards.

Welsh shares the award with Jesús (Tito) González (formerly, Vertex Pharmaceuticals) and Paul A. Negulescu (Vertex Pharmaceuticals) for their key roles in developing a novel treatment for CF – a triple-drug combination that saves the lives of people with this lethal genetic disease.

Click here to read more about Dr. Welsh’s Lasker Award.

Spotlight on EHSRC’s role in protecting Iowans’ health

April 22, 2025 By Phillips, Rose A

The EHSRC has released a new fact sheet detailing its role in environmental health sciences research aimed at protecting Iowans’ health. Funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, the EHSRC is the only environmental health research center in the Great Plains/Midwest region. We focus on pressing state and regional issues including:

Protecting people from naturally occurring carcinogens like radon and arsenic
Keeping farmers healthy by controlling exposure to dust, fumes, and pesticides
Helping people with lung disease adapt to extreme weather and floods

Click here to view the fact sheet

Environmental health sciences research is an economic powerhouse in Iowa, with $2.38 in economic activity for every dollar invested. The economic benefits from EHSRC include:

$64.6 M in economic activity generated since 2007
Over 100 patents by EHSRC researchers since 2007
$9 in additional grants awarded for each $1 invested in our Pilot Grants

New fact sheet highlights the vital role that P30 EHS Core Centers play in fighting chronic disease

March 11, 2025 By Phillips, Rose A

Infographic showing increase in certain chronic diseases in US from 1990-2021 - 28% to 283%, depending on the disease. 133% for Parkinson's Disease, 75% for Alzheimer's and other dementias, 175% for total cancers, 283% for diabetes. Chronic diseases including cancer, diabetes, Parkinson’s Disease, chronic respiratory disease, and childhood neurodevelopmental disorders have increased dramatically in the United States over the past few decades. Research shows that these diseases are linked to environmental factors such as air pollution, microplastics, and harmful chemical exposures.

The P30 Environmental Health Sciences Core Centers supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), an institute in the National Institutes of Health (NIH), have released a fact sheet describing the essential role we play in combatting chronic diseases.

Click here to view the fact sheet

Dr. Emma Stapleton Thornell using a pipette on a lab bench and smiling. NIEHS is at the forefront of conducting research that protects public health by revealing how environmental factors impact health and disease and supporting communities in responding to environmental disasters such as chemical spills and extreme weather events like hurricanes. NIEHS P30 environmental health research centers are at the core of this mission by advancing scientific understanding, addressing emerging public health threats, improving community health, and reducing health care costs.

NIH’s $47 billion investment in research in 2023 resulted in nearly double the economic activity, at $92 billion. NIEHS’ 2025 budget request is only 2 percent of this total, about $917 million. But the return on these dollars far exceeds this small investment. Environmental health research also informs public health policy actions, which can yield $1.25 to $39 for every $1 invested.

Click here for more details on how our environmental health research saves lives and boosts the economy.

Save the Date: 2025 Iowa PFAS Conference

November 18, 2024 By Phillips, Rose A

EHSRC is sponsoring the 2025 Iowa PFAS Conference, hosted jointly by the Iowa State Hygienic Laboratory and the College of Engineering at the University of Iowa. The conference will be held April 15-16, 2025, at the Graduate by Hilton Iowa City and the University of Iowa campus.

The conference is designed to exchange ideas and findings, provide learning and networking opportunities, and explore new ways to test and deal with PFAS in environmental and biological samples. It has the following objectives:

Create a learning environment to share ideas and findings about PFAS
Bring faculty members, researchers, staff, and students to one place where they can discuss PFAS-related projects
Create highly collaborative environment to work on current and future PFAS-related projects
Share information and resources with local agencies and public health officials
Discuss current and future plans to test and monitor for PFAS contamination
Establish collaborative work between faculty, researchers, local agencies, and public health professionals to address current and future PFAS exposure and health-related issues.

Spring 2025 Pilot Grant RFA

October 15, 2024 By Phillips, Rose A

The RFA for the Spring 2025 Pilot Grant Program (PGP) is now available! The PGP provides up to $40,000 for innovative, environmental health-related research proposals aligned with the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Strategic Plan. Community engagement supplements up to $5,000 in additional funds are also available.