The Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Spring 2004, Issue #3

S E N T I N E L

THE CENTER FORENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH

AND SUSCEPTIBILITYat the UNC-Chapel HillSchool of Public Health

is one of 22 centers funded by the National

Institute of EnvironmentalHealth Sciences to:

• improve our understanding of the environmental and genetic determinants of disease in different populations;

• enhance interdisciplinaryresearch in order to furtherour knowledge about howtoxic chemicals affecthumans, and;

• disseminate existing knowledge to help reducethe burden of environmen-tally related disease.

FOR MORE INFORMATIONon the research taking place

at the UNC-Chapel Hill CEHS,VISIT OUR WEBSITE

at www.sph.unc.edu/cehs/

IT HAS BEEN A PRODUCTIVE three years since UNC-ChapelHill was awarded funding fromthe National Institute of Environ-mental Health Sciences to startthe Center for EnvironmentalHealth and Susceptibility (CEHS).In short order, our Center hasbecome a magnet for investigatorsfrom across the Carolina campus.Our programs have promotedinteraction and collaborationamong researchers, expanded thevision of experts in diverse fieldsof environmental health, encour-aged junior faculty to focus onenvironmental health, andenhanced the capabilities of anoutstanding cadre of scientists to excel beyond the norm.

In these three years, CEHSinvestigators have secured morethan $40 million in research

grants from the NationalInstitutes of Health and othersources, and published more than 300 original articles in peer-reviewed journals. Thesefunded projects and publicationscover a broad spectrum ofresearch questions that addressmany of the important issues inenvironmental health today, fromthe basic biology of environmen-tal diseases to population studieswhich have identified factorsrelated to disease and develop-ment. CEHS scientists also havea strong presence in emergingareas of biomedical research suchas genomics and proteomics.

To our original research coresin Genetic Susceptibility,Developmental Susceptibilityand Toxicokinetic Susceptibility,we recently added two

UNC CEHS ce lebra tes pas t ,looks to fu ture

DIRECTOR JAMES SWENBERG LOOKS BACK AT THE CENTER’S FIRST THREE YEARS, AND FORWARD TO EXCITING THINGS TO COME

CEHS scientists also have a strong presence in emerging areas of biomedical research such as genomics and proteomics.

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additional research cores tofocus on important new areas of discovery. The TransomicsResearch Core incorporates theexcitement and superb institu-tional commitment in genomics,proteomics and metabolomicsthat have been brought toresearchers at UNC-Chapel Hill.This core will encourage andexpand collaborations by apply-ing these contemporary tech-nologies to environmental health and susceptibility issues.

The Obesity Research Coreaddresses one of the most urgentpublic health problems in theCountry, addressing and enhanc-ing collaborative research inobesity-environment interac-tions. The core will investigateissues such as environmentalaspects of obesity-related dia-betes and the effects of obesityand rapid weight loss on envi-ronmental toxins.

The CEHS Facility Coreswill continue to provide a widerange of support to Center mem-bers that enhances scientific ini-tiatives by providing expertiseand specialized services atreduced cost.

One of the Center’s mostimportant activities has been our Pilot Project Program (PPP),which provides seed money tojunior and senior faculty toenhance their ability to obtainoutside funding in innovative,multidisciplinary areas of envi-ronmental health research.Center members have been successful in leveraging theseawards to secure outside grantsupport and publish their resultsin peer-reviewed journals.Already, PPP grant recipients

have generated external funding22 times greater than the initialseed grants they received.

Additionally, our researchershave been awarded grants forprojects as varied as studying thecauses, consequences and riskfactors for developing uterinefibroids and their impact on spon-taneous abortion or preterm birth;examining genetic determinantsof human and rodent responses to

environmental toxicants; anddeveloping a new biologicalapproach to cancer susceptibilityby describing genetic and envi-ronmental factors using transomictools. In addition, CEHS membershave also been actively involvedin training and mentoring gradu-ate students, postdoctoral fellowsand junior faculty who will be thenext leaders in the field of envi-ronmental health research.

Our Community Outreachand Education Program (COEP)has done an effective job trans-lating basic science informationinto more understandable terms,

and then sharing this informa-tion with people who need it.Through a variety of outreachactivities — including thisnewsletter, teacher professionaldevelopment and communityworkshops — the COEP staffhas communicated cutting-edge science to lay audiences,strengthened ties with communi-ty partners and facilitated theinvolvement of Center scientists.

As we look to the future, weanticipate that the levels of col-laboration at the CEHS willgrow at an even faster rate. Weare committed to continuing tobuild programs that are alreadyin place, and to adding new onesthat strengthen our ability toshed light on environmentalhealth and susceptibility issues.UNC-Chapel Hill has investedheavily in new technology andfaculty, and these investmentshave been integrated into theCEHS, providing new opportu-nities to further enhance ourresearch capabilities. n

Jorge Izquierdo, Center Scientific Coordinator, left, and Dr. James Swenberg,Center Director, right, in front of the School of Public Health.

55.5%

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graduate school at UNC-ChapelHill and has been on the facultysince 1982.

His current area of researchfocuses on cell cycle checkpointfunctions and DNA repair and heexplains what he does this way:“healthy genes, under conditionsof stress — like exposure to tox-ins in the environment — willslow the division of cells, provid-ing time to repair any DNA dam-age that has occurred, and pro-tecting us against the formation ofcancer. But there are variations,or mutations, in genes that weeither inherit or that we acquire inlife. These variations reduce thegenes’ ability to slow division or

repair damage, thus increasingour risk for developing cancer.We’re trying to identify what ishappening that is causing thosevariations when cells are exposedto certain environmental toxins.”

Kaufmann also directs theUNC Program in Toxicoge-nomics. “Genomics is a new areaof science now that we know thestructure and nucleotide sequence

of all of the genes in humans.We’re no longer looking at justone gene, or ten genes, or even ahundred or a thousand genes —we are studying 16,000 genes at a time to find the global patternsof cellular response to environ-mental toxins. Our goal is todetermine the ‘signatures’ for dif-ferent environmental stresses, sothat, based on the pattern of thesignature, we can tell exactlywhat kind of environmental dam-age a cell has been exposed to.”

With this knowledge, when amysterious case of toxic exposurearises, investigators will be able to look at the pattern and pinpointwhat carcinogen is involved.Kaufmann and his team are look-ing at toxins that include radiationfrom nuclear reactor disasters anduranium mines, as well as otherenvironmental carcinogens thatcause damage to DNA.

On another project,Kaufmann is trying to define

Behind the Scenes : A Gl impse in to the Lab o f Tox icogenet ic i s t B i l l Kau fmann

How do variations in people’sgenes affect the way they reactto environmental factors such as chemicals and radiation andlifestyle factors such as diet and smoking?

THAT’S THE QUESTION scientists in the CEHS GeneticSusceptibility Research Core are trying to answer. Dr. WilliamKaufmann, UNC professor ofpathology and laboratory medi-cine, is the Core’s director. Heleads a group of pathologists,biochemists, geneticists and epi-demiologists working together tosupport and expand collaborativeresearch on genetic susceptibility

to environmental toxins — andultimately, to explain who getsdiseases, and why.

Kaufmann’s own specialty is human carcinogenesis — thesteps and stages in the develop-ment of cancer. It’s a field heentered right out of college,when he worked as a researchtechnician at the National CancerInstitute. Kaufmann came to continued on page 6

Our goal is to determine the ‘signatures’ for different environmentalstresses ... so that we can tell exactly what kind of environmental damage

a cell has been exposed to.

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UNC CEHS par t o f na t iona l hea l th educat ion pro jec t

COEPs will pilot test the mate-rials with the target audiences and then refine them so they can be used during the designat-ed awareness events.

The CEHS COEP at UNC-Chapel Hill is partnering withVanderbilt University’s COEP to develop lead poisoning pre-vention materials. Communitypartners, including the NationalSafety Council inWashington DC andvarious state Childhood

Lead Poisoning PreventionPrograms, are helping to deter-mine topics and concerns toaddress, and will help imple-ment the new programs whenthey’re completed.

“Lead poisoning is a signifi-cant — and preventable — environmental health risk for

UNC-CHAPEL HILL IS ONE OFeight universities working on the Health Observances andPublic Education (HOPE)Partnership funded by theNational Center for ResearchResources to develop education-al materials for Asthma andAllergy Awareness Month,Cancer Control Month, and LeadPoisoning Prevention Week.

Over the next five years,the consortium of CommunityOutreach and EducationPrograms (COEPs) at eightNIEHS Environmental HealthCenters will create materials toeducate the public about thesethree major health issues.National and community organi-zations and government healthagencies are also taking part inthis ambitious project.

The COEPs will conductfocus groups with middle andhigh school students and teach-ers and the general public todetermine what they alreadyknow about biomedical andhealth sciences research, andwhat more they want to know.Materials will be developedbased on this feedback. The

children,” said Kathleen Gray,principal investigator for UNC-Chapel Hill’s HOPE grant. “UNC was chosen as aleader on this project becauseour Environmental ResourceProgram has been involved in childhood lead poisoning prevention in North Carolina for many years, and Dr. FrancesLynn, COEP director, is known

for her expertise inthis area.”

“This is an excitingopportunity for UNC-Chapel Hill to partici-pate in a national con-versation and educa-

EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS TO BE CREATED FOR LEAD POISONING PREVENTION, ASTHMA AND ALLERGY AWARENESS, AND CANCER

Chad Hallyburton,Youth Programs Manager

of the NC Museum of Life and Science and

community partner for the HOPE Partnership,

with Youth Partners

tional activity,” said COEPresearch associate, MeganHazelman who is also working on the project. She added “all of the COEPs have independentlydeveloped wonderful resources,and this is a chance to learn abouteach other’s work and to make a great impact nationally.” n

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UNC undergrad gets rea l -wor ld research exper ience and ass i s t s communi ty group

UNC-Chapel Hill senior and COEP intern Natenna Dobson discussesendocrine disruptors with Christine Miller of the NC Dept. of Environmentand Natural Resources.

they know about endocrine dis-ruptors, and how they are usingthis information in their work.

“From my research, I’velearned that the chemicals we add to the environment have both positive and negativeeffects. They may have benefitslike preserving food or getting

rid of insects, but at the sametime, they may be responsible for issues like early onset ofpuberty, obesity and reproductiveproblems. Ultimately, society will have to decide whether wecontinue to enjoy the benefits of certain chemicals, or whetherthe risks of having unhealthychildren, unhealthy reproductivesystems or unhealthy develop-ment are too great.”

Natenna, who plans to work at an environmental non-profit before going to graduateschool, can see herself contin-uing the research she’s begun.“At first, the internship was anopportunity to do environmentalresearch, gain skills and applymy education to real-life experi-ence. But now I plan to do further research on endocrine disorders, because I think thistopic needs further evaluation.” n

regulation in the body, potential-ly affecting reproduction, puber-ty and other hormone-relatedfunctions. Studies have shownadverse impacts from thesechemicals on the reproductivesystems of animals; however,most of these are at much higherdoses than humans are exposed

to. Since studies haven’t beendone on humans, the impact on people is still unclear. Aftergathering the latest science on these chemicals, Natennainterviewed North Carolina policymakers to find out what

AS PART OF THE FOUNDINGCEHS grant, the COEP offersinternships for Carolina under-graduates to work with com-munity groups. This year,Natenna Dobson, who willgraduate this May with adegree in EnvironmentalStudies, has been working as an intern with the NorthCarolina Conservation Network(NC ConNet) to gather the latest information on chemicals called “endocrine disruptors”and to learn if, and how, thisinformation is being used inenvironmental decision makingin North Carolina. She is being mentored by CEHSDirector, James Swenberg,and COEP Associate Director,Kathleen Gray.

Endocrine disruptors arechemicals that affect hormone

“From my research, I’ve learned that thechemicals we add to the environment

have both positive and negative effects.”

CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTALHEALTH AND SUSCEPTIBILITYThe University of North Carolina at Chapel HillCB#7432 Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7432

Address Service Requested

Printed on recycled paper

Non-Profit OrganizationU.S. Postage

PAIDPermit No. 177Chapel Hill, NC

S E N T I N E LThis newsletter is published annually

by the Center for EnvironmentalHealth and Susceptibility at theUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, with funding from

the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences

(P30ES10125).

James A. SwenbergCenter Director919-966-6139

james_swenberg@unc.edu

Frances LynnCOEP Director919-966-3335

fran_lynn@unc.edu

S E N T I N E LLaura Ertel, Writer

Regina McCoy-Hopper,Design and Layout, CHAI Core, funded by the Clinical Nutrition

Research Center and the Nutrient Assessment Facility Core

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the cellular changes that occur atdifferent stages of the develop-ment of cancer. Cancer developsfrom precursor lesions, which areoften the result of exposure to acarcinogen in the environment.Kaufmann’s team is trying tounderstand the biology of theseprecursor lesions, which are notyet cancer but are no longer nor-mal, and explain why theyprogress into cancer. He is alsocoordinating an interdisciplinaryproject to investigate the stagesin the development of malignantmelanoma. His work is supportedby the National Cancer Instituteand the National Institute ofEnvironmental Health Sciences.

As a researcher, Kaufmannfinds many benefits to beinginvolved with the CEHS. “TheCenter provides seed funds forearly-stage projects, which canincrease your chances of gettingmajor funding down the road. Italso provides opportunities forinteraction with people acrossdisciplines that you might nototherwise run into, and throughthose interactions, new collabora-tions can arise.”

Kaufmann’s research is at the beginning of a pipeline ofdiscovery that could somedaylead to new ways to treat or pre-vent cancer. “Until you under-stand the natural history of thedisease, where it comes from,and the steps in its development,you really can’t devise effectiveintervention strategies.” n

Behind the Scenes: A Glimpse into the Lab of Toxicogeneticist Bill Kaufmannfrom page 4