SRP Progress in Research Webinar: Session II — Heavy Metals in Native American Communities

This Progress in Research webinar series will showcase research from 11 new and renewed Multiproject Center grantees, funded by SRP in 2022. These awards were made as part of the P42 grant solicitation RFA-ES-20-014. In the four-part series, awardees will highlight their research projects, accomplishments, and next steps.

The University of New Mexico SRP Center collaborates with Indigenous partners from Navajo Nation and Laguna Pueblo to reduce the health risks associated with exposure to metal mixtures from abandoned uranium mines. Center scientists use community informed, solution-oriented team science to prevent exposures and protect health through development of partnered environmental and clinical interventions.

The Columbia University Northern Plains SRP Center studies hazardous metals in drinking water, which are common contaminants near Superfund sites and abandoned uranium mines that play a role in the high burden of heart disease and diabetes affecting Tribal communities in the U.S. Northern Plains. The center will continue to generate knowledge to understand the underlying mechanisms and possible solutions to exposures to hazardous metal mixtures using systems science, local community knowledge, and novel remediation technology.

To learn about and register for the other sessions in this webinar series, please see the SRP website.

Anjali Mulchandani, Ph.D., University of New Mexico (anjalim@unm.edu)
Anjali Mulchandani, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering at the University of New Mexico (UNM). She leads the Environmental Resource Sustainability group, which studies themes related to environmental and water resources engineering, atmospheric water harvesting, waste-to-energy technologies, and environmental remediation. Her work integrates and highlights science communication and needs-based research from the perspectives of industry and impacted communities. Her passions include designing hands-on learning tools and leading public outreach initiatives for STEM awareness and engagement among all levels of learners. Previously, Dr. Mulchandani was a postdoctoral research scholar at Stanford University. She earned her M.S. and Ph.D. from Arizona State University and B.S. from UCLA. She is the recipient of several awards, including the UNM School of Engineering Junior Faculty Teaching Excellence Award, the UNM ADVANCE Women in STEM Award, the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship, and the Arizona State University Engineering Dean's Dissertation Award.

Alicia Bolt, Ph.D, University of New Mexico (ambolt@salud.unm.edu)
Alicia Bolt, Ph.D., is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of New Mexico (UNM), College of Pharmacy. Dr. Bolt received a bachelor’s in Biology from the University of Northern Colorado and a PhD in Pharmacology and Toxicology from the University of Arizona. Dr. Bolt has extensive experience using primary cell differentiation models and multi-parameter flow cytometry as tools to characterize metal-induced toxicity and disease states. She is currently investigating how inhalation exposures to mixed-metal mine site waste leads to pulmonary immune dysfunction and the development of autoimmunity as part of the UNM METALS Superfund research program.

Jose Cerrato, Ph.D., University of New Mexico (jcerrato@unm.edu)
José M. Cerrato, Ph.D., is associate professor and Regents’ lecturer, and associate chair for undergraduate studies in the Department of Civil, Construction & Environmental Engineering at the University of New Mexico (UNM). He obtained a B.S. in civil engineering from the National Autonomous University of Honduras, and M.S. and Ph.D. in environmental engineering from Virginia Tech. He was also a postdoctoral researcher in Washington University in St Louis. He serves as associate director of the UNM Center for Water and the Environment, and Deputy Director of the UNM METALS Superfund Research Center. His research interest is related to biogeochemical processes occurring at molecular and macro scales at the interface of water and energy. He has been a recipient of the National Science Foundation CAREER Award, and Fulbright U.S. Scholar Senior Research Award to Spain.

Ana Navas-Acien, Ph.D., Columbia University (an2737@cumc.columbia.edu)
Ana Navas-Acien, Ph.D., is a Professor of Environmental Health Sciences at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. Her research and teaching focus on the role of the environment in common diseases with the goal of improving people’s health. She is recognized for bridging medical and environmental health sciences using a participatory approach. She directs the Columbia University Northern Plains Superfund Research Program, a center that integrates science, technology, and traditional knowledge to protect the Northern Plains water resources and Indigenous communities from hazardous metal exposures.

Steve Chillrud, Ph.D., Columbia University (chilli@ldeo.columbia.ed)
Steve Chillrud, Ph.D., is a Lamont Research Professor at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University. He is an environmental geochemist who has specialized in exposure assessment and remediation issues related to air, water, and soil contamination. Steve is the co-Director of the CUNP-SRP, the principal investigator of Project 1, and a co-investigator on Project 5.

Rae O'Leary, Missouri Breaks Industries Research, Inc. (rae.oleary@mbiri.com)
Rae O’Leary is a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa. She conducts research and leads public health initiatives for Missouri Breaks Industries Research, Inc. (MBIRI), which is located on the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation in South Dakota. Rae has led public health policy and research initiatives in the areas of commercial tobacco prevention, Tribal COVID response, environmental health, and maternal child health. For the Columbia University Northern Plains Superfund Research Program (CUNP-SRP), Rae leads the community engagement core with Ben Bostick from Columbia University and oversees the collaborations between MBIRI and all the academic partners that make up the CUNP-SRP.

Moderator:

Brittany A. Trottier, Health Specialist, Superfund Research Program, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (brittany.trottier@nih.gov)
Brittany Trottier, M.P.H., is a Health Specialist with the Superfund Research Program (SRP). She provides program analysis and support of SRP activities, supports communication of SRP grantees’ scientific accomplishments, and serves as the lead for SRP community engagement activities. She also oversees the Conference Grant portfolio for SRP and serves as the Program Manager for the KC Donnelly Externship Award Supplement to promote translational and transdisciplinary efforts in graduate and post-doctoral for SRP trainees. She received her Master’s in Public Health from the Milken Institute School of Public Health of The George Washington University in 2017 and has a Bachelor of Arts in Chemistry from Adrian College.

• Slide Presentation for University of New Mexico (2.32MB/PDF)
• Slide Presentation for Columbia University - Northern Plains (5.36MB/PDF)

Webinar Slides and References:

• Slide Presentation for University of New Mexico (2.32MB/PDF)
• Slide Presentation for Columbia University - Northern Plains (5.36MB/PDF)

Additional Resources:

• Read more about Mallery Quetawki's work, artist-in-residence with the University of New Mexico SRP Center
• Check out the Columbia University Northern Plains SRP Center's Canli Tobacco Coalition Toolkit and framework
• NIEHS Superfund Research Program Fact Sheet
• NIEHS "Limited Competition: Superfund Hazardous Substance Research and Training Program (P42 Clinical Trial Optional)” funding opportunity, RFA-ES-23-001.
• NIEHS Superfund Research Program Funding Opportunities webinar on May 15, 2023, from 12-1 pm EDT.
• Email srpinfo@mail.nih.gov to be added to the SRP Risk e-Learning listserv.

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