5222.0: Wednesday, October 24, 2001: 4:30 PM-6:00 PM

Oral Session

Genomics and Environmental Health: Enhancing the Public Health Impact of the Research Programs of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and the National Toxicology Program (NTP)

The NIEHS has a long history of basic and practical research on a wide range of topics of importance to environmental and public health, both through its intramural research and extramural grants programs. Included in these programs are the rodent toxicology and carcinogenesis testing programs of the NTP. These studies have provided a uniform, high quality database on which many regulatory decisions are based. Scientific advances in biomarker research, genomics and proteomics could substantially reduce the time and expense involved in generating information and hold great promise for improving the quality and relevance of the research products of these programs. Advances in genetics are being applied to the field of environmental medicine with the intention of giving doctors a way to intervene early in a disease process caused by environmental exposures. Programs are being developed or are underway that place an emphasis on integrating research findings with information on actual human exposures to various toxicants to provide direct estimates of environmental effects linked to human reproduction and human cancer. It is the purpose of this discussion session to highlight some of the existing and planned research programs of the NIEHS and the NTP with the hope of receiving feedback from the public health community, which will enhance their relevance and impact.
See individual abstracts for presenting author's disclosure statement.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, the participant in this session will be able to: 1) Discuss four NIEHS and NTP priority areas of environmental health research and their impact on risk assessments; 2) Participate further in determining research directions of both the NIEHS and the NTP and in selecting chemicals through public input, comment and/or nomination of chemicals for study and review; 3) Participate on panels, committees, boards, councils that provide oversight and review of these programs, as appropriate and as qualified.
Organizer(s):Christopher Portier, PhD
4:30 PMUnderstanding gene-environment interactions: The toxicogenics revolution in environmental public health
Kenneth Olden, PhD
4:45 PMDepartment of Health and Human Services (DHHS): Report on Carcinogens
Eula Bingham, PhD
5:00 PMEnhancing the Public Health Impact of the Research Programs of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and the National Toxicology Program (NTP)
Olden Kenneth, PhD, Christopher Portier, PhD, Eula Bingham, PhD, Lynn Goldman, MD
5:15 PMNational Toxicology Program Center for the Evaluation of Risks to Human Reproduction (NTP CERHR)
Lynn Goldman, MD
5:30 PMNational Toxicology Program (NTP) priority areas
Christopher Portier, PhD
5:45 PMAudience Participation and Discussion
Sponsor:Environment
Cosponsors:Epidemiology; Occupational Health and Safety
CE Credits:CME, Environmental Health, Health Education (CHES), Nursing, Pharmacy, Social Work

The 129th Annual Meeting of APHA