Chemical and Biological Assessment of Endocrine Disruptors in Waterways of Southeast Texas

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HRD- 0401587Chemical and Biological Assessment of Endocrine Disruptors in Waterways in Southeast TexasTexas Southern UniversityPI: Joseph JonesGenetics and molecular biology researchers from Texas Southern University's Environmental Toxicology program will assess environmental contamination in the waterways of southeast Texas. Research will focus on chemical and biological endocrine disruptors in the lower Galveston Bay watershed. Research efforts will: (1) identify and quantify endocrine disruptors; (2) measure the effects of endocrine disruptors on cell proliferation and DNA repair in estrogen-sensitive cell lines; and (3) evaluate changes in dopamine content in neuronal cells treated with endocrine disruptors, and further examine the mechanism by which these chemicals may disrupt dopamine content.The project supports for a cadre of incoming doctoral students; faculty and graduate student participation at professional meetings; and, undergraduate and high school student supervised research opportunities managed through a Summer Internship Program. A regional conference on the multidisciplinary assessment of environmental contamination in Texas waterways will be held project-year 3.This project combines state of the art monitoring capabilities with cutting-edge basic research to define the biological sequel of exposure to identified aquatic endocrine disruptors. The work, to be conducted by Texas Southern University researchers, will incorporate underrepresented minority students at the high school, undergraduate, and graduate levels. Broader impacts of the proposed activity include the enhancement of the doctoral training capacity of TSU, and an increase in the number of underrepresented minority students entering into STEM-related graduate fields.