Project 5

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Project 5 ABSTRACT The effects from hazardous substances in the environment can be compounded by their mobilization and redistribution in polluted sediment, soil, water and air following natural disasters and emergencies. Of immediate concern is the safety of safe water and food supplies. Other threats include soil contamination (lawns, community gardens, parks and recreational areas), along with increased risk of human dermal and inhalation exposures near the site of the impact. A major challenge associated with these emergencies is protecting vulnerable communities and neighborhoods, first responders to the disaster, frontline personnel, and those involved in the management and cleanup of the site. Thus, the ability to rapidly minimize hazardous substance effects during disaster events is a critical need. In Aim 1 of this proposal, multicomponent sorbents will be synthesized from diverse materials and compounds that are generally recognized as safe (GRAS), and these sorbents will tightly bind environmental chemicals and design mixtures with high capacity and affinity. The reaction kinetics, thermodynamics and fundamental mechanism(s) involved in interactions between the surfaces of selected sorbent materials and hazardous environmental chemicals and mixtures will be determined using currently available in vitro methods. Computational methods will be used to validate and provide fundamental insights, as well as to predict sorbent properties and screen for optimum GRAS amendments, thus providing feedback and integration with all experiments. Well-established animal and plant organisms that possess a low tolerance for environmental chemicals in water, soil, and sediment will include the Cnidarian model system (Hydra vulgaris), the Lemna minor (duckweed) assay, and the Caenorhabditis elegans nematode assay. These living (in vivo) model systems will be used to predict the toxicity of polluted samples and to validate the efficacy of our selected sorbents and our in vitro and in silico results. In Aim 2, multicomponent sorbents will be developed that will remove hazardous substances from contaminated food, drinking water and soil. Novel barrier formulations will be developed for skin protection and for filter inserts in protective masks to reduce dermal and inhalation exposures to chemicals. In Aim 3, our in vivo models will be used to evaluate real-life environmental samples from disaster sites and well-characterized superfund sites. In these studies, optimal sorbents and levels of inclusion that will result in detoxification of hazardous substances will be determined. Existing collaborations with Community Engagement Core, well-established technology transfer expertise, and interdisciplinary interactions in Project 5 will add an important capability and dimension to the overall Center. The project-to-field pathway for the development of broad-acting sorbents and formulations for hazardous chemicals during the course of our study has been firmly established. We have identified relevant stakeholders and vulnerable communities that will benefit from these products. It is expected that sorbent and barrier technology developed in this research will result in reduced chemical exposures in people and animals during disasters and emergencies.