CARCINOGENEIC SUBSTANCES AND HEALTH EFECTS OF ELECTMAGENTIC FIELDS

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As an associate investigator the primary objectives of this subproject will be to provide motivation and training in human health effects of carcinogenic hazardous substances and electropollution (electric and magnetic field radiations) generated by electric power lines and cellular phones. Students will use latest state of the art tools in molecular genetic approaches. One undergraduate and three graduate students will b involved in the ongoing funded biomedical projects of Dr. S.K. Dutta. Graduate students, current working in the MBRS project will continue their studies for 2 to 4 years. Undergraduate students will be expected to continue their studies for 15 to 24 months. Students will be trained in library studies, in collection and in analysis of data for presentations in meetings and write manuscripts for publications. The involvement of students will be in the following three currently funded areas: (i) One graduate and one undergraduate student will participate in rhizosphere bioremediation of contaminated soil and drinking water which are contaminated by the explosive TNT (trinitrotoluene) and its toxic metabolites; (ii) One graduate student will be involved in isolation and characterization of 2-Am-4-DNT and 2,4- DNT genes from the white rot fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium; (iii) One graduate student will be involved in phylogenetic and genome analysis of PCB dechlorinators. He/she will use ribotypes (based on 16S rRNA gene work) enriched from different contaminated sites and under different conditions having abilities to dechlorinate PCBs (polychlorobiphenyls). The fourth ongoing project has been to study possible carcinogenic effects of electric and magnetic fields generated by power lines and also be cellular phones. New funding for this fourth area is being solicited. Thus each student will have ideal environments for learning and be a productive biomedical scientist which is the major thrust of the current MBRS Associate Investigator program objectives. Several graduate and undergraduate MBRS students from Dr. Dutta's projects have received competitive monetary awards and plaques as recognitions for their quality research given by several national societies such as American Society for Microbiology, American Biophysical Society and Sigma Xi, as well as by Howard University Graduate School Symposium. Students have presented numerous papers in national meetings and are co-authors in serval papers.