TOXICOLOGY PROJECT

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PROJECT 2:TOXICOLOGY Program Director/Principal Investigator (Last, First, Middle): Natalicio, Diana S./Kirken, Robert 1. Introduction to Resubmission Application This is the revised version of an application that was rated "Good" in the first review cycle. We appreciate the reviewer's helpful comments and suggestions and have addressed the majority of the concerns throughout this proposal. One of the major criticisms was the lack of a detailed plan for the expansion of translational research by the Project. One specific example of a new initiative with translational potential is outlined in Section 5.2.2 as well as a directed hire in pharmacology or molecular toxicology. The second major criticism was the lack of needed equipment on-site for analyzing water samples for Pharmaceuticals and personal care product derivatives. Please see the description of the GC MS capabilities described under Core B which should be more than sufficient for most applications, for the remainder a budget item has been included to send the samples out for additional analyses. Other criticisms are addressed in the following narrative. The Toxicology Project (TOXP) is one of the three broad research groups within the BBRC, along with the Infectious Disease and Immunology Project (IDIP) and Neurology and Metabolic Disorders (see Figure 1 below). TOXP promotes and fosters collaboration among Pis within the Project, among Projects, with other Departments at UTEP as well as with investigators located outside of UTEP. As outlined in detail below, TOXP actively supports the basic research into environmental, human and animal health issues as they relate to the discipline of Toxicology. Key or crucial issues along the U.S.-Mexico border are: heavy metal contamination and exposure, water pollution from both domestic and international sources, air pollution and the associated acute and chronic exposure to the environmental contaminants originating from the deposition of a suite of small molecules that pollute the air. TOXP research expertise and access to highly specialized equipment allows us to engage in state of the art research in these areas. TOXP promotes and supports dissemination of research findings by supporting travel to local, regional, national and international conferences. Aside from supporting participation at professional meetings, TOXP provides funds for participation in other professional development opportunities such as attendance to specialized workshops. TOXP's research agenda is well integrated with IDIP and NMDP. Collaborative efforts among our research groups are described below in Section 4.2. This overall mission enhances our current Toxicology research efforts and increases the future competitiveness of our investigators toward securing extramural funding for student and community education in addition to hypothesis- and need-driven research into environmental pollution issues along the U.S.-Mexico border.