Research Triangle Park, NC -- (SBWIRE) -- 04/16/2012 -- The Hamner Institutes for Health Sciences (http://www.thehamner.org) has announced that four scientists have been recognized with awards from the Society of Toxicology, a professional organization committed to creating a safer and healthier world by advancing the science of toxicology at their 51st Annual Meeting that was held March 11-15 in San Francisco.

Dr. Russell Thomas, director, Institute for Chemical Safety Sciences and Center for Genomic Biology and Bioinformatics at The Hamner, was recognized for the Best Paper Advancing the Science of Risk Assessment Award for a paper he authored, titled “Application of Transcriptional Benchmark Dose Values in Quantitative Cancer and Noncancer Risk Assessment.” The paper, co-authored by Dr. Harvey Clewell, senior investigator and director, Center for Human Health Assessment, and Dr. Melvin Andersen, associate director, Institute for Chemical Safety Sciences, along with colleagues at Bruce Allen Consulting and the Environmental Protection Agency, demonstrates that transcriptomic changes, following a 13-week exposure to a chemical, can provide reasonable estimates of noncancer and cancer points of departure for use in quantitative risk assessments. The article was published in Toxicological Sciences in March 2011.

Dr. Anne Loccisano, a former postdoctoral fellow at The Hamner, was awarded a 2012 Top 10 Abstract Award, Risk Assessment Specialty Section for her effort as first author of a poster titled “Use of PBPK models to evaluate associations in epidemiologic studies of reproductive outcomes with PFOA and PFOS concentrations.” Co-authorship credits on the poster included Dr. Jerry Campbell, research investigator and associate director, Center for Human Health Assessment, Dr. Andersen, Dr. Clewell, and colleagues from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and 3M Corporation.

Dr. Bin Sun, postdoctoral fellow in the Institute for Chemical Safety Sciences, won the American Association of Chinese in Toxicology (AACT) Charles River Best Abstracts Award for his abstract entitled “Differential p53 DNA damage dose-response in human fibrosarcoma HT1080 and lymphoblast AHH-1 cells.” Co-authorship credits include colleagues from Unilever, Inc., and the following from The Hamner: Susan Ross, Allen Thomas, Joe Trask, Dr. Andersen and Dr. Rebecca Clewell.

Lijuan Zhan, a former predoctoral fellow at The Hamner, was awarded the Student Excellence in Research Award: First Place, Stem Cell Specialty Section, for her research project titled “Regulatory Role of NRF2 and KEAP1 in PPAR-gamma Expression and Chemoresistance in Human Non-small cell Lung Carcinoma Cells.” Hamner colleagues credited as co-authors on the poster include: Hao Zhang, Dr. Qiang Zhang, Dr. Peng Xue, Dr. Yongyong Hou, Aiping Wang, Weidong Qu, Kathy Yarborough, Dr. Courtney Woods, Dr. Andersen and Dr. Jingbo Pi.

QUOTES:
“We are proud of our scientists for receiving these honors from the Society of Toxicology,” said Dr. William F. Greenlee, president and CEO of The Hamner. “These rewards reflect the tireless efforts and dedication of our talented scientific staff, fellows and students, and they validate our standing as a global leader in environmental health sciences research, training and education.”

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About The Hamner Institutes for Health Sciences
The Hamner Institutes for Health Sciences is a nonprofit research organization located in the heart of Research Triangle Park (RTP), N.C. The two flagship institutes at The Hamner, the Institute for Chemical Safety Sciences and the Hamner-UNC Institute for Drug Safety Sciences, build upon 35 years of preeminent research in toxicology and human health research to develop and validate new cutting-edge tools for safety assessment. Novel technologies currently being developed include in silico models for predictive toxicology, in vitro models that utilize human cells or cell lines to evaluate perturbations of cellular responses, and in vivo models to elucidate genes that play a role in susceptibility to drug-induced toxicities. The Hamner continues to grow its open, multidisciplinary campus through global partnerships with academia, industry, and government, and remains dedicated to positively impacting human health. For more information, please visit http://www.thehamner.org.

Erin Smith
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