January 2021 | Center for Human Health and the Environment
Upcoming Events
1/15/2021 - 5th Annual CHHE Symposium Kickoff (Part 1), Rick Woychik, NIEHS: "Vision for NIEHS and Environmental Health Science" 12:00pm - zoom link: https://ncsu.zoom.us/j/98244608497
1/19/21 - CHHE and Toxicology Co-sponsored Seminar: Khara Grieger, NC State: "Best Practices and Lessons Learned from 15 Years of Nanomaterial Risk Assessment and Risk Analysis"
2/5/2021 - Behavior and Neuroscience & Epigenetics and Genetics Interest Group's Seminar: Eric Nestler, Mount Sinai: "Transcriptional and Epigenetic Mechanisms of Drug Addiction".
12:00pm - zoom link: https://ncsu.zoom.us/j/95063463635
The Fifth Annual CHHE Symposium - "Celebrating the CHHE"
The 5th Annual CHHE symposium will be an unconventional symposium due to COVID-19 and will be presented in 4 individual parts over the course of the Spring 2021 semester. The symposium will celebrate the enabling aspects of the CHHE on research, communities and interdisciplinary collaborations. The symposium is open to anyone that would like to attend.
Part One - Dr. Rick Woychik, the new Director of NIEHS and NTP will present his vision for the NIEHS and EHS research and Chancellor Woodson will provide opening remarks.

Richard Woychik, Ph.D., became the Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), one of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the National Toxicology Program (NTP) on June 7, 2020. In these roles, Woychik oversees federal funding for biomedical research to discover how the environment influences human health and disease.
NC State/NIEHS CHHE - RFA $25 and $50K Projects
NC State/NIEHS Center for Human Heath and the Environment (CHHE) is announcing its request for applications (RFA) for pilot project proposals for Spring of 2021. Applications are due on February 15, 2021.  The earliest start date is mid-late March 2021.

Individual awards will range upwards to $25,000 (direct cost) for one year and CHHE expects to fund 5-7 proposals. This year CHHE will also award up to $50,000 (direct costs) for dual-investigator, multi-disciplinary research which requires more funds and split budgets. CHHE full members can now use the STC Voucher Program Funds for STC services that are part of a CHHE PPP.  The CHHE expects to fund up to 2 of these proposals. 
Learn more here.
Congratulations 2020 Fall Pilot Project Awardees
Title: The Role of TIP30 in the Long-term Epigenomic Response to Early-life TCDD Exposure
PI: David L. Aylor, Dept. of Biological Sciences, NC State
Co-I: Michael L. Sikes, Dept. of Biological Sciences, NC State

Title: Detoxifying a Toxic Environment: Investigating Sulforaphane-Mediated Prevention of Pollutant-Induced
Neurodevelopmental Abnormalities
PI: Karen Litwa, Dept. of Anatomy and Cell Biology, ECU
Co-I: Krista McCoy, Dept. of Biology, ECU

Title: Investigation of the toxicity of sub-10 nm particles on bacterial cells from airborne samples at low
mass concentration
PI: Markus Petters, Dept. of Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, NC State
Co-I: Nicholas Meskhidze, Dept. of Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, NC State
Co-I: Ryan Paerl, Dept. of Marine, Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, NC State
CHHE & Toxicology Program Co-sponsored Seminar: 1/19
Dr. Khara Grieger is currently an Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist in the Department of Applied Ecology at NC State. Her research focuses on best practices for risk assessment and risk governance of emerging technologies and advanced materials. Overall, Dr. Grieger is passionate about conducting interdisciplinary research that connects science, innovation, and society. For example, she currently serves as Project Director for a USDA/NIFA-funded grant that investigates the societal implications of engineered nanomaterials used in food and agricultural sectors. She is also the PI of a grant that aims to grow the field of risk science in the Research Triangle Park area of NC, through funding provided by the Society for Risk Analysis. Further, she is a Co-PI in a NC State-funded GRIP4PSI project, Sweet-APPS, in which she leads the stakeholder engagement efforts. In addition to research, Dr. Grieger also serves as an external advisory board member for a large European project focused on risk governance (RiskGONE), is the US Co-Chair for a US-EU Risk Management & Control Community of Research (COR) focused on nanomaterial risks and supported by the US National Nanotechnology Initiative, and an External Advisory Board member for the Town of Cary, NC.  
Behavior and Neuroscience & Epigenetics and Genetics Interest Group's Seminar: 2/5
Dr. Eric Nestler, MD,PhD, is an international leader in the fields of drug addiction and depression. He is the Nash Family Professor of Neuroscience, Director of the Friedman Brain Institute, and Dean for Academic and Scientific Affairs at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. He is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and the American Academy of Arts and Science. Dr. Nestler has authored more than 500 research articles and won dozens of prestigious awards. His laboratory has identified major genetic and epigenetic causes for drug overuse and abnormal behavior. He is an active mentor of students and postdoctoral fellows, and many of the emerging leaders in this field have trained with Dr. Nestler.
Kudos: People Making a Difference
Congratulations to Jun Ninomiya-Tsuji! She just received the prestigious NIH R35 Maximizing Investigator's Research Award (MIRA) for $1.84 M to study the protein kinase, TAK1, in signaling, disease and regulated cell death. NIGMS's MIRA funding is awarded to highly talented investigators and provides more funds and flexibility to pursue new ideas and opportunities as they arise during the course of research because the award is not tied to specific aims thereby enhancing scientific productivity and the chances for important breakthroughs. 

Congratulations Jane Hoppin for being named a member of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Committee on Guidance on PFAS Testing and Health Outcomes.
Community Engagement
Society of Toxicology tips for enhancing Science Communication skills featuring Katy May
Read more here.
Career Development
All investigators but particularly Early Stage Investigators are encouraged to work with the Career Development Core in development of their grants. Talk to Nanette Nascone-Yoder to set up a chalk talk to help organize ideas for your next proposal.
Reminders
Remember to cite our CHHE grant P30ES025128 in publications if CHHE has provided you services, facility core use, seed/pilot project funds etc. NIH tracks this as an important CHHE metric.
CHHE Resources and Facilities Page for NIH Grants is available on the CHHE website.
PINS: Remember when submitting your grants, be sure to select "Center for Human Health and the Environment" as a center in PINS. Link to Additional Resources
CHHE Cited Publications
Click here to check them out!