College of Veterinary Medicine - The Center for Environmental Health Sciences

Dr. Jan Chambers will present “The Center for Environmental Health Sciences: Understanding the effects of environmentally-relevant chemicals on organisms and the effects of organisms on environmentally-relevant chemicals”. Dr. Chambers is the Director of the Center for Environmental Health Sciences (CEHS), which provides a focus for research and student training directed toward maintaining and improving the quality of environmental health in Mississippi, the nation, and the world. She provides leadership of the Center and assists in initiating and promoting research and graduate student training in environmental toxicology.

Because humans and ecosystems are continuously exposed to foreign chemicals, organisms are increasingly at risk for chemically-induced damage. CEHS researchers study the types of damage elicited by such chemicals on normal biological function, as well as internal and external defenses that can preserve life and normal function. Areas of research emphasis are: damage to/protection of the nervous system including the vulnerability of developing organisms and countermeasures to chemical threats; chemical impact on the immune system; foreign chemical interactions in metabolism including lipid balance and obesity; and health disparities as related to exposure to persistent environmental toxicants. Research projects are primarily biomedical and supported by the National Institutes of Health.