A recent study led by Kun Lu, PhD, leader of the UNC SRP’s Project 3, and collaborators, developed a new methodology that could help provide more insights into the role of the gut microbiome, the trillions of microbes in the intestine, in arsenic-induced metabolic disorders such as diabetes. This study, recognized by the National Institute... Read more »
February 15, 2022 A new tool developed by UNC environmental health researchers allows users to visualize trends in environmental contaminants, demographic information and environmental justice indicators across North Carolina.
“Minerals in the environment may exert even more control on the fate and transport of arsenic and other metals than previously thought,” Owen Duckworth, PhD, leader of the UNC SRP’s Project 4 explains. This is one of the key takeaways from recently published research on the structure of natural BIOS, or biogenic iron (oxyhydr)oxides, in... Read more »
Mikayla Armstrong, UNC-Chapel Hill, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering Graduate trainee, UNC SRP Project 5 In 2020, Consumer Reports detected high levels of arsenic in several brands of bottled water. Their reporting highlighted an interesting (and concerning) aspect of water quality—clear and seemingly clean water can be deceptively contaminated. Even when water is clear,... Read more »
The UNC Superfund Research Program (SRP), in collaboration with the UNC School of Law Well Water Pro Bono Project, the environmental non-profit Clean Water for North Carolina (CWFNC), the NC Department of Health and Human Services, the Division of Public Health’s Private Well and Health Program, and the NC Real Estate Commission engaged in an... Read more »
Royster Fellow, SRP trainee, and doctoral student Riley Vickers is bringing his expertise to a multidisciplinary team developing new water purification filters. His dissertation aims to improve synthetic membranes for water treatment using molecular-scale modeling. Click here to read full article
UNC SRP’s Project 5 is focused on identifying ways membrane systems can be better designed and implemented to improve arsenic removal and disposal methods. “Clarifying the fundamental mechanisms required for a membrane to separate arsenic from water is integral to designing new membranes that improve membrane treatment outcomes,” according to Orlando Coronell, PhD, Project 5... Read more »
This past summer, two high school students had the opportunity to experience mentorship in the SRP Project 2 and Project 5 labs. James Xenakis, Project 2 trainee, and Holly Haflich, Project 5 trainee, explained the process of getting high school students into the labs and how they contributed to moving the research forward amid the... Read more »
Four UNC undergraduate students spent their summer working in UNC SRP Director Rebecca Fry’s lab, building understanding of how environmental exposures to toxic substances are associated with human disease. Louisa Boateng, Victoria Evans, Noemi Gavino-Lopez, and Adriana Ruby Gatona presented their research to an audience of UNC faculty, staff, and students, as well as the... Read more »
Jeliyah Clark, UNC-Chapel Hill, Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering Graduate trainee, UNC SRP Project 2 and Project 3 Pregnancy is a magical time for an expecting mother, yet there are many aspects to consider when you’re eating for two. During the first weeks of pregnancy, finger-like projections emerge from a ball of cells that... Read more »
