NIEHS-funded scientists work in a variety of disciplines, performing groundbreaking research into how the environment influences the development and progression of disease. Through these Stories of Success we invite you to explore the people behind the research in stories that you won't find in a scientific journal. Read about NIEHS grantees who are developing new technologies to better measure environmental exposures and their effects on our body; partnering with communities to help them understand the effects of pollution; and cultivating tomorrow's environmental health scientists.
Latest Stories
Studying Free Radicals to Improve Air Quality
May 2, 2024
Slawomir Lomnicki, Ph.D.
Slawo Lomnicki, Ph.D., examines dangerous combustion pollutants called environmentally persistent free radicals, aiming to discover ways to destroy them and prevent them from forming.
Untangling the Genetic and Environmental Complexities of Autism Spectrum Disorder
May 1, 2024
Heather Volk, Ph.D.
As an NIEHS grant recipient and associate professor at Johns Hopkins University, Heather Volk, Ph.D., investigates how interactions between environmental factors, such as air pollution, and genetic factors, like mutations, lead to autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in children.
Unraveling the Mysteries of DNA Repair
March 19, 2024
Patrick Sung, Ph.D.
For more than 30 years, biochemist Patrick Sung, Ph.D., has studied a cellular process essential to all life on earth: DNA repair.
From Lebanon to New Mexico: Studying How Contaminants Interact with Plant and Human Health
March 12, 2024
Eliane El Hayek, Ph.D.
Eliane El Hayek, Ph.D., is a research assistant professor at the University of New Mexico (UNM), where she works with the NIEHS-funded Superfund Research Program (SRP) Center to understand how exposures to heavy metals and tiny plastic particles known as microplastics affect human and plant health.
Applying the One Environmental Health Approach to Hexavalent Chromium
February 1, 2024
John Pierce Wise, Sr., Ph.D.
John Pierce Wise, Sr., Ph.D., champions a research approach for studying toxic chemicals focused on the intersection of human, animal, and ecosystem health.
Exposing Connections Between Air Pollution and Early Brain Development
December 12, 2023
Megan Herting, Ph.D.
Megan Herting, Ph.D., wants to understand environmental ties between the brain and human behavior.
Gut Check: Studying Environmental Connections Between Diet and Disease
November 29, 2023
Michael Petriello, Ph.D.
NIEHS grant recipient Michael Petriello, Ph.D., studies how the interplay between environmental pollutants and nutrition influences health.
Connecting DNA, Autoimmunity, and the Environment
October 11, 2023
Joann Sweasy, Ph.D.
NIEHS RIVER grantee Joann Sweasy, Ph.D., is exploring how gene-environment interactions affect the development of lupus.
Harnessing Data to Track Understudied Air Pollution Impacts
September 19, 2023
Marianthi-Anna Kioumourtzoglou, Sc.D.
Marianthi-Anna Kioumourtzoglou, Sc.D., an environmental engineer and epidemiologist at Columbia University, studies the effects of air pollution and climate change on populations and develops innovative methods to study the health effects of environmental exposures.