First Eco-NAMs Webinar - State of the Science for Bioaccumulation

The information below was received from ETOX alumnus Wesley Hunter, a branch chief at the US FDA.   

First Eco-NAMs Webinar of New Series - State of the Science for Bioaccumulation: An Integrated, Weight of Evidence Approach

Wednesday, September 10 at 8:00-9:00 ET

The new webinar series aims to offer the most informative and up-to-date science on the use of new approach methodologies (NAMs) for ecotoxicity assessments (Eco-NAMs). Each webinar will consist of presentations by experts followed by a discussion period. It provides an open forum for scientists from academia, industry, non-government organizations, regulatory authorities, and other interested parties including the general public to learn about and discuss various ecotoxicity NAMs topics.

The Eco-NAMS webinar series is co-organized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, European Medicines Agency, Health and Environmental Sciences Institute, National Institute for Environmental Studies (Japan), and PETA Science Consortium International e.V.

The first webinar in the Eco-NAMs series on the use of new approach methodologies in regulatory ecotoxicology is called “State of the Science for Bioaccumulation: An Integrated, Weight of Evidence Approach.” It will feature presentations by Dr. Pippa Curtis, Senior Specialist at the Chemical Assessment Unit, United Kingdom Environment Agency (UK EA), and Dr. Michelle Embry, Deputy Director of the Health and Environmental Sciences Institute (HESI).

Additional information and registration are available at State of the Science for Bioaccumulation: An Integrated, Weight of Evidence Approach.

Mihri and Cengiz Ozkan Named Fellows of the National Academy of Inventors

Mihri Ozkan, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and an ETOX faculty member and her husband Cengiz Ozkan, Professor of Mechanical Engineering, were both elected as Fellows in the National Academy of Inventors at its 2025 Annual Meeting in Atlanta, Georgia.  They are the first husband and wife couple to be induced into the Academy.  Their election recognizes their innovative contributions in sustainable energy storage, nanomaterials technologies and in other areas.  More information on the Ozkans and their work can be found in the linked Inside UCR news article.  Our congratulations to both Mihri and Cengiz for their election to this prestigious academy. [The photo above is from the Inside UCR article.]

Zhao Lab Develops Probe that Protects Mitochondrial DNA from Degradation

A research group led by Linlin Zhao, professor in the Chemistry Department and Chair of the Environmental Toxicology Graduate Program, has developed a probe that protects mitochondrial DNA from degradation. The probe was designed by Anal Jana, a postdoctoral fellow in the Zhao lab.  As described in their article in the German Chemical Society journal Angewandte Chemie International, the mitochondria-targeting probe (mTAP) selectively reacts with abasic (AP) sites, key mtDNA repair intermediates. After mTAP conjugation, DNA substrates containing AP sites are resistant to cleavage by AP endonuclease and the mitochondrial DNA is protected from degradation. More information can be found in a UCR News article on the study and their article (see link above). Their work was also the focus of an article in Interesting Engineering. Our congratulations to Linlin, Amal and Yu-Hsuan Chen, for this interesting and novel work.