Toxicologist Positions in the California EPA and the Department of Pesticide Regulation

The California EPA Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment and the Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) are searching for candidates to fill multiple positions at the two agencies.  The DPR is searching for a Supervising Toxicologist (Human Health Assessment Branch Chief) and an Associate Toxicologist.  Both are located primarily in Sacramento, California and have an application deadline of October 15 and 30. The CalEPA Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment is also searching for a Senior Toxicologist (Chief of the Cancer Toxicology and Epidemiology Section) and several Cancer Toxicologists. The location for these is more flexible and applications will be accepted until the positions are filled.  More information on these positions can be on the CalCareers Website using the keyword toxicologist. 

I might mention that we have numerous alumni working at these two agencies and they seem to be content with their positions and opportunities.  

Lillian Tran Wins NSF Graduate Research Fellowship

Lillian Tran, a current ETOX graduate student, has been awarded a three year Graduate Research Fellowship from the National Science Foundation (NSF).  The award will support her research on the environmental impacts of PFAS thermal treatment and transformation.  Our congratulations to Lillian for this nice award and recognition of her research ideas.  

Bill Jury Wins Prestigious Kirkham Soil Physics Gold Medal

Bill Jury, a retired Distinguished Professor in the Environmental Sciences Department and one of the early founding faculty members of the Environmental Toxicology Graduate Program, has recently been awarded the Don and Betty Kirkham Soil Physics Gold Medal from the Soil Science Society of America. This  international soil science medal has only been awarded 3 times at approximately eight year intervals and was given to Professor Jury for his work studying the movement of hazardous contamination in water and soil.  More information on Prof. Jury and the award can be found in a recent Inside UCR web article. Our congratulations to Bill for this impressive recognition. [The photo is from the Inside UCR article.]

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.  

Chief of the Cancer Toxicology and Epidemiology Section at OEHHA

        California EPA's Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment is searching for senior toxicologist to serve as the Chief of its Cancer Toxicology and Epidemiology Section.  As described by the agency, "The Chief of the Cancer Toxicology and Epidemiology Section (CTES) has an understanding of carcinogenesis, and will provide expert scientific oversight and supervision of a team responsible for providing technical support for listing chemicals as causing cancer under Proposition 65, developing guidelines for assessing risks of exposure to chemicals that cause cancer, and conducting dose-response and exposure assessment." Specific duties, requirements and information to apply can be found on the CalCareers website. The position will be open until filled.