Molecular Basis of Risk Assessment

Students in the Molecular Basis of Risk Assessment Training Program receive a Ph.D. in Environmental Health. The Division of Environmental Health Sciences offers graduate and professional training in environmental health sciences and occupational medicine. The Division offers two master degree programs, a master of public health (MPH), for health professionals, and Master of Science (MS) designed to prepare students for technical careers in industry or government. The Division offers a program of study leading to the Ph.D. degree through the Graduate School. The proposed doctoral training program will bring together three tracks of the Environmental Health doctoral program to train students in molecular approaches to risk assessment. The goal of the Ph.D. program is to prepare students who will assume leadership positions in biomedical research at an academic institution, or undertake responsible positions in governmental or industrial research facilities. The curriculum will therefore stress fundamental training in the scientific principles of environmental health. It is expected that students who enter the program have a science background in biology or physical sciences. Deficiencies will be made up in the first year of study. In addition to formal course work, attendance at the regularly scheduled division seminars is expected. To be admitted to the doctoral program, the student must meet all the requirements for admission to the doctoral program in the School of Public Health. On completion of training, our graduates are qualified for positions in academia, government and industry.

The curriculum for the Molecular Basis of Risk Assessment Training Program consists of an integrated program of didactic work, seminars, journal clubs and collaborative research that stresses the relation between exposure, health effects, and policy considerations. Courses include several from each core that makes up the training program. In addition to the courses listed below, it is possible to add elective courses to meet the needs of a particular research area. A sample curriculum is shown in Table I.

Exposure Core Courses:
PubH 5103 Exposure to Environmental Hazards (2 Credits)
PubH 5190 Environmental Chemistry (3 credits)

Epidemiology Core Courses:
PubH 5320 Epidemiology (3 credits)
PubH 5450 Biostatistics (4 credits)
PubH 5351 Molecular Epidemiology (2 credits)
PubH 5345 Epidemiology Methods (2 credits)

Toxicology Core Courses:
PubH 5104 Environment and Health Effects (2 Credits)
PubH 5160 Physiological Disposition of Xenobiotics (2 Credits))
PubH 8160 Advanced Toxicology (2 Credits)
PhCl 5111 Pharmacogenomics
Bioch 5331/2 Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (8 Credits)
Physl 5160 Physiology (4 Credits)
CellB 4404 Cell Biology (4 Credits)

Policy Core Courses:
PubH 5105 Environmental and Occupational Health Policy (3 Credits)
PubH 5112 Risk Analysis: Applications to Risk-Based Decision-Making (3 credits)
PubH 5113 Public Policy and Risk Strategies for Effective Decisions and Discourse (3 Credits)

PubH 5104. Environmental Health Effects: Toxicology and Epidemiology. (2 cr.) Identification of mechanisms and effects on human health of environmental agents, including chemical, biological, physical, and psychological agents.

PubH 5105. Environmental and Occupational Health Policy. (3 cr.) Students develop an understanding of environmental and occupational health policies, laws, essential concepts and principles, proposals and approaches for regulatory reform, approaches to policy analysis, and overall phases and issues in the policy-making process.

PubH 5112. Risk Analysis: Application to Risk-Based Decision-Making. (3 cr.) Introduction to risk in context of regulatory decision-making.

PubH 5113. Public Policy and Risk: Strategies for Effective Decisions and Discourse. (3 cr.)
Introduction to and overview of policy making in public health and the environment characterized by substantial risk and uncertainty. Basic mathematics of decision making under risk and uncertainty, the cognitive psychology of how people react to risk, and methods of risk communication.

PubH 5160. Physiological Disposition of Xenobiotics. (2 cr.) Pharmacokinetics/toxicokinetics and xenobiotic metabolism. Mechanisms by which phase I and phase II enzymes bioactivate and detoxify xenobiotics. Implications of these biochemical reactions for human health.

PubH 5190. Environmental Chemistry. (3 cr.) Overview of air, water, and soil chemistry; pertinent environmental problems; human and ecological multimedia exposures to chemicals in the environment.

PubH 5320. Fundamentals of Epidemiology. (3 cr.) Basic concepts and knowledge of epidemiology, a methodology used to study the etiology, distribution, and control of diseases in human populations.

PubH 5351. Molecular Epidemiology (2 cr.) Introduction to molecular epidemiology. Overview of sample collection, processing, and methodology examines some of the biomarkers used in cancer, cardiovascular disease, and infectious epidemiologic studies.

PubH 5450. Biostatistics I. (4 cr.) Descriptive statistics; Gaussian probability models, point and interval estimation for means and proportions; hypothesis testing, including t, chi-square, and non-parametric tests; regression and correlation techniques; one-way analysis of variance; health science applications using output from statistical packages.

PubH 8160. Advanced Toxicology. (2 cr. /max 12 cr.) Cellular and molecular mechanisms by which xenobiotics cause toxicity; investigative approaches to current research problems in toxicology and carcinogenesis. Apoptosis, cell cycle regulation, genetic toxicology, molecular mechanisms of chemical carcinogenesis, and genetic basis for susceptibility to environmental toxicants.

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PubH 5161. Regulatory Toxicology. (2 cr.) In-depth introduction to laws (and associated regulations) of U.S. federal regulatory agencies, such as CPSC, EPA, FDA, OSHA, and DOT, that both require and use toxicological data/information in their mission of protecting human and environmental health.

PubH 5348. Writing Research Grants. (2 cr.) Focuses on NIH-type grants. Mechanics of grant development and writing, principles of informed consent, budget development, grant-review process, identifying funding sources.

PubH 5387. Cancer Epidemiology. (2 cr.) Epidemiologic aspects of cancer, including theories of carcinogenesis, incidence, site-specific risk factors, and issues of cancer control and prevention.

PubH 5735. Public Ethics/Politics and Public Health. (2 cr.) Systematic examination of ethical/value aspects related to decision making in public health interventions. Responsibilities of the state in relation to health, politics as public ethics, and distributive justice in a pluralistic society.

PubH 5693. Grant Writing for Public Health. (1 cr.) Hands-on workshop for those with all levels of grant writing experience; focuses on children, youth, and families. Identifying successful elements of a grant application; understanding the grant review process; critiquing a grant; and writing a grant application.

Seminars are an integral part of the training program. These are excellent opportunities for students and faculty members to exchange data, new scientific findings, and to interact on a collegial basis with members outside their laboratory groups. These are also opportunities for students to meet scientists from other institutions. Seminars for 1999 – 2000 are summarized in Appendix I. In addition to the environmental health seminar program, students regularly attend seminars sponsored by the Cancer Center, and preclinical departments of the Academic Health center.

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During the first year, each student will perform three rotation experiences. Each rotation will consist of a 10-week research experience in a laboratory of a faculty member in the training program. The selection of laboratory depends upon the student's interests and the availability of space. At the end of each rotation, the student will present an oral summary of their studies to the faculty in a 30-minute presentation.

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Prior to completion of the final laboratory rotation, the Steering Committee will meet with each first-year graduate student and discusses the student's research interests and the selection of an advisor. The advisor will recommend the composition of a Thesis Advisory Committee to the Director of Graduate Studies in Environmental Health. The thesis committee includes three members from the graduate faculty of the Training Program. Committee members serve on the trainee's Preliminary and Final Oral Examining Committees. The student must submit a thesis proposal to the Thesis Advisory Committee and to the Preliminary Oral Examining Committee on or before August 1 of the second year. The proposal describes the research that will serve as the basis for the thesis and includes:

a review of the pertinent literature

a summary of the student's research accomplishments

the rationale for and significance of the research

a description of methods, experimental approach and analysis

the anticipated results and contingency plans, and

literature citations.

The student and the advisor schedule annual meetings with the Thesis Advisory Committee to evaluate their progress towards completing their project.

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Before the end of the second year, students must pass a written preliminary examination. The purpose of the written preliminary exam is to help determine whether a student is prepared to pursue independent research in environmental health. This exam consists of a research proposal written by the student. The proposal will be written in the NIH format. The proposal should demonstrate the student's ability to: 1) formulate a thoughtful and logical approach for investigating a research problem; 2) understand advantages and limitations of the experimental approach; 3) master the literature in a field of research in Environmental Health; and 4) write a clear, well-organized research proposal in grammatical English. The examining committee will consist of three members of the graduate faculty. The thesis advisor may not be a member of the examining committee. While the thesis advisor may guide the student as he or she prepares the research proposal, the advisor may not write the proposal for the student. The reviewers will evaluate the research proposal on both form and content, considering the guidelines listed in the following section. The proposal will be graded as either pass, pass with revisions, or fail. If the grade is pass with revisions, the student will be given three months to revise and resubmit the research proposal. If a student fails the preliminary examination, the Steering Committee will review the student's overall performance and makes a recommendation about reexamination. Students are encouraged to consult with the advisor and committee members while revising the research proposal. The revised proposal will be graded either pass or fail. Within two weeks of passing the written examination, the student and advisor will schedule an Oral Preliminary examination, in which the student will defend the proposal. Questions in the Oral examination will not be limited to the proposal. The examination consists of questions designed to test the student's ability to apply basic principles to solving problems and general knowledge. The oral preliminary examining committee has the same members as the Thesis Advisory Committee, whenever possible. Upon passing the oral preliminary examination, the student is admitted to candidacy for the Ph.D. degree.

The requirements for the Ph.D. degree include completion of a satisfactory research project; approval, by the Thesis Advisory Committee, of a written thesis based on this research; and passing the final oral examination, which involves presenting a seminar based on the thesis and defending the thesis. The Examining Committee is made up of members of the Thesis Advisory Committee, and two members outside the program.

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