Introduction
to the SWEHSC
The
Southwest Environmental Health Sciences Center (SWEHSC) serves as a platform
to
promote the study of health effects of environmental agents. The SWEHSC
promotes interdisciplinary research collaborations driven by cutting-edge
technologies. Research in the SWEHSC is focused on mechanisms of action
of environmental agents in living systems. This theme reflects the unique
strengths and expertise of SWEHSC investigators and the direction in
which the SWEHSC will have its greatest long-term impact on the environmental
health sciences. The SWEHSC integrates member-investigators into Research
Cores, which foster interdisciplinary research in specific research problems.
The SWEHSC supports shared Facility Cores, which make available unique
experimental tools and cutting-edge technologies. The SWEHSC supports
Pilot Projects, research seminars and workshops to attract new investigators,
promote new collaborations, and provide educational opportunities for
members. In addition to serving as a platform for interdisciplinary research,
the SWEHSC is a vehicle to translate research advancements in the environmental
health sciences into education and the community at large. Thus, the
SWEHSC supports a Community Outreach and Education Program (COEP), which
develops educational tools to integrate environmental health sciences
into K-12 education and to promote community understanding of the health
impact of the environment.
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Core
The SWEHSC
Administrative Core provides organization, staff support, and long-term
leadership to guide the SWEHSC. Specific functions of the Administrative
Core include providing day-today financial and administrative management
of SWEHSC functions, coordinating the activities of Internal and External
Advisory Committees, managing the appointment and review of SWEHSC Investigators,
fostering the growth and evolution of Research Cores, directing the implementation
of essential technologies through existing and new Facilities Cores,
managing the Pilot Project Program, and supporting the intellectual environment
of the SWEHSC through enrichment
activities.
Members
* Serrine Lau, Ph.D., Director
* R. Clark Lantz, Ph.D., Deputy Director
* I. Glenn Sipes, Ph.D., Administrative Consultant
* Susanna Brodie, Program Coordinator
* Karla Nunez, Business Manager
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Priorities,
Plans and Vision
Our
strength in basic research on the mechanisms of action of environmental
agents
certainly places us at the leading edge of the discipline as it now stands.
However, things are changing fast in all areas of biomedical research.
These changes are driven by fantastic new technologies in genomics, proteomics,
imaging and computing that will fundamentally change the way we approach
the study of biology. To remain at the leading edge of our field, we
must acquire these new capabilities and adapt them to our study of the
effects of environmental agents on health and
disease.
Accordingly, our first priority is to drive the implementation of key new technologies
in the SWEHSC. These new technologies will be essential to the success of our
second priority, which is the development of new SWEHSC Research Programs focused
on problems within the NIEHS mission and driven by new experimental capabilities.
Our third major priority is the development of new interfaces between SWEHSC
basic research and translational research through interactions with other Centers
of Excellence at the University of Arizona.
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