&EPA
MED in Review
www.epa.gov
EPA/600/N-10/002
Summer 2010
United States Environmental
Protection Agency
• Office of Research and
Development
• National Health and
Environmental Effects
Research Laboratory
• Mid-Continent Ecology
Division, Duluth,
Minnesota
In this Issue:
Research Events
Featured Research
Current Events
Upcoming Events
New Publications
MED Seminars
Awards
People
MED in Review Editor
Mary Ann Starus
(218)529-5075
starus.maryann@epa.gov
MED in Review Design
SES3 Contract
GS-35F-4594G
Task Order 1524
Research Events
ECOLOGY OF LAKE SUPERIOR - INTEGRATED APPROACHES & CHALLENGES OF THE 21sT
CENTURY, MAY 3-5
This conference was co-hosted by the
Division and the Aquatic Ecosystem Health
and Management Society (AEHMS), at
EPA's Duluth facility. Jack Kelly of MED
and Moni Munawar of Fisheries and
Oceans Canada served as co-chairs. The
Lake Superior Binational Program, Great
Lakes Regional Research Information
Network sponsored the conference, which
was organized by a committee from the US, Netherlands, and Canada. MED researchers were
lead or contributing authors on over 20% of the presentations.
Lake
The goal of the meeting was to gather scientists who have been studying Lake Superior, in
order to develop both an integrated perspective of the ecology and trends in the lake and an
interactive, cross-disciplinary science network to further engage in lake research and
management. Based on feedback solicited from the 125 or so conference participants from
various institutions in the US and Canada, the meeting was indeed a "grand success" in these
endeavors. The plenary speaker, Jim Kitchell of the University of Wisconsin, summarized,
saying, "This is the best meeting that I've ever attended. I'm mightily impressed by the current
status of Lake Superior, its institutions, and the people they contain. There's meaningful,
dedicated leadership in this group. Lake Superior will be better for it in many ways. It's a
poster child for successful accomplishments by research and management groups. I'm pleased
to count myself among those who can make contributions in the future."
Topics ranged from physical and chemical
aspects of the lake and basin, through
biological systems, to management and
modeling. Researchers discussed the limited
amount °f long-term Lake Superior data,
and tne sometimes conflicting nature of the
data available. Many admitted that the lake's
ecology, in some ways, is still not well
known, which always presents a challenge to
science and management. Even so, some
remarkable changes in the big lake across
the last three decades were noted: recovery
of lake trout from lamprey invasions, dramatic increases in surface temperatures, and some
striking biogeochemical changes that reflect changing inputs from air and land.
The broad disciplinary and spatial scope of the conference was indeed evident as physical
climate modelers, for example, talked with phytoplankton ecologists, and landscape
geographers with carbon cycling geochemists. But the integration across disciplines may be
Continued on next page...
MED in Review
Mid-Continent Ecology Division
Duluth, MN
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ECOLOGY OF LAKE SUPERIOR - CONTINUED
best exemplified by the foodweb discussions, which brought together two large groups studying the "bottom" and "top" of the foodweb
-microbial scientists and the fisheries researchers-who came away knowing that the ecological distance between microbes and fish is
not so great that it cannot be bridged to assist lake management.
The Publication and Production Committee of AEHMS, chaired by Chief Editor Dr. Munawar, is overseeing the publication of about
two dozen selected manuscripts from the conference, in the ISI-rated journal Aquatic Ecosystem Health and Management and/or in the
Ecovision World Monograph Series. The first issue is expected in spring 2011. For more information, including presentation abstracts,
see the AEHMS website: http://www.aehms.org/. Contact: Jack Kelly (218) 529-5119.
MED AND REGIONAL RESEARCH PARTNERSHIP HOST REGION 9 EMPLOYEE
From May 3-14, ORD's Regional Research Partnership Program (RRPP) supported Region 9's Garrett Peterson, in a
detail with the Division at its Large Lakes & Rivers Forecasting Research Branch in Grosse He, MI. Dr. Peterson was
mentored in "Analytical Techniques for Mercury, Methyl Mercury, and Other Metals in Fish Tissues, Sediment, and
Other Matrices." Grosse He staff Ronald Rossmann and John Filkins mentored him while he observed onsite
contractors analyzing fish and sediment samples. Region 9 requested the mentoring through the RRPP, and a second
period of mentoring with Peterson may occur. The Grosse He laboratories are recognized for their analytical expertise
with total and methyl mercury and other metals in a variety of media, including fish, avian species, sediment, and
water. Facilities house state-of-the-art equipment, including clean-room facilities. During his stay, Dr. Peterson
observed and was mentored primarily in the analysis offish tissue (Coho salmon, walleye, and brown trout) for methyl mercury and
sediments (Lake Michigan sediment cores) for a variety of trace metals (lead, zinc, copper, and others).
Contact: John Filkins (734) 692-7614.
EPA ORD SUPPORT FOR THE GREAT LAKES RESTORATION INITIATIVE
Lakes rfc Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
RESTORATION
,m.hiiiiy
The Division is actively supporting the Agency's Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) in various ways
(http://restoregreatlakes.us/). Director Carl Richards is serving as an ORD point-of-contact with EPA's Region 5 Great Lakes
National Program Office (GLNPO), which is administering the GLRI. Various ORD Laboratories, including the National Health &
Environmental Effects Research (NHEERL), National Exposure Research (NERL), and National Risk Management Research
(NRMRL) Laboratories, are supporting the scientific underpinnings of GLRI restoration themes. The GLRI is organized under an
Action Plan (http://greatlakesrestoration.us/action/wp-content/uploads/glri actionplan.pdf); Division staff are supporting EPA in
planning for a scientific review of the Plan, likely by EPA's Science Advisory Board.
Division staff are working with GLNPO personnel on the GLRI focus areas. For the focus on Toxic Substances and Areas of Concern,
Division staff are collaborating with GLNPO and other ORD Divisions to refine the strategy for reducing toxic effects in the Great
Lakes; collaborating with GLNPO and other federal agencies on developing an effects-based monitoring program; developing a tool to
rank pharmaceutical chemicals for their potential to cause adverse effects in aquatic species; and developing information on the human
benefits and ecosystem services realized from restoration of Areas of Concern in the Great Lakes. Division and GLNPO staff are
working together to advance concordance between the chemistry of contaminated sediments and toxicity, addressing unmeasured
toxicants, predicting bioavailability, estimating multiple causes of toxicity, and addressing non-toxicant factors in test results.
For the focus on Invasive Species, Division staff have supported the solicitation and review of proposals for funding for "Forecasting
and Synthesis of Ecosystem Effects of Invasive Species" and for "Threat, Distribution, and Early Detection of Invasive Species."
These two project areas evolved from Division research on modeling and early detection of invasive species. Several Division
activities are supporting the focus area on Accountability, Education, Monitoring, Evaluation, Communication, and Partnerships.
Division scientists are supporting the design, indicators, and assessment of Great Lakes nearshore and embayments through the
National Coastal Condition Assessment, being carried out by EPA's Office of Water. These efforts also support GLNPO's synoptic
nearshore assessments, and Division scientists have developed technology, data analysis, and visualization tools. Division researchers
are planning to address the human benefits and ecosystem services derived from coastal wetland protection and restoration; these
efforts contribute to the accountability of habitat restoration under the GLRI. Contact: Carl Richards (218) 529-5010.
MED in Review
Mid-Continent Ecology Division • Duluth, MN
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Featured Research
ESTIMATING THE MAGNITUDE OF PESTICIDE EFFECTS TO REPRODUCTION: MCNEST
An ongoing challenge in the field of ecotoxicology is to improve
methods for characterizing pesticide risks to wildlife populations. One
approach is to use population models that require estimates of the
magnitude of pesticide effects on demographic parameters, such as
fecundity (reproduction) and survival rates, at specified application
rates. However, standardized laboratory reproduction tests are designed
to determine threshold levels (e.g., no-observed-adverse-effect
concentrations or NOAECs) below which adverse effects are not
observed, rather than quantify dose-response relationships. These
toxicity thresholds can be used in risk quotients to classify whether or
not adverse effects are possible, but they can not determine the
probability or magnitude of potential reproductive effects.
In avian risk assessments, even if the reproduction test was designed to
quantify dose-response relationships, none of the current measured
endpoints is sufficient, on its own, to directly estimate the magnitude of
changes in reproductive success. However, the existing suite of avian
toxicity tests (i.e., reproduction test, LD50, and LC50) does provide
information on specific pesticide-related effects occurring at various
phases of nesting that can be combined with information on species life
history and pesticide application timing, to estimate overall
effects on reproductive success. To translate toxicity
information into a currency useful for population-level
assessment, a Markov chain nest productivity model, known
as MCnest, has been developed based on methods used by
ecologists to estimate nest success. MCnest simulates the
response of an avian population to a pesticide-use scenario
based on the pesticide's toxicity thresholds for a suite of
endpoints, the application rate, date(s) of application, and
degradation half-life of residues on food types. In addition
to estimating how a pesticide-use scenario changes the
overall reproductive success rate for a breeding season,
MCnest provides a phase diagram displaying the proportion
of females in a given reproductive phase each day
throughout the breeding season and a seasonal exposure
profile. MCnest also can be used in risk assessment to
determine which species (or life history strategies) are at
greatest risk from a specific pesticide-use scenario, or
determine which application dates result in the greatest risk
to various species.
PF
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Apr-17
May-02
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Date
Example of a phase diagram illustrating a pesticide applied in mid-April that primarily affects hatchability of eggs. The diagram shows the
proportion of females in each of 11 states throughout the entire breeding season, including: pair formation phase (PF), rapid follicle growth
period (rfg), eggshell formation period (ef), overlap of rfg and ef, incubation phase (/), nestling rearing phase (A/), doomed incubation phase
(Id), the waiting periods after pesticide failure (Wf), ecological failure (We), brood success (W,), and quit breeding (Q).
This research is being conducted at MED by Co-Principal Investigators
Richard Bennett and Matthew Etterson and is being coordinated with
partners in the Office of Pesticide Programs' Environmental Fate &
Effects Division to improve the suite of tools available for wildlife risk
assessments. The research also has an international component, since
the original conceptual approach emerged from a workshop attended by
Bennett on long-term pesticide risk assessment methods sponsored by
the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs of the United
Kingdom; and Bennett's involvement in a workgroup within the
European Food Safety Authority, charged with revising the risk
assessment guidance for birds and mammals. The breeding
phase-specific approach, which forms the basis for MCnest, has been
adopted into new European Union guidance in 2009 for avian and
mammalian risk assessments. Approximately one dozen
papers have been published in risk assessment and ecology
journals, building the scientific basis for the approach used
in MCnest to estimate pesticide effects on avian
reproductive success. Etterson continues to collaborate
with ecologists and ornithologists in academia on methods
for improving features in MCnest for estimating seasonal
productivity. Bennett and Etterson also are working with
aquatic toxicologists at MED on ways to better translate
available toxicity information from other taxa, such as fish
or amphibians, into estimates of effects on demographic
parameters. Contact: Rick Bennett (218) 529-5212,
Matt Etterson (218) 529-5158.
MED in Review
Mid-Continent Ecology Division •
Duluth, MN
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MED COLLABORATES WITH EPA PROGRAMS TO DEVELOP "ALSV" METHODOLOGY
Detections of pesticides, or identification of toxicity due to pesticides, in US surface waters have raised concerns about possible risks
these chemicals pose to aquatic life. Although pesticides are registered by the USEPA Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) under the
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, & Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), potential hazards identified in FIFRA risk
assessments are not defined relative to the level of aquatic life protection outlined by the Office of Water (OW)
under Clean Water Act (CWA) programs. The OW defines protection levels by developing chemical-specific
aquatic life water quality criteria (ALWQC), but few pesticides have ALWQC. Some states and tribes (the
implementers of the CWA) have listed currently registered pesticides as the cause of water quality impairment
under section 303(d) of the CWA, and must develop Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs) to bring waters
back into compliance. In cases where the 303(d) listing is due to violation of a narrative standard (e.g., "no
toxics in toxic amounts"), and the violation is linked to a pesticide, this creates a particular challenge if ALWQC
I are not available, because TMDL development requires the use of numeric pollutant limits. It is uncertain
whether effects benchmark concentrations developed as part of pesticide registration provide adequate surrogates
for ALWQC in specifying such limits.
A major limitation to derivation of ALWQC for pesticides is insufficient toxicity data to meet the minimum data requirements (MDRs)
defined in the 1985 "Guidelines for Deriving Numerical National Water Quality Criteria for the Protection of Aquatic Organisms and
Their Uses." Under FIFRA, fewer aquatic toxicity data are required for characterization of effects of pesticides than for ALWQC
derivation. Therefore, in cases where pesticides with no ALWQC are detected in surface waters or where pesticides have been
identified as causing violation of a narrative water quality standard, approaches are necessary to provide some type of screening
benchmark comparable to an ALWQC.
MED scientists (Russ Erickson, Matt Etterson, Dave Mount, Chuck Stephan, Chris Russom, and Dale Hoff) are working
collaboratively with representatives from Region 9, OW, and OPP to write white papers on tools and applications in predictive
toxicology that can be used to supplement data sets lacking the data needed for ALWQC
development. The collaboration has led to the development of a new term: Aquatic Life Screening
Value (ALSV) - intended to be a conservative approximation of an ALWQC with a known degree
of uncertainty. In current drafts of white papers, the authors describe what existing predictive
toxicology techniques are available to develop an ALSV and what evaluations will be completed
to validate or refute the approaches. During the first week of June, visiting scientists from OPP's
Environmental Fate & Effects Division (Kristin Garber) and Region 9 (Patti Tenbrook) visited
MED scientists to kick off the writing of the current draft of the white papers, which are currently
being forwarded to upper level management at OPP and OW for their review before being posted
on-line. In September/October of this year the white papers will be the subject of discussion at
program office-sponsored national stakeholder meetings. For more information see:
http://www.epa.gov/oppefedl/cwa fifra effects methodology/scope.html. Contact: Dale Hoff (218) 529-5386.
COMPUTATIONAL TOOLS: METAPATH AND METABOLISM SIMULATORS
Both metabolic bioactivation and detoxification are key
determinants of a chemical's potential hazard and risk.
There are no current methods for predicting xenobiotic
metabolism for the wide array of chemicals of Agency
relevance. EPA's Office of Chemical Safety & Pollution
Prevention (OCSPP), part of the Office of Pesticide
Programs (OPP), requires pesticide registrants to submit
rat metabolism, livestock and plant residue, and
environmental degradate information routinely as part of
the registration process under FIFRA, but currently relies
heavily on institutional memory as a major means of
maintaining consistency in incorporation and evaluation of
metabolism data and residue determinations across
pesticide chemical classes. OCSPP faces similar challenges
in evaluating the potential toxicity of chemicals regulated
under the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA), with a
similar need for advanced predictive tools.
ORD's computational tools address these needs. The goals of this
research program are to gain a better understanding of the metabolic
fate of chemicals across chemical structures and species, to identify
data gaps to target research, and develop advanced databases and
predictive tools. ORD, led by the Division, has partnered with OPP to:
• Build MetaPath, a computational tool providing a relational and
searchable metabolism pathway database with embedded data
evaluation tools. MetaPath facilitates efficient and systematic
comparison of metabolites across chemicals, species, and
environmental matrices to identify and quantify metabolites of
greatest toxicological concern.
• Build metabolic simulators specific to animal species, chemical
classes, environmental matrices, and levels of biological organization
(e.g., in vitro to in vivo) through simulating known metabolic
transformation types using measured metabolism pathway
information in MetaPath.
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COMPUTATIONAL TOOLS - CONTINUED
Division researchers are leading this research effort,
with EPA partners from ORD/NERL/ERD-Athens, OPP
Health Effects Division, and OPP Environmental Fate
& Effects Division. International partners include the
Laboratory of Mathematical Chemistry (LMC); Bourgas
University, Bulgaria; and Health Canada's Pesticide
Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA). Additional
collaborators came from the OECD Pesticide Working
Group MetaPath Project: European Food Safety
Authority, Australian Pesticides & Veterinary
Medicines Authority, Office of Chemical Safety &
Environmental Health (Australian Department of Health
& Ageing).
MetaPath (developed via cooperative agreement with
LMC) is built upon a pre-existing software platform that
displayed metabolism pathways (maps). ORD engaged
OPP to identify critical information to capture to
maximize utility of the system for OCSPP risk
assessments as well as ORD research, including: searches/comparisons
across treatment groups, gender, species, chemicals, sub-structures. Data
Evaluation Record (DER) Composer templates provide a standardized
template for EPA, their contractors, and pesticide registrants (through
e-data submissions) to efficiently enter required metabolism and
pharmacokinetic information from registrant submitted study files.
Ongoing efforts with OPP include: locating additional rat metabolism and
livestock residue maps for entry into MetaPath (once located additional
resources are needed for map and data entry), and expanding DER
Composers/MetaPath for plant residues and environmental degradates.
ORD and LMC are expanding a rat metabolism simulator to cover
pesticide chemical classes currently in MetaPath. This effort has developed
the MetaPath software with an initial set of data for >250 pesticide rat
metabolism maps and has uploaded the software to >30 computers within
OPP. Additional maps have been obtained through a pilot project with
PMRA. The DER Composer has been developed for rat metabolism and
livestock residues; OPPT and OPP staff have received training.
Additionally, OPP proposed a project for international development of
MetaPath across the global pesticide regulatory agencies and the project
was accepted by the OECD Working Group on Pesticides in May 2010.
Contact: Pat Schmieder (218) 529-5161.
Current Events
NHEERL DIRECTORATE VISIT
On May 11-12 NHEERL Director Hal Zenick and Associate Director for Ecology Steve Hedtke visited the
Division to discuss the NHEERL Action Plan, which conveys a commitment by the NHEERL Senior
Management Team to prepare our organization for the challenges and opportunities of the next decade.
The Plan has three key objectives:
transforming our research portfolio
• invigorating our workforce
strengthening our intramural budget.
Hal encouraged all of us to contribute "as we move toward developing a culture of collaboration,
teamwork, and accountability." Hal took questions from staff at an all-hands meeting and met with
Division Branches and with the Senior Management Team to discuss the Action Plan. Hal and Steve
joined us in a potluck lunch. We celebrated Steve's impending retirement with a humorous retrospective of
his 39-year EPA career, which included a period as MED Director (1992-1999).
DIVISION STAFF SUPPORT EPA OIL SPILL RESPONSE
Division scientists have supported EPA in its responses to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. David Mount, Dale
Hoff, Lawrence Burkhard, and Gary Ankley have been involved in advising Agency personnel on approaches for estimating the
toxicity of oil products and dispersants associated with the spill.
I In response to a call for volunteers to represent the Agency on wellhead monitoring cruises, over 25
Division staff stepped forward. Ted Angradi, David Bolgrien, Barbara Sheedy, Anne Cotter, and
Patrick Fitzsimmons traveled to Louisiana to represent the Agency on BP-operated cruises to monitor
for water quality and movement of the oil plume around the wellhead. While Ted, David, Barb, and
Anne served on monitoring vessels to observe activities, provide expertise in quality assurance, and
report to the EPA command center contact, Pat was not able to participate because of concerns about
exposure to hazardous chemicals and an increasing emphasis on training in hazardous substance
handling. Several other planned monitoring cruises were scheduled for ORD (including Division) staff,
but ORD support was decommissioned for safety reasons.
Dave Bolgrien Continued on next page...
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Mid-Continent Ecology Division • Duluth, MN
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COMPUTATIONAL TOOLS - CONTINUED
Division staff are now being tapped to provide additional scientific support and advice to EPA's
efforts associated with the oil spill. Expert teams are being formed in the areas of air quality,
dispersant chemicals, contaminated sediments, and wetland restoration.
Contact: Janet Keough (218) 529-5025.
COASTAL CONDITION SURVEY IN FULL SWING
Anne Cotter on right
MED researchers saw the first arrival of phytoplankton samples to the laboratory this June as a sign that the fruits of their labors were
soon to be realized. A team of MED researchers (Jack Kelly, Peder Yurista, Jill Scharold, Tim Corry) and GIS contractor
(Matt Starry) have worked over the past year and a half with the Office of Water (OW); EPA Regions 2, 3, and 5; the Great Lakes
National Program Office; and other ORD coastal researchers from Gulf Breeze, Corvallis/Newport, and Narragansett to include the
Great Lakes as a reporting region of the US National Coastal Condition Assessment (NCCA). The MED team developed the GIS
framework and survey design for OW that will enable a first-time ever region-wide comprehensive and nationallyconsistent reporting
on the condition of the nearshore zone of the Great Lakes.
The statistically-based survey will sample 225 locations in the broad nearshore zone (up to 5 km from shore and up to 30 m depth).
Great Lakes Restoration Initiative program support has also enabled sampling of additional Great Lakes-specific indicators, and
another 150 sites representing a defined "embayment" population that is especially vulnerable to watershed threats and may be
responsive to restoration actions. Sampling is being done by several state crews (MI, WI, OH, NY) as well as OW contractors with
Great Lakes expertise. MED scientists continue to be involved in the data analysis and assessment arising from the sampling, with all
sites to be visited by September 2010, and laboratory analyses to be completed in 2011. The objectives of the survey are to define the
proportion of the nearshore and embayment resources that are in good, fair, and poor condition and to link those conditions with
stressors, including a geospatially-explicit analysis of conditions associated with landscape disturbance metrics developed in the recent
Great Lakes Environmental Indicator collaboration. A MED 2009 pilot which sampled the NCCA Lake Erie sites has provided an
example where successful linkage of nearshore conditions and landscape disturbance has been achieved. Results were presented this
past spring at the 6th International Lake Erie Millennium Conference in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.
Contact: Jack Kelly (218) 529-5119.
ORD ASSISTANT ADMINISTRATOR AND CONGRESSMAN VISIT
On August 6, ORD Assistant Administrator Paul Anastas visited the Division to discuss
his "Path Forward," a coherent vision for ORD. At an all-staff meeting, Dr. Anastas
emphasized that the Path Forward will sustain and improve ORD's ability to provide
timely, relevant, and solution-oriented research, and describe a plan for the future of
ORD where sustainability is our "true north." He had a frank question and answer
session with staff on topics such as transdisciplinary research and flexible,
action-oriented approaches to environmental problem-solving. Dr. Anastas also
introduced Elizabeth Blackburn, ORD's new Communications Director.
Dale Hoff, Sig
Liz Blackburn,
Degitz, Dr. An
Joe Tietge
Dr. Anastas, Carl Richards, AnettTrebitz
In May, Dr. Anastas announced the formation of the Delta Team, comprised of the Laboratory and
Center Directors, who focused for two months on specific actions needed to implement the Path
Forward, to reach the goals of transdisciplinary research and sustainable science. Dr. Anastas also
received hundreds of comments from ORD staff, which show a
deep commitment to ORD's mission and a desire to work more
collaboratively. An ORD-wide town hall meeting on the Path
Forward is planned for August 25.
After a tour of the facility and lunch, Dr. Anastas and Minnesota 8th District Congressman
James Oberstar joined MED staff at the Duluth Harbor to christen MED's new research vessel
Lake Explorer II with Lake Superior water. The Congressman discussed recent EPA work in the
Gulf, and spoke highly of the Division's research on Great Lakes issues. Tours of the vessel
followed, for attendees and the public.
Capt. Sam Miller, Jack Kelly, Cong. Oberstar,
Dr. Anastas
MED in Review
Mid-Continent Ecology Division
Duluth, MN
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Upcoming Events
Two SETAC SESSIONS Focus ON EFFECTS OF Toxic SUBSTANCES IN LARGE AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS
Large aquatic ecosystems in North America, such as the Great Lakes, Puget Sound, San Francisco Bay,
and Chesapeake Bay, receive potentially toxic chemicals from numerous point and non-point sources.
Chemical monitoring programs have detected a variety of compounds in the water, sediment, and biota of
these systems, including so-called "Chemicals of Emerging Concern." However, many of these chemicals
have insufficient toxicological effects data to allow their risk to be evaluated. MED scientists, in
collaboration with the EPA Great Lakes National Program Office, have organized two sessions to address
this issue at the SETAC North America 31 st Annual Meeting in Portland, OR (November 7-11). The
objective of the first session, a special symposium entitled, The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative/Puget
Sound: Strategies to Assess The Impact Of Toxic Substances In Large North American Aquatic
Ecosystems, is to reduce the uncertainties associated with potentially toxic chemicals in large aquatic
ecosystems by providing an opportunity for scientists from different disciplines and organizations to present strategies and approaches
to improve effects-based information. The second session, Assessing the Impact of Toxic Substances in the Great Lakes and Other
Large Aquatic Ecosystems, will provide an opportunity to present effects data from studies relevant to the Great Lakes and other large
aquatic ecosystems, including empirical studies on the effects of single chemicals and complex mixtures, development and application
of predictive toxicity models, results from effects-based monitoring, and assessment activities. Together, these two sessions include 16
presentations. More information on the specific topics and presentations will be available at http://portland.setac.org/.
Contact: Joseph E. Tietge (218) 529-5176, tietge.joe@epa.gov.
PORTLAND
SETAC
New Publications since March 2010
Angradi, T.R. and T.M. Jicha. 2010. Mesohabitat-specific
macro invertebrate assemblage responses to water quality
variation in mid-continent (North America) great rivers.
Ecological Indicators 10:943-954.
Angradi, T.R., D.L. Taylor, T.M. Jicha, D.W. Bolgrien,
M.S. Pearson, and B.H. Hill. 2010. Littoral and shoreline
wood in mid-continent great rivers (USA). River Research
and Applications 26:261-278.
Ankley, G.T. 2010. Assessing EDCs in the field: Challenges and
new approaches. Assessing Ecological Risk of Endocrine
Disrupting Chemicals: State-of-the-Science Approaches,
Sponsored by: National Institute of Environmental Health
Sciences, Superfund Research Program, Duluth, MN, April
22,2010.
Ankley, G.T., R.S. Bennett, R.J. Erickson, D.J. Hoff, M.W.
Hornung, R.D. Johnson, D.R. Mount, J.W. Nichols,
C.L. Russom, P.K. Schmieder, J.A. Serrano, J.E. Tiegte, and
D.L. Villeneuve. 2010. Adverse outcome pathways: A
conceptual framework to support ecotoxicology research
and risk assessment. Environmental Toxicology and
Chemistry 29:730-741.
Ankley, G.T., K.M. Jensen, M.D. Kahl, E.J. Durhan, E.A.
Makynen, J.E. Cavallin, D. Martinovic, L.C. Wehmas, N.D.
Mueller, and D.L. Villeneueve. 2010. Use of chemical
mixtures to differentiate mechanisms of endocrine action in
a small fish model. Aquatic Toxicology 99:389-396.
Blake, L.S., J.E. Cavallin, D. Martinovic, L.E. Gray Jr.,
V.S. Wilson, R.R. Regal, D.L. Villeneuve, and G.T. Ankley.
2010. Characterization of the androgen-sensitive MDA-kb2
cell line for assessing complex environmental mixtures.
Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 29:1367-1376.
Brooks, B.W., R.A. Brain, D.B. Huggett, and G.T. Ankley.
2010. Chapter 14. Risk assessment considerations for
veterinary medicines in aquatic ecosystems. Veterinary
Pharmaceuticals in the Environment, K. Henderson and
J.R. Coats, Eds., ACS Symposium Series, American
Chemical Society, Washington, DC, pp. 205-223.
Connors, K., J.J. Korte, G. Anderson, and S.J. Degitz. 2010.
Characterization of thyroid hormone transporter protein
expression during tissue-specific metamorphic events in
Xenopus tropicalis. General and Comparative
Endocrinology 168:149-159.
Crane, M., M. Gross, P. Matthiessen, G.T. Ankley, S. Axford, P.
Bjerregaard, R. Brown, P. Chapman, M. Dorgeloh, M.
Galay-Burgos, J. Green, C. Hazlerigg, J. Janssen, K.
Lorenzen, J. Parrott, H. Rufli, C. Schafers, M. Seki, H.-C.
Stolzenberg, N. van der Hoeven, D. Vethaak, I.J. Winfield,
S. Zok, and J. Wheeler. 2010. Multi-criteria decision
analysis of test endpoints for detecting the effects of
endocrine active substances in fish full life cycle tests.
Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management
6:378-389.
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Mid-Continent Ecology Division •
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PUBLICATIONS - CONTINUED
Hill, B.H., C.M. Elonen, T.M. Jicha, D.W. Bolgrien, and
M.F. Moffett. 2010. Sediment microbial enzyme activity as
an indicator of nutrient limitation in the great rivers of the
Upper Mississippi River basin. Biogeochemistry 97:195-
209.
Hill, B.H., F.H. McCormick, B.C. Harvey, S.L. Johnson,
M.L. Warren, and C.M. Elonen. 2010. Microbial enzyme
activity, nutrient uptake, and nutrient limitation in forested
streams. Freshwater Biology 55:1005-1019.
Hoff, D.J., D.A. Goeldner, and M.J. Hooper. 2010. Chapter 14.
Integrated laboratory and field investigations: Assessing
contaminant risk to American badgers. Environmental Risk
Assessment and Management from a Landscape
Perspective, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., Hoboken, NJ, pp.
303-327.
Hoffman, J.C. and T.T. Sutton. 2010. Lipid correction for carbon
stable isotope analyses of deep-sea fishes. Deep Sea
Research, Part I 57:956-964.
Janz, D.M., D.K. DeForest, M.L. Brooks, P.M. Chapman,
G. Gilron, D.J. Hoff, W.A. Hopkins, D.O. Mclntyre,
C.A. Mebane, V.P. Palace, J.P. Skorupa, and M. Wayland.
2010. Chapter 6: Selenium toxicity to aquatic organisms.
Ecological Assessment of Selenium in the Aquatic
Environment, SETAC Pellston Workshop, February 22-28,
2009, Pensacola, FL; P.M. Chapman, W.J. Adams,
M.L. Brooks, et al., Eds.; CRC Press, Taylor and Francis,
Boca Raton, FL, pp. 141-231.
Norberg-King, T. and L. Phillips. 2010. Whole Effluent Toxicity
Training Video Series. WET Testing Video Training
Freshwater Series, EPA/833/C-06/001.
Olmstead, A.W., A. Lindberg-Livingston, and S.J. Degitz. 2010.
Genotyping sex in the amphibian, Xenopus tropicalis, for
endocrine disrupter bioassays. Aquatic Toxicology 98:60-
66.
Pfeiffer, E.L. and R. Rossmann. 2010. Lead in Lake Michigan
and Green Bay surficial sediments. Journal of Great Lakes
Research 36:20-27.
Reavie, E.D., T.M. Jicha, T.R. Angradi, D.W. Bolgrien, and
B.H. Hill. 2010. Algal assemblages for large river
monitoring: Comparison among biovolume, absolute and
relative abundance metrics. Ecological Indicators 10:167-
177.
Scharold, J.V., T.D. Corry, D.W. Bolgrien, and T.R. Angradi.
2010. Spatial variation in the invertebrate macrobenthos of
three large Missouri River reservoirs. Fundamental and
Applied Limnology 176:101-113.
Serrano, J.A., L. Higgins, B.A. Witthuhn, L.B. Anderson,
G.W. Holcombe, P.A. Kosian, J.J. Korte, J.E. Tietge, and
S.J. Degitz. 2010. In vivo assessment and potential diagnosis
of xenobiotics that perturb the thyroid pathway: Proteomic
analysis of Xenopus laevis brain tissue following exposure
to model T4 inhibitors. Comparative Biochemistry and
Physiology Part D: Genomics and Proteomics 5:138-150.
Shoemaker, J.E., K. Gayen, N. Garcia-Reyero, E.J. Perkins,
D.L. Villeneuve, L. Liu, F.J. Doyle III. 2010. Fathead
minnow steroidogenesis: In silico analyses reveals tradeoffs
between nominal target efficacy and robustness to cross-talk.
BMC Systems Biology 4:89, doi: 10.1186/1752-0509-4-89.
Tietge, J.E., B.C. Butterworth, J.T. Haselman, G.W. Holcombe,
M.W. Hornung, J.J. Korte, P.A. Kosian, M. Wolfe, and
S.J. Degitz. 2010. Early temporal effects of three thyroid
hormone synthesis inhibitors in Xenopus laevis. Aquatic
Toxicology 98:44-50.
Villeneuve, D.L., N. Garcia-Reyero, D. Martinovic,
J.E. Cavallin, N.D. Mueller, L.C. Wehmas, M.D. Kahl,
A.L. Linnum, E.J. Perkins, and G.T. Ankley. 2010.
Influence of ovarian stage on transcript profiles in fathead
minnow (Pimephalespromelas) ovary tissue. Aquatic
Toxicology 98:354-366.
Villeneuve, D.L., N. Garcia-Reyero, D. Martinovic,
N.D. Mueller, J.E. Cavallin, E.J. Durhan, E.A. Makynen,
K.M. Jensen, M.D. Kahl, L.S. Blake, E.J. Perkins, and
G.T. Ankley. 2010. I. Effects of a dopamine receptor
antagonist on fathead minnow, Pimephales promelas,
reproduction. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety
73:472-477.
Villeneuve, D.L., N. Garcia-Reyero, D. Martinovic,
N.D. Mueller, J.E. Cavallin, E.J. Durhan, E.A. Makynen,
K.M. Jensen, M.D. Kahl, L.S. Blake, E.J. Perkins, and
G.T. Ankley. 2010. II. Effects of a dopamine receptor
antagonist on fathead minnow dominance behavior and
ovarian gene expression in the fathead minnow and
zebrafish. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 73:478-
485.
Walters, D.M., K.A. Blocksom, J.M. Lazorchak, T.M. Jicha,
T.R. Angradi, and D.W. Bolgrien. 2010. Mercury
contamination in fish in midcontinent great rivers of the
United States: Importance of species traits and
environmental factors. Environmental Science &
Technology 44:2947-2953.
Wang, R.-L., D. Bencic, D.L. Villeneuve, G.T. Ankley,
J. Lazorchak, and S. Edwards. 2010. A transcriptomics-
based biological framework for studying mechanisms of
endocrine disruption in small fish species. Aquatic
Toxicology 98:230-244.
Yurista, P.M., H. Vanderploeg, J. Leibig, and J. Cavaletto. 2010.
Lake Michigan Bythotrephes prey consumption estimates
for 1994-2003 using a temperature and size corrected
bioenergetic model. Journal of Great Lakes Research (SI),
online at doi:10.1016/i.iglr.2010.03.007.
MED in Review
Mid-Continent Ecology Division •
Duluth, MN
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MED Seminars
March 31
• Dr. Euan Reavie, Natural Resources Research Institute
(NRRI), Duluth, MN
Scientific aspects of the Great Ships Initiative
April 21
• Drs. Jerry Niemi & Lucinda Johnson, NRRI, Duluth, MN
The evolution of Great Lakes Environmental Indicators to
the Great Lakes Indicators Consortium
April 28
• Dr. Joel Hoffman, USEPA/MED
Bathypelagic food web structure of the northern
Mid-Atlantic Ridge based on stable isotope analysis
May 7
• Dr. Emma Lavoie, USEPA/Office of Chemical Safety &
Pollution Prevention, Washington, DC
The Design for the Environment program: Partnerships
for safer chemistry
May 26
• Dr. Robin Sternberg, USEPA/MED, NRC Post-doc
Re-writing the book on thyroid-stimulating hormone
control during amphibian metamorphosis
June 9
• Dr. Kellie Faye, Post-doc Candidate, UW Seattle
A comparative analysis of short-term vs. long-term
culture of primary mouse hepatocytes for modeling in
vivo responses to toxicants
Awards
June 23
• Dr. Timothy Collette, USEPA/National Exposure Research
Laboratory, Athens, GA
Environmental metabolomics: From small fish to cell cultures
June 30
• Robert Spehar, USEPA/MED
Research at EPA in Duluth: A historical perspective (the early years,
1965-1989)
July 14
• Dr. Bryan Brooks, Baylor University, Waco, TX
Human Pharmaceuticals in the environment and other adventures in
urban aquatic systems
July 23
• Dr. Ted Valenti, Baylor University
Advancing an understanding of ecological risk assessment
approaches for ionizable contaminants in aquatic systems
August 19
• Sarah Hoheisel, MS Candidate, U of MN Duluth
Thesis Defense: Effects of nanosilver onDaphnia magna and
Pimephales promelas
September 29
• Dr. Jose Serrano, USEPA/MED
Cellular biomarkers of traumatic brain injury in humans and
animals: Correlation to endocrine disruption research at MED
2009 Scientific and Technological Achievement Awards (STAA)
These awards are sponsored by EPA's Office of Research & Development to recognize publications that demonstrate scientific
excellence in support of the Agency's mission. Publications are reviewed and selected annually by EPA's Science Advisory Board, a
panel of non-EPA experts. STAA winners represent some of our finest accomplishments and our best products.
Level 2
Ankley, G.T., D.H. Miller, K.M. Jensen, D.L. Villeneuve, and D. Martinovic. 2008. Relationship of plasma sex steroid
concentrations in female fathead minnows to reproductive success and population status. Aquatic Toxicology 88:69-74.
and
Miller, D.H., K.M. Jensen, D.L. Villeneuve, M.D. Kahl, E.A. Makynen, E.J. Durban, and G.T. Ankley. 2007. Linkage of
biochemical responses to population-level effects: A case study with vitellogenin in the fathead minnow (Pimephalespromelas).
Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 26:521-527.
Burkhard, L.P., P.M. Cook, and M.T. Lukasewycz. 2008. Organic carbon-water column concentration quotients (IIsocs and TCpocs):
Measuring apparent chemical disequilibria and exploring the impact of black carbon in Lake Michigan. Environmental Science &
Technology 42:3615-3621.
Cormier, S.M., J.F. Paul, R.L. Spehar, P. Shaw-Allen, W.J. Berry, and G.W. Suter. 2008. Using field data and weight of evidence
to develop water quality criteria. Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management 4:490-504.
Continued on next page...
MED in Review
Mid-Continent Ecology Division • Duluth, MN
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AWARDS - CONTINUED
Erickson, R.J., J.W. Nichols, P.M. Cook, and G.T. Ankley. 2008. Chapter 2. Bioavailability of chemical contaminants in aquatic
systems. In: The Toxicology of Fishes, R.T. DiGiulio and D.E. Hinton, Eds., Taylor & Francis, Boca Raton, FL, pp. 9-54.
and
Kleinow, K.M., J.W. Nichols, W.L. Hayton, J.M. McKim, and M.G. Barren. 2008. Chapter 3. Toxicokinetics in fishes. In: The
Toxicology of Fishes, R.T. DiGiulio and D.E. Hinton, Eds., Taylor & Francis, Boca Raton, FL, pp. 55-152.
and
Mount, D.R. and T.R. Henry. 2008. Chapter 18. Ecological risk assessment. In: The Toxicology of Fishes, R.T. DiGiulio and
D.E. Hinton, Eds., Taylor & Francis, Boca Raton, FL, pp. 757-775.
Peterson, G.S., M.E. Sierszen, P.M. Yurista, and J.R. Kelly. 2007. Stable nitrogen isotopes of plankton and benthos reflect a
landscape-level influence on Great Lakes coastal ecosystems. Journal of Great Lakes Research 33 (S3):27-41.
Level 3
Angradi, T.R., D.W. Bolgrien, T.M. Jicha, M.S. Pearson, B.H. Hill, D.L. Taylor, E.W. Schweiger, L. Shepard, A.R. Batterman,
M.F. Moffett, C.M. Elonen, and L.E. Anderson. 2009. A bioassessment approach for mid-continent great rivers: the Upper
Mississippi, Missouri, and Ohio (USA). Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 152:425-442.
and
Angradi, T.R., M.S. Pearson, T.M. Jicha, D.L. Taylor, D.W. Bolgrien, M.F. Moffett, K.A. Blocksom, and B.H. Hill. 2009. Using
stressor gradients to determine reference expectations for great river fish assemblages. Ecological Indicators 9:748-764.
Ankley, G.T., B.W. Brooks, D.B. Huggett, and J.P. Sumpter. 2007. Repeating history: Pharmaceuticals in the environment.
Environmental Science & Technology 41:8211-8217.
Ankley, G.T., K.M. Jensen, M.D. Kahl, E.A. Makynen, L.S. Blake, K.J. Greene, R.D. Johnson, and D.L. Villeneuve. 2007.
Ketoconazole in the fathead minnow (Pimephalespromelas): Reproductive toxicity and biological compensation. Environmental
Toxicology and Chemistry 26:1214-1223.
and
Martinovic, D., L.S. Blake, E.J. Durhan, K.J. Greene, M.D. Kahl, K.M. Jensen, E.A. Makynen, D.L. Villeneuve, and G.T. Ankley.
2008. Reproductive toxicity of vinclozolin in the fathead minnow: Confirming an anti-androgenie mode of action. Environmental
Toxicology and Chemistry 27:478-488.
and
Villeneuve, D.L., L.S. Blake, J.D. Brodin, K.J. Greene, I. Knoebl, A.L. Miracle, D. Martinovic, and G.T. Ankley. 2007.
Transcription of key genes regulating gonadal steroidogenesis in control and ketoconazole- or vinclozolin-exposed fathead
minnows. ToxicologicalSciences 98:395-407.
Eckman, D.R., Q. Teng, D.L. Villeneuve, M.D. Kahl, K.M. Jensen, E.J. Durhan, G.T. Ankley, and T.W. Collette. 2008.
Investigating compensation and recovery of fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas) exposed to 17a-ethynylestradiol with
metabolite profiling. Environmental Science & Technology 42:4188-4194.
Honorable Mention
Morrice, J.A., N. Danz, R.R. Regal, J.R. Kelly, G.J. Niemi, E.D. Reavie, T. Hollenhorst, R.P. Axler, A.S. Trebitz, A.M. Cotter,
and G.S. Peterson. 2008. Human influences on water quality in Great Lakes coastal wetlands. Environmental Management
41:347-357.
and
Trebitz, A.S., J.C. Brazner, A.M. Cotter, M.L. Knuth, J.A. Morrice, G.S. Peterson, M.E. Sierszen, J.A. Thompson, and J.R. Kelly.
2007. Water quality in Great Lakes coastal wetlands: Basin-wide patterns and responses to an anthropogenic disturbance gradient.
Journal of Great Lakes Research 33 (S3):67-85.
Nichols, J.W., A.D. Hoffman, P.N. Fitzsimmons, and G.J. Lien. 2008. Quantification of phenol, phenyl glucuronide, and phenyl
sulfate in blood of unanesthetized rainbow trout by online microdialysis sampling. Toxicology Mechanisms and Methods
18:405-412.
and
Nichols, J.W., A.D. Hoffman, P.N. Fitzsimmons, G.J. Lien, and C.T. Jenson. 2008. Use of online microdialysis sampling to
determine the in vivo rate of phenol glucuronidation in rainbow trout. Drug Metabolism and Disposition 36:1406-1413.
Continued on next page...
MED in Review
Mid-Continent Ecology Division • Duluth, MN 10
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AWARDS - CONTINUED
ORD HONOR AWARD - Bronze Medal
Nanomaterial Research Strategy Writing Team
For advancing EPA science by co-authoring the Office of Research and Development's Nanomaterial Research Strategy
Steve Diamond, Dave Mount, and others from IOAA, NCCT, NCEA, NERL, NHEERL, and NRML
OSWER Bronze Medal Award
Aquatic risk assessment of selenium effects after the Kingston Coal Ash spill
Dale Hoff, and others from OW, OSWER, ORD/NCEA, and Region 4
People
HAPPY RETIREMENT!
Allan Batterman retired in April after a 39-year career in the EPA. Allan conducted aquatic toxicology
research at the Division for most of his career. Since 1989, Allan served as the Division's Quality
Assurance Manager. In recent years, Allan also served as Outreach Coordinator, and also managed the
Division's technical support contract. In addition, Allan played a lead role in organizing the annual
Holiday Cookie Party and facilitated blood drives, among many other contributions. We wish Allan and
his wife, Sherry, all the best in retirement!
Al with SEEs Judy Vee and
Betty Harwood
Marta Lukasewycz retired in June after a lengthy career with the federal government, the past 15 years with
MED. Marta conducted chemical research at the Division, specifically performing low-level targeted analysis
and unknown identification in sediment, tissue, and aqueous samples. She also served on several committees,
including Chemical Assessment, and Space. Marta began her career with the Department of Health in
Philadelphia where she and husband, Luke lived and grew up after coming through Ellis Island from the
Ukraine at a young age. They moved to Texas and Michigan for Luke's doctoral research and settled in Duluth.
She spent several years working on contract to the EPA in the 1980s after working in chemical research at
UMD. Marta will enjoy her retirement with her children and grandchildren, playing bridge, traveling, and
getting back to some serious water color painting. We wish Marta all the best in her well-deserved retirement!
Dr. Ronald Rossmann, Head Research Chemist, retired from the Division's Ecology Division,
Large Lakes & Rivers Forecasting Research Branch at Grosse He, MI, after over 18 years of EPA
Ron's focus was heavy metals and trace elements, specializing in total and methyl mercury, as
well as lead, cadmium, arsenic, zinc, and cooper. Analyses included water, sediments, birds, and
fish. Although well known for his analytical capabilities, he is an internationally recognized
expert in the interpretation of sediment dynamics and metals, as exemplified by his recent
publication, "Protocol to reconstruct historical contaminant loading to large lakes: The Lake
Michigan sediment record of mercury" Environmental Science & Technology 44:935-940.
Ron receiving an EPA Plaque for
Distinguished Service from Russ Kreis,
Branch Chief
Ron has worked in all five of the Great Lakes, as well as in Lake St. Clair. He has also studied
several of the major Great Lakes tributaries including the Fox, Detroit, Saginaw, and
Tittabawassee Rivers. Ron has contributed over 100 journal publications and reports, and has been involved with well over 100
presentations at scientific conferences and meetings. He has received the following awards: NHEERL Goal 1 Award, Support the
Agency's Mission; EPA Scientific and Technological Achievement Award; EPA Bronze Medal; Editor's Award, International
Association for Great Lakes Research.
We wish Ron the best in his retirement after an extremely successful scientific career. He will now be devoting more time to family,
church and choir, fishing, visiting his property in northern Michigan, and orchid cultivation.
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Mid-Continent Ecology Division • Duluth, MN
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HAPPY RETIREMENT!
Robert Spehar retired in June after a 40-year career in the EPA. Bob served the Division as a Research
Scientist, conducting research on advancing water quality criteria and guidance for the Agency. In recent
years, Bob served as a Special Assistant to the Division Director; he served on the ORD CADDIS Team,
developed the Division's Technical Assistance Information System, organized Division nominations for
STAA recognition, and served as Acting Associate Director for Science on multiple details. We wish Bob
and his wife, Diane, all the best in Bob's retirement!
Corlis West retired from MED at the end of July after 31 years of federal
service... 30 with EPA. Corlis received his BS in Biology from Bemidji State University in Bemidji, MN
and began his federal career in Oswego, NY conducting field studies with the US Fish and Wildlife Service.
He arrived at the Duluth laboratory in 1986 following stops at the Cincinnati lab and the Monticello research
station. Corlis worked in several different areas over the years, including stream mesocosm studies at
Monticello, laboratory toxicity testing in different programs (sediment-related studies, in particular), and
participating in various field studies on Midwest wetlands and rivers, and on the Great Lakes. He authored
or co-authored approximately 20 published papers across the various topical areas in which he worked. As a
member of the MED community, Corlis served as the Landscape Committee chair, organizing plantings,
clean-up campaigns, and seeking to eradicate the dreaded buckthorn from our premises. He was also the
primary organizer of MED's annual Earth Day pancake breakfast, an important community tradition. Ever
the provocateur, Corlis always managed to come up with an insightful question or two for VIPs when they
held all-hands meetings... which kept the staff entertained. It is an underappreciated fact that Corlis bears a striking resemblance to
Chevy Chase... .well, at least in his younger days. He was occasionally stopped on the street for autographs or waved to by passers-by
thrilled to have spotted the comedian. In his own comedic way, Corlis let them believe it. In retirement, Corlis will keep himself
occupied with sailboats, gardens, the Minnesota Twins, and pigeons...yes pigeons... .fishing, apple trees, and homemade maple syrup.
NEW FEDERAL EMPLOYEES
Lindsey Blake has joined our Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms Research Branch as a Biologist. In May
2005 Lindsey received her BS in Biology from the University of MN Duluth (UMD). Her interest in
ecotoxicology was ignited while working as a student contractor in the Toxic Effects Characterization
Research Branch with Gary Ankley and Dan Villeneuve from May 2005-May 2007. In May 2009 Lindsey
received her MS in Integrated Biosciences with an emphasis in Cell, Molecular, and Physiological Biology at
UMD. Lindsey's thesis focused on the effects of endocrine active chemical mixtures on the androgen receptor
using a reporter gene assay. From June 2009-June 2010 Lindsey worked as a student contractor with Sig
Degitz, studying the reproductive effects of endocrine disrupting compounds on amphibians. Lindsey is in
124B,x5237.
Tylor Lahren recently joined the Ecotoxicology Analysis Research Branch as a Chemist. He received a BS
in Chemistry from the University of North Dakota in 2006 and is now completing his Master's Thesis in
Analytical Chemistry there. From 2008 to 2010 he worked for Northeast Technical Services (an
environmental lab) in Virginia, MN as the Technical Group Leader for the semi-volatiles and PCBs analysis
department. Tylor's research interests are to create better analysis methods for increasing sensitivity and
accuracy of environmental contaminants. At MED he will be working on the analysis of PCBs and other
bioaccumulative compounds using high resolution GC/MS. Tylor is in room 127, x5193.
Stephanie Warhol joined the Program Operations Branch as Program Analyst in July. This is a new MED
position, established for each Eco Division by NHEERL. Stephanie's responsibilities include administrative
analysis, property management, COR duties, ground fleet management, utility payments, and coordination of
incoming/outgoing workers. She came to us from the DOD in St. Paul, where she was in Plans &
Programming for four years. Stephanie is originally from Newark, DE and has a husband, two cats, two
Papillons, and lots of fish. She is in room 150,x5154.
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Mid-Continent Ecology Division • Duluth, MN
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NEW EPA PosT-Docs
Dr. Carlie LaLone is working in the Toxic
Effects Characterization Research Branch,
developing a framework to prioritize
Pharmaceuticals for ecotoxicological
screening. She received a BS in
Biochemistry/Molecular Biology and a BA
in Chemistry at UMD in 2003. From
January to July 2004 she was a student
contractor with Pat Schmieder's team. She
received her PhD in Genetics at Iowa State
University in December 2009, focusing on
the anti-inflammatory properties of Echinacea. Carlie's mentors are
Gary Ankley and Dan Villeneuve. She is in room 114B, x5038.
NEW NRC PosT-Doc
Dr. Mark Rowe completed a PhD
in Environmental Engineering at
Michigan Technological University
in December 2009. His doctoral
work focused on measurement and
modeling of gaseous air-water
exchange of organic toxics in the
Great Lakes. In February 2010, he
began a post-doctoral fellowship at
the Large Lakes & Rivers Forecasting Research Branch in
Grosse He, MI. Mark is working with Branch Chief Russ
Kreis on riverine water quality and aquatic ecosystem
modeling for the Future Midwest Landscapes Study. Mark is
in room 108, (734) 692-7690.
Dr. Hongbo Ma joined the Ecotoxicology Analysis Research Branch as an NRC postdoc research associate in
June. She earned her undergraduate degree in Environmental Engineering in 1998 from Liaoning University of
Petroleum and Chemical Technology (China). Hongbo received her PhD in Environmental Toxicology at the
University of Georgia in 2009 and her MS in Environmental Health Sciences at the University of South
Carolina in 2004. Hongbo's primary research interest lies in the nanotoxicology of manufactured
nanoparticles, particularly metal oxide nanoparticles with photocatalytic properties. Her research at MED
focuses on phototoxicity of manufactured titanium dioxide nanoparticles; Dr. Steve Diamond is her mentor.
She is in room 114B, x5071.
MED in Review
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