May 24, 2017
10:00 pm / 11:00 pm
43-105 CHS (Center for Health Sciences) UCLA
COEH & Dept of Environmental Health Sciences 411 present:
“Zebrafish as a Model for Induction of Transgenerational Inheritance Disease Due to Environmental Contaminants”
About the lecture: We have shown that zebrafish (Danio rerio) are an ideal model for evaluating transgenerational effects of certain toxicants and their role in the fetal basis of adult disease. We utilized the zebrafish model to identify transgenerational effects of a known endocrine disrupting chemical (EDC), dioxin (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin; TCDD), on skeletal development, sex determination and male-mediated decreases in reproductive capacity. Exposure to TCDD early in development produces reproductive abnormalities in adulthood and decreased reproductive capacity that persists for multiple, unexposed generations. Since transgenerational inheritance of the effects of TCDD toxicity appears to be mediated through the male germline, histological and gene expression analyses in testicular tissue were evaluated. We identified significant differences in the transcriptome and spermatogenic cell types and between exposed and control groups.
About the Speaker: The Baker Lab is focused on multidisciplinary, translational research that bridges human, animal and environmental health. Tracie has an M.S. from the University of Alaska-Fairbanks in Marine Biology and completed her D.V.M and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Her PhD and postdoc research was in the laboratory of Drs. Richard Peterson and Chris Bradfield where she explored molecular and cellular techniques used in developmental and toxicology research with zebrafish. She was the first to show transgenerational inheritance of disease using a zebrafish model. Tracie received an NIH K01 award through the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS). She also has received several internal grants and a foundation award to investigate the occurrence and effects of endocrine disruption due to environmental contaminants in Detroit waterbodies, lead-induced transgenerational neurobehavioral toxicity, and the role of toxicants in development of childhood leukemias.