Mentor Descriptions for 2010 Pacific Northwest Association of Toxicologists Work Shadow Program

Not all mentors have provided detailed job function information. Website addresses are included for companies of mentors lacking job descriptions. If you have questions about a mentor, please send by email to Cecile Krejsa .

A. Morrie Craig – Endophyte Testing Laboratory, College of Veterinary Medicine, OSU (Corvallis)

Did you know that microbes have the capability to degrade many toxins? Dr. A. Morrie Craig is a professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine whose research focuses on the degradation of plant toxins and environmental pollutants by ruminal microbes. His research grew out of a finding that microbes in the sheep rumen allow sheep to graze upon the toxic plant tansy ragwort without showing signs of liver toxicosis, while cattle cannot, as they do not have an adequate amount of the ‘right’ microbes to degrade the toxins. Current research is being conducted on understanding the fate and metabolism of endophyte fungal toxins found in forages in livestock. What happens to these toxins once the animal ingests hay? Are they metabolized to a different chemical form? In what organ? Are different species affected by these toxins at the same or different concentrations? Do any of these toxins remain in tissues which humans consume? Dr. Craig also oversees the OSU Endophyte Service Laboratory which uses HPLC (high-performance liquid chromatography) for quantifying the amount of specific endophyte alkaloids in forages. Testing for ergovaline and lolitrem B in hay, straw, pellets, or grass from pastures is available for veterinarians, animal owners, seed producers and straw exporters in order to provide ‘safe feed’ for livestock.

Other research focuses on nitroaromatic compounds which are widespread contaminants on over 16,000 Department of Defense (DoD) facilities, including manufacturing/handling sites and munitions ranges. An estimated 700,000 cubic yards of soil and 10 billion gallons of groundwater require treatment at tremendous cost to the DoD. Research in Dr. Craig’s lab investigates the bioremediation of munitions using a two-step process: 1) explosives residues from contaminated soil are taken up into the blades of cool season grasses, partly remediated, and then 2) made available for delivery to grazing sheep where degradation is completed by the microbes present in their rumen. Molecular techniques including q-PCR, cloning and sequencing are utilized to determine which species of bacteria are responsible for the degradation. LC-MS/MS (liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry) analyses are used to monitor the degradation processes and develop degradation pathways.

Janet Leeds - Preclinical Research, SIGA Technologies, Inc. (Corvallis)

Dr. Leeds is Senior Director of Preclinical Research at SIGA Technologies. She manages all the Contract Research Organizations conducting GLP studies on our behalf, sits on project team meetings for discovery projects, and writes and reviews a lot of reports that are used in FDA submissions. She managesallbioanalysis, PK and toxicology studies that are conducted at SIGA.

Ashley Fisher – Pharmacokinetics, SIGA Technologies, Inc. (Corvallis)

Dr. Fisher is a Senior Scientist at SIGA Technologies who works in the lab conducting ADME evaluations such as S9 stability, PK sample analysis and plasma protein binding studies by LC-MS/MS. She spends her time developing the methods for LC-MS/MS analysis, incubating the compounds with the extracts, the actual and data analysis, and writing reports.

Tom Holt – AVI Biopharma (Corvallis)

Job description pending –

AVI Biopharma is a leader in the field of RNA-based therapeutics

Dave Stone – National Pesticide Information Center, OSU (Corvallis)

At the National Pesticide Information Center (NPIC), highly trained specialists respond numerous risk-related questions each day related to pesticides. The mission is to promote informed decision-making by providing objective, science-based information to the public and professionals. NPIC is operated under a cooperative agreement between Oregon State University and the US Environmental Protection Agency.

Projects:

  • NPIC uses modern IT infrastucture to develop tools to retrieve information and distribute to mulitple audiences.
  • NPIC produces a podcast series entitled PestiBytes in collaboration with the Environmental Health Sciences Center (EHSC) at OSU.
  • NPIC collects information about pesticide-related exposure incidents and analyzes the information to identify trends.
  • NPIC creates highly technical and lay audience active ingredient fact sheets.
  • NPIC uses the risk equation to communicate exposure, toxicity and other complex concepts to the general public.

David Farrer –Office of Environmental Public Health, Oregon Public Health (Portland)

Dr. Farrer works as a Public Health Toxicologist in the Oregon Public Health Division’s Office of Environmental Public Health (OEPH). His primary work centers around assessing the human health risks associated with exposure to chemical contaminants at hazardous waste sites and around other sources of point and non-point pollution throughout Oregon. This work involves quantitative risk assessment, in-depth toxicological evaluations, public health education, and risk communication. In this role, Dr. Farrer writes reports for the general public and attends public meetings to explain findings in terms that are accessible to the lay public.

In addition to this site-specific work, Dr. Farrer responds to general questions about toxicology from other state and federal agencies, legislators, and the general public. Dr. Farrer serves as a member of the Department of Environmental Quality’s Air Toxics Science Advisory Committee which develops/selects health-based benchmark air concentrations for air toxics in Oregon. As part of the OEPH’s Fish Advisory Group, Dr. Farrer reviews fish tissue sampling data and help develop, update, and communicate fish consumption advisories for different waterbodies throughout Oregon.

Current Issues:

  • Public Health Assessment for the Black Butte Mine Superfund Site in southern Lane County (site assessment)
  • Will switching aging school boilers for new wood-burning boilers adversely impact the health of students and neighbors of those schools? (air quality)
  • Quantitative methods to assess the risk to nursing infants from Persistent Organic Pollutants in their mothers’ milk. (risk assessment methodology)
  • Fish advisories at Force Lake and Cottage Grove Reservoir

Doug Jenkin – Portland General Electric (Portland, 10-12 am)

Job description pending –

Portland General Electric provides electricity to northwest Oregon. Work shadow mentors will focus on Occupational Safety and Industrial Hygiene, and will take students to visit a transformer facility.

Steve Niskanen – NWFF Environmental (Philomath)

Mr. Niskanen is the Safety/Compliance Officer for NWFF Environmental, a company providing expert land-based and marine spill emergency responses services, training, support and clean-up throughout the USA since 1991.

His responsibilities include tracking and scheduling training, checking and ordering (PPE), and staying up on rules and regulations. With the many different situations NWFF encounters, proper PPE is essential. Training must be kept current to ensure employees are competent to perform their duties. Among his duties is the opportunity to go on jobs to observe, and many times work with the crews. NWFF trainers are very experienced in the haz-mat business and have been in many unique situations. One of the trainers may be available for the students to interview. This would be an eye opening opportunity.This job is very interesting due to the many situations that arise, and varying locations our work takes us to. Each call is different and challenging in the hazards and locations involved.

Dustin Liebelt – Chemical Compliance and Toxicology, Hewlett Packard (Corvallis)

An HP Regulatory Toxicologist works with a small group of other toxicologist and chemical engineers to make up the Chemical Compliance and Toxicology team. This team works closely with product stewards, regional regulatory affairs groups, and the cartridge take-back and recycling groups to compose a larger organization called the Imaging and Printing Group(IPG) Environmental Operations team. The IPG Environmental Operations team is responsible for chemical compliance and environmental performance of HP’s Imaging and Printing supplies(Cartridges, Inks and Media for HP Inkjet, LaserJet and Large Format printers).

Major Responsibilities of an HP Regulatory Toxicologist:

  • Manage staff in conducting hazard assessments for new inks and products. Oversee identification of chemical notifications and registrations required for new programs, direct 3rd party labs to perform required toxicity, physico-chemical and environmental tests, and oversee the completion of all required new chemical notifications to enable products going to a world-wide market. Lead the development of hazard communication content required for product MSDSs and Labels, direct the authoring and publishing of MSDSs and provide label content requirements to Packaging and Marketing.
  • Identify and set product environmental goals and assure alignment with business objectives. Ensure product designs are in compliance with applicable existing regulations, pending environmental legislation, and HP’s Design for Environment criteria.
  • Ensure toxicology assessments are consistent with department procedures, applicable regulatory requirements and are completed at each checkpoint in the product development cycle. Assure product development teams are aware of the product environmental performance goals and are periodically updated on pending changes in product regulatory requirements.
  • Lead efforts to conduct new and existing product registrations for various countries and regions where chemical registration schemes exist.

Margaret Pratt – Environmental Consultant, and now at IRIS, Environmental Protection Agency, (from Washington, D.C., videoconference)

Job description pending –

The Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) is a human health assessment program that evaluates quantitative and qualitative risk information on effects that may result from exposure to environmental contaminants. IRIS was initially developed for EPA staff in response to a growing demand for consistent information on substances for use in risk assessments, decision-making, and regulatory activities. The information in IRIS is intended for those without extensive training in toxicology, but with some knowledge of health sciences.

Dan Arbogast and Alex Vincent – GeneTools, LLC (Philomath)

Dr. Vincent works in Biology and Customer Support, and Mr. Arbogast is in charge of Engineering and Special Projects. Gene Tools, LLC produces and markets Morpholinooligos for antisense applications and ancillary products for basic research. We are also engaged in research relating to delivery of Morpholinooligos into cells and use of Morpholinooligos as probes and in diagnostic systems. Morpholinooligos from Gene Tools are used to block mRNA translation, modify pre-mRNA splicing or inhibit miRNA activity. Morpholinos are effective, specific, stable and non-toxic. They are used in cell cultures, embryos or, as Vivo-Morpholinos, in adult animals. Gene Tools also makes products to deliver Morpholinos into cultures cells, including Endo-Porter endosomal release agent. Dr. Jim Summerton founded the pioneering antisense company Antivirals Inc. (now AVI BioPharma Inc.) in 1980 to develop antisense therapeutics and founded Gene Tools, LLC in 1997 to supply Morpholinooligos to researchers worldwide. Backed by Ph.D.-level customer support, Gene Tools designs and synthesizes Morpholinos and delivery reagents.

Mark Maguire – Eugene Water and Electric Board (Eugene)

Conducts indoor air quality issue investigation (air sampling, reviewing ASHREA/industry standard air exchange recommendations, ….), perform workplace monitoring for environmental exposures for (asbestos, heat/cold, lumen / lighting levels, dBA sound levels, OV levels, varied toxic materials, lead / heavy metal, respiratory fit / function testing, hearing testing). Provides in-house training on asbestos, silicosis, lead, hazcom, hazwopper (8 hr refresher & possibly 24 h training), CPR/1st Aid/AED (future) and vehicle specific safety training. Performs RF exposure monitoring, ergonomic reviews, MSDS review on new products and manages MSDS program. Acting member of ICS/Emergency Response Team and Pandemic Planning Team.

The Eugene Water & Electric Board is Oregon's largest customer-owned utility. Work shadow mentors will focus on Occupational Safety and Industrial Hygiene.

David Olszyk – Pesticides, Ecology, Environmental Protection Agency (Corvallis)

Job description pending –

Dr. Olszyk is acting Chief of the Ecological Effects branch of the US EPA, Western Ecology Division. His research is in plant eco-toxicology. His group conducts experiments on methods to detect the effects of herbicide drift on non-target plants.

Tom Fleischmann – BASi Northwest Laboratory (McMinnville)

Dr. Fleischmann is Director of Laboratory Services at BASi Northwest Laboratory, a bioanalytical laboratory supporting pharmacokinetics, toxicokinetics and biomarker assay development for pharmaceutical research. BASi is an instrumentation and contract research organization that provides in vivo non-clinical, bioanalytical and pharm analysis services for many biologic and pharmaceutical companies located in West Lafayette, IN (corporate office), Evansville, IN, McMinnville, OR and Warwickshire, UK. BASi Northwest Laboratory in McMinnville, OR is 1 of 3 bioanalytical laboratory sites that use LC-MS/MS, HPLC and other methods to detect analytes in biological samples. Dr. Fleischmann works directly with clients to determine project needs, directs the development and validation of analytical assays, and acts as facilities manager at the BASi Northwest Laboratory site.