Now a licensed physician, the candidate is also a Ph.D. physicist with eight years of prior experience in nuclear fusion research at the Plasma Physics Laboratory of Princeton University. There, the candidate developed expertise in the design, implementation, and use of novel diagnostic probe systems for tokamak reactors. Deciding to pursue a career in academic health research, the candidate attended medical school, graduating in 1996. He completed a residency in occupational and environmental medicine and is now a Clinical Assistant Professor at UMDNJ-RW Johnson Medical School, based within the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute. The candidate's immediate career goal is to establish a research program in the pathogenesis of health effects of low-level exposures to environmental chemicals, an area that builds upon existing expertise, clinical resources, and funded research within his department. Over the longer term, the candidate plans to study a variety of environmental effects on health, focusing on areas where he can draw upon his background in physics. The candidate's career development plan includes: mentoring in the design and management of clinical studies; coursework and mentoring in design of experiments and analysis of clinical trial data; specialized clinical training in otolaryngology; experience with a controlled exposure facility; organization of a nasal sensory interest group; and, presentations and publications. The research plan focuses on adverse symptomatic responses associated with low-level exposures to environmental chemicals, a phenomenon which recent epidemiological evidence suggests may affect 6 to 16% of the United States population. These responses have been associated with conditions ranging from chemical sensitivity (CS) to Persian Gulf War syndrome and have been reported in communities near sources of pollution or following chemical releases. Involvement of the olfactory system has often been assumed but has not been demonstrated experimentally. The ultimate objective of this research is to localize the site of interaction between airborne environmental chemicals and subjects responding with adverse symptoms. The results will contribute to identifying mechanism of action and may lead to new therapeutic modalities. Two parallel paths will be explored: 1) development and validation of a method for isolating the nasal respiratory system and subsequent use of that method in blinded, controlled exposure experiments that will address whether the nasal sensory organs are involved in the mechanism of action in CS, and 2) specific investigations of the potential role of the vomeronasal organ in CS.
| Greene, Glenn J; Kipen, Howard M (2002) The vomeronasal organ and chemical sensitivity: a hypothesis. Environ Health Perspect 110 Suppl 4:655-61 |
