Research

The primary aim of our research is to obtain a mechanistic understanding of the effects of chemicals and additional stressors on aquatic organisms in order to support a knowledge-based risk assessment. To achieve this aim we are studying:

• the exposure of aquatic organisms to chemical stressors (e.g., organic chemicals, heavy metals, and synthetic nanoparticles) and the effect of chemical speciation on uptake and bioavailability

• the dynamic responses of aquatic organisms to fluctuating concentrations of chemicals and chemical mixtures
• the mode of action of multiple chemical and physical stressors and the capacity of aquatic organisms to detoxify chemicals and/or recover from exposure to stressors

This fundamental understanding serves as the basis for the development of models to aid in the prediction of risks and of effect-directed analytical tools for the environmental risk assessment of chemicals and the ecotoxicological assessment of aquatic ecosystems.

Research Topics

• Internal Exposure and Effects
• Multiple Stressors
• Linking effects across biological levels
• Environmental Risk Assessment
• Nanoecotoxicology
  
• Advancing experimental models
  

Research Models

in vivo/in vitro	in silico
Algae	biogeochemical models
Daphnids	TK-TD models
Gammarids	QSAR models
Fish/fish cells	cellular network models
mammalian cell	Mixture toxicity prediction models

Research Methods

Tools	Equipment/Methods
bio-analytical	Combined algae test
	Bacterial bioluminescence inhibition test
	EROD assay
	E-Screen assay
	YES-assay
	Synchronous algae toxicity test
chemical-analytical	Enrichment: passive samplers (POCIS, SDB, DGT), SPE
	Separation: HPLC, IC, CE, GC
	Mass Spectrometery: HRSF ICP-MS, (nano)ESI/MS, MALDI high resolution MS, MS/MS, MSn
	Spectroscopy: ICP OES, UVvis, Fluorescence, Chemiluminescence
	Determination of liposome-water partition coefficients
mathematical modeling	Equilibrium Speciation Calculations
	Bioconcentration models
	Quantitative structure activity relationships (QSARs)
	Toxikokinetic-toxicodynamic models
	Parameter estimation methods (classical least squares, MCMC)
	Dynamic simulation of effects and associated uncertainty
	Models for toxicity of mixtures
proteomics tools	OMSSA, X!Tandem
molecular	conventional and real-time PCR
	bioanalyzer
	Silencing techniques (morpholinos)
	In-situ hybridization
nano-analytical	DLS
	electrophoretic mobility
	TEM