Lucie Ford wins competitive toxicology research award
Lucie Ford ’20, biology major and chemistry minor, is one of 21 student researchers from across the United States to win a competitive Pfizer Society of Toxicology (SOT) undergraduate student travel award. Ford was recognized for her research on the adverse health impacts of per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals that are found in everyday household items such as frying pans, rain jackets, food packaging and stick-resistant products.
As an award winner, her poster abstract, “Time to Treatment After Plating Impacts PFAS Induction of Gene Expression in Cryopreserved Human Hepatocytes,” was accepted for presentation at the SOT annual meeting.
“The chemicals found in these per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances collect in our bodies, specifically in the region of our liver, and will remain there for up to 6.5 years,” Ford said. “These persistent chemicals have been linked to various adverse health conditions such as non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and others.”
In studying these chemicals, researchers treat frozen human liver cells at various concentrations. “My goal was to see if the time in which the cells are plated has a difference in the uptake of these chemicals due to the fact that previous literature says that as time progresses, the gene expression for the transporters decreases,” Ford said. “Therefore, at an earlier time point there would be a higher expression of the chemical transporters, which allows for more PFASs to enter the liver cells.”
Ford, a Fulbright U.S. Student Program finalist, plans to continue her toxicology research in the fall at one of the graduate programs she has been accepted to. She credited her Salve Regina professors, Dr. Jameson Chace, Dr. Susan Meschwitz and Dr. Steven Symington, with being instrumental in her success. She also said it was her cell biology instructor Joseph Schrader, visiting assistant professor, who sparked her interest in the field of pharmaceutical sciences.
