Meharry researcher wins $4 million grant to study toxins' effects
Tuesday, 01/16/07

Meharry Medical College researcher Dr. Darryl B. Hood received a $4 million dollar grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to study the effects of environmental toxin exposures that economically disadvantaged communities are exposed to at home and in the workplace.

Hood, part of the school's Division of Neurobiology and Neurotoxicology in the Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, is specifically studying whether babies of pregnant women exposed to environmental contaminants, such as benzo(a)pyrene, suffer changes in their brain development that could lead to learning and memory disabilities as they grow up. Hood’s research is conducted in animals, but the findings could apply to humans.

The project is being conducted in collaboration with Vanderbilt University Medical Center investigators.

For additional information contact:

Meharry Medical College is the nation’s largest private, independent historically black institution dedicated solely to educating minority and other health professionals. The College is particularly well known for its uniquely nurturing, highly effective educational programs; emerging preeminence in health disparities research; culturally sensitive, evidence-based health services; and significant contribution to the diversity of the nation’s health professions workforce. Black Issues in Higher Education’s ranking of institutions annually lists Meharry as a leading national educator of African Americans with M.D. and D.D.S. degrees, and Ph.D. degrees in the biomedical sciences.