Nov 22, 2019: Nanoparticle-cell interactions: Importance for human health

Fall 2019 Seminar Series (Pharm 847-S/ENV 847-S)

Duke University Program in Environmental Health & Toxicology

Friday, November 22, 2019, 11:45 am – 1:00 pm, Grainger Hall Field Auditorium (rm 1112)

Christine Payne, Ph.D.CHRISTINE PAYNE, PH.D.

Associate Professor, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Duke University

Nanoparticle-cell interactions: Importance for human health

The goal of the Payne Lab at Duke University is to understand how cells and proteins interact with nanoscale materials. This talk will focus on our studies aimed at understanding the cellular response to titanium dioxide nanoparticles. We have recently determined that titanium dioxide nanoparticles, widely used in consumer products, lead to a unique oxidative stress and epigenetic response in human cells. A combination of cellular assays, single particle tracking fluorescence microscopy, and electron microscopy is used to understand how the cellular interaction with these nanoparticles generates this response.

 

Speaker Biography:

Dr. Christine Payne is an Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science and an Associated Professor of Chemistry at Duke University.  She earned her PhD. in Chemistry in 2003 at the University of California at Berkeley.  With research focused on understanding how biological cells interact with artificial materials, Payne’s work seeks to provide foundations for engineering new nanoparticles for medical applications as well as understanding how commercial nanoparticles in everyday products like sunscreen affect the body.  She is also working to design flexible, electrically active polymers for biomedical applications.