The 2nd International Online Conference on Toxics

Institute of Coastal Environmental Chemistry, Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht, Geesthacht, Germany;
Dr. Matthias Karl is a Senior Researcher in the Institute of Coastal Environmental Chemistry at research centre Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, where he became an established leader in the development of numerical models for urban and regional-scale air quality. With an extensive background in atmospheric chemistry and environmental science, including a Ph.D. in Geography and several years as postdoctoral researcher at different institutions including Stockholm University, Joint Research Centre Ispra and the Norwegian Institute for Air Research, Dr. Karl conducts air pollution research from an interdisciplinary perspective. His activities cover chemical mechanisms development, aerosol microphysics, process analysis and process identification, and their applications to three-dimensional tropospheric modelling, air quality and assessment modelling. Dr. Karl’s research elucidates the role of atmospheric transformation of aerosol particles that are emitted from combustion and mobile transport sources, significantly advancing the understanding of nanoparticle formation in near-source dispersion plumes. His work on development and operation of regional and city-scale air quality models has integrated both environmental and health impacts of shipping emissions and their future change in response to emission regulation enforcements. Dr. Karl is author of more than 100 peer-reviewed publications and has held about 20 invited talks at international conferences and workshops. Dr. Karl’s scientific contributions have gained international attention among the air quality and aerosol communities over the past 15 years. His service as Editorial Board Member for Toxics and as Reviewer for several high-ranked journals in atmospheric chemistry, aerosols and air quality corroborate his recognition as consolidated scientist. With his systematic approach and commitment, Dr. Karl’s research continues to support sustainability-oriented transformations and keeps addressing complex societal challenges.

Predictive Toxicology and Screening, Division of Translational Toxicology, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, NC, USA;
Dr. Stephen Ferguson is a Group Leader within the Division of Translational Toxicology (DTT) at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) leading multiple research initiatives to model and predict human responses to xenobiotic exposures (e.g., drugs, botanicals, environmental chemicals, mixtures). His primary focus is the extension of microphysiological systems (e.g., 3D, tissue chips) to emulate tissue functionality (e.g., liver, kidney) and their responses to xenobiotic exposures with a goal to reduce, refine, and replace use of animals in toxicology research. Prior to joining the DTT, Ferguson served as Associate Director of the ADME-Tox R&D Program of Life Technologies (now Thermo-Fisher). He received his BS and PhD degrees in chemistry (bioinorganic, biotechnology minor) from North Carolina State University, and currently serves as adjunct faculty to the Curriculum in Toxicology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Department of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA;
Dr. Lisa Truong is an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental and Molecular Toxicology at Oregon State University, where she has established herself as a leader in computational toxicology and innovative screening methodologies. With an extensive educational background including a Ph.D. in Toxicology, an MBA in Organizational Leadership, and previous degrees in Environmental Science and General Science from Oregon State University, Dr. Truong brings a multidisciplinary perspective to toxicological research. As the Deputy Director of the Sinnhuber Aquatic Research Laboratory (SARL) since 2015 and Director of the Zebrafish Biomedical Research Facility Core, Dr. Truong has pioneered the development and application of zebrafish models for toxicological assessments. Her expertise in high-throughput screening methodologies has revolutionized approaches to chemical safety evaluation, establishing zebrafish as a premier model in environmental health sciences research. Dr. Truong's research integrates sophisticated computational predictive modeling with in vivo assays, significantly advancing the field's capacity to understand chemical toxicity while reducing dependency on traditional testing methods. Her work on automating zebrafish developmental toxicity screening and developing robust statistical methodologies has created powerful frameworks for integrating multi-dimensional phenotypic and expression data. With over 100 peer-reviewed publications and numerous invited presentations at international conferences, Dr. Truong's scientific contributions have gained recognition across the toxicology community. Her service as Associate Editor for Toxicology Research, Editorial Board Member for Toxics, and appointment to the EPA Science Advisory Panel further demonstrate her standing in the field. Through her innovative research approaches and dedication to computational toxicology, Dr. Truong continues to transform our understanding of chemical safety, working toward a safer and more sustainable world.

Center for Environmental and Human Toxicology, Department of Physiological Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, USA;
Dr. Christopher J. Martyniuk is a Professor at the Center for Environmental and Human Toxicology in the Department of Physiological Sciences at the University of Florida. He is the Editor-in-Chief of Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology Part D: Genomics and Proteomics and is an Associate Editor for Toxics. With over 340 publications, Dr. Martyniuk is an internationally recognized expert in molecular toxicology and comparative endocrinology, focused on defining adverse outcome pathways for both endocrine and non-endocrine pathways in organisms. His research spans reproductive biology, neurotoxicology, and comparative endocrinology, and his lab utilizes techniques related to transcriptomics, proteomics, lipidomics, computational biology, and mitochondrial bioenergetics. His research group has worked with a variety of cell lines and models spanning canine, rat, human, zebrafish, fathead minnow, largemouth bass, and the Florida manatees among others.

University of Trieste, Department of Life Science, Via L. Giorgieri, Italy;
Monia Renzi is Associate Professor in Ecology at the University of Trieste (Italy), with a Ph.D. in Environmental Sciences and a degree with honors in Environmental Biology from the University of Siena. Her research focuses on marine-coastal and transitional ecosystems, investigating population responses to multiple environmental and chemical stressors, with particular attention to emerging contaminants. She studies nutrient cycling, trophic dynamics, and the impacts of fisheries and aquaculture on ecosystem sustainability. Her work includes contaminant distribution, trophic transfer, marine litter, and related human health risks. She is an expert in environmental diagnostics using ecotoxicological biomarkers and in assessing the effects of microplastics, nanomaterials, pharmaceuticals, and other pollutants. Since 2013, she has served as Director of the Bioscience Research Center, leading national and international research programs. She is a board member of LaguNet and the Blue Italian Growth (BIG) cluster. She acts as reviewer and Editor for leading scientific journals, with 165 publications, an H-index of 35 (Scopus), and several awards for her scientific contributions.

University of Aveiro, CESAM-Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies & Department of Biology, Portugal;
"Susana Loureiro is an Associate Professor with Habilitation at the Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, and coordinates the Soil Functions, Agriculture and Forest research group at CESAM. She holds a Biology degree and MSc in Ecology from the University of Coimbra and completed her PhD in Biology at the University of Aveiro, focusing on soil hazard assessment. Her research centers on mixture toxicity, multigenerational and long-term effects, nano-ecotoxicology, fate and effects of chemicals and nanomaterials, novel substances and materials from the bioindustry for sustainable applications. She has led or participated in multiple national and international projects (e.g., WE-NEED, NanoHarmony, PARC, ETERNAL, INSECTERA), bridging environmental toxicology with sustainability and innovation, including the use of insects in biocircular systems. She is the Training Manager for a Marie Skłodowska-Curie project (CHRONIC), has published over 240 papers (h-index 44), and has supervised more than 60 MSc and PhD students. She currently serves as President of SETAC Europe, represents UA in national nanotechnology commissions, and leads the applEE-SL lab team."

Senior Researcher at MARE-Polytechnic University of Leiria, Peniche, Portugal;
Dr Sara Novais research focuses on the ecology, physiology, and stress responses of marine organisms, particularly top predators such as sharks, seabirds, sea turtles, and cetaceans. Using molecular and biochemical tools, she investigates the impacts of global change—especially pollution and climate change—on marine life. The main goal of her research is to provide insights that enhance conservation strategies, promoting ecosystem resilience, and contributing to the sustainable management of marine environments.

Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of Milan, Milan, Italy;
Marco Parolini is Associate Professor in Ecology at the Department of Environmental Science and Policy of the University of Milan. His research activity is mainly focused on ecotoxicology, specifically on the monitoring and biomonitoring of the presence, the distribution and the fate of both legacy and emerging contaminants in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, including remote areas such as high-mountain ecosystems. Moreover, his research is also focused on the assessment of the adverse effects induced by the exposure to legacy and emerging contaminants towards diverse models organisms for freshwater, marine and terrestrial ecosystems. He is the principal investigator or a participant of different national and international research projects related to topics of environmental pollution. He is author or co-author of 178 scientific publications on peer-reviewed journals.