ENAC Seminar Series by Prof. K. Schirmer
Event details
| Date | 16.05.2019 |
| Hour | 13:45 › 14:45 |
| Speaker | Prof. K. Schirmer |
| Location | |
| Category | Conferences - Seminars |
13:45 – 14:45 – Prof. Kristin Schirmer
Head of Dept. of Environmental Toxicology at Eawag, Switzerland
Cells of fish in a culture dish – sensors of human-environment interactions
Prof. Schirmer’s research focusses on linking cell biology and environmental toxicology, with the paradigm that cells are the initial target of chemical or other stressor interactions with any form of life at its base. Specifically, her research aspires to decipher the mechanisms by which stressors interfere on the cellular level with aquatic organisms and to identify responses relevant to organism and population health. The mechanistic knowledge gained provides the foundation for developing models and technologies that enable to scale toxicological impact from cells to multicellular organisms and from lab settings to environmental monitoring in the field. The overarching aim is to warrant or improve aquatic ecosystem health as a vital resource for life.
To illustrate her research, she will take you onto a journey that starts with the isolation of cells from organs of fish to derive immortal cell lines. Such cells allow to study how man-made chemicals enter and impact fish and how, in turn, these cells are equipped to combat such challenge. In combination with mathematical models of differing complexity, we were able to demonstrate that such cells can predict diverse read-outs of relevance to environmental risk assessment such as chemical bioaccumulation and chemical-induced impact on fish growth. One assay procedure, designed to predict fish acute toxicity of chemicals or water samples, has just been accepted as a standard by the International Standardization Organization. By engineering the cell-based systems, we can achieve additional unique features, such as non-invasive cell viability sensing on resistance-measuring electrodes and co-culture of different cells types to work toward a “fish-on-chip”. It is our vision to not only reduce or even replace the need for fish for chemical risk assessment but as well contribute to sustainable product development and reliable water quality monitoring in urban and rural settings.
Head of Dept. of Environmental Toxicology at Eawag, Switzerland
Cells of fish in a culture dish – sensors of human-environment interactions
Prof. Schirmer’s research focusses on linking cell biology and environmental toxicology, with the paradigm that cells are the initial target of chemical or other stressor interactions with any form of life at its base. Specifically, her research aspires to decipher the mechanisms by which stressors interfere on the cellular level with aquatic organisms and to identify responses relevant to organism and population health. The mechanistic knowledge gained provides the foundation for developing models and technologies that enable to scale toxicological impact from cells to multicellular organisms and from lab settings to environmental monitoring in the field. The overarching aim is to warrant or improve aquatic ecosystem health as a vital resource for life.
To illustrate her research, she will take you onto a journey that starts with the isolation of cells from organs of fish to derive immortal cell lines. Such cells allow to study how man-made chemicals enter and impact fish and how, in turn, these cells are equipped to combat such challenge. In combination with mathematical models of differing complexity, we were able to demonstrate that such cells can predict diverse read-outs of relevance to environmental risk assessment such as chemical bioaccumulation and chemical-induced impact on fish growth. One assay procedure, designed to predict fish acute toxicity of chemicals or water samples, has just been accepted as a standard by the International Standardization Organization. By engineering the cell-based systems, we can achieve additional unique features, such as non-invasive cell viability sensing on resistance-measuring electrodes and co-culture of different cells types to work toward a “fish-on-chip”. It is our vision to not only reduce or even replace the need for fish for chemical risk assessment but as well contribute to sustainable product development and reliable water quality monitoring in urban and rural settings.
Practical information
- General public
- Free
Organizer
- ENAC
Contact
- Cristina Perez