Epidemiological Studies of the Environmental Exposure of Humans to Endocrine Disrupting and Neurotoxic Chemicals: The Paradigm of a Child-Mother Cohort

Abstract

Epidemiological research shows that disease aetiology often has to be evaluated with a life-course perspective, starting as close to the time of conception as possible and, furthermore, that genetic predisposition, environmental exposures and social context have to be considered simultaneously. Exposures during the prenatal and postnatal period have implications for children’s health and may also have implications for morbidity occurring later in life, including obesity and cardiovascular diseases, asthma and allergy, cancer, delayed neurodevelopment, mental illnesses, and more.

Endocrine disruptors are chemicals, which alter functions of the endocrine system of humans and consequently can cause adverse health effects. Human exposure to these chemicals is occurring through the environment, food intake and the use of products containing them, through inhalation, dermal contact and ingestion. Epidemiological approaches of toxic chemicals environmental exposure will be presented taking as paradigm the mother-child Rhea cohort, the first and the only population-based pregnancy cohort in Greece, in the island of Crete, Greece.

About the Speaker

Prof. Stephanou majored in Chemical Engineering (Univ. Neuchâtel). He was awarded an MSc in Environmental Chemistry (Univ. Genève) and a PhD in Organic Chemistry (Univ. Zurich). After his PhD he worked as Researcher, Lecturer and Senior Researcher at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology of Zurich, the University of Genève and Stanford University. He joined the University of Crete at 1986 and served it as Rector, Dean of the Faculty of Science and Engineering and Chairman of the Department of Chemistry.

Prof. Stephanou's research focuses on Atmospheric Aerosols, Biogeochemical Cycles of Organic Pollutants, and Human Exposure to Toxic Contaminants. He acted as Coordinator and Principal Investigator in numerous European Projects. He is the author and co-author of more than 125 peer-reviewed papers in leading international scientific journals (e.g. Nature, Science) and as well as in more than 30 conference proceedings. His work found a broad echo in the scientific community and international and scientific press (e.g. New York Times; Chemical & Engineering News). He served as Editor in the Journal of the Air and Waste Management Association and the Environmental Science and Pollution Research. He was panel member of the European Research Council (2007-2015). He received the “Ecopolis 2006 Award” for “scientific achievements in Environmental Research”

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