Terrance J. Kavanagh, PhD, MS
About
Dr. Kavanagh joined the faculty at the University of Washington in the Departments of Medicine and Environmental Health in 1989, and is currently Emeritus Professor in the UW Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences. Dr. Kavanagh is board certified in toxicology, and is a Full Member of the Society of Toxicology, a Member of the International Society for the Advancement of Cytometry, a Fellow of the Society for Redox Biology and Medicine, and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. His areas of research include glutathione metabolism, redox biology/toxicology, toxicogenomics, nanotoxicology and advanced in vitro methods for evaluating chemical safety. He is the Associate Director of the UW Center for Exposures, Diseases, Genomics and Environment, and serves on External Scientific Advisory Boards for a number of NIEHS-funded Core Centers of Excellence.
Education
- PhD, Michigan State University
- MS, Michigan State University
- BS, University of Michigan
Affiliations
Mentorship
Not available to mentor new PhD and Master's students in autumn 2021.
DEOHS Students Mentored
Effects of common e-cigarette compounds on immortalized mouse hepatocytes and glutathione as a potential modulator of susceptibility
Michael Anderson | MS Thesis | 2020 | View
Differential Susceptibility to Engineered Nanomaterial Induced Lung Inflammation and Toxicity
David Scoville | PhD | 2017 | View
Plasticity of Antioxidant Defense Pathways in Response to Aging and Cadmium in Glutathione-Deficient Mice
Chistopher Schapp | PhD | 2017 | View
The Modulation of Multi-walled Carbon Nanotube-induced Acute Lung Pathology by Mouse Strain, Glutathione Status, and Nanotube Characteristics
Megan Cartwright | PhD | 2015 | View
Modulation of Glutathione Associated with Methylmercury Exposure in Mice
Sally Thompson | PhD | 1996 | View
Research
Interests: Glutathione metabolism. Analytical cytology. In vitro toxicology. Transgenic models. Toxicology of reactive oxygen/nitrogen species. Toxicogenomics. Nanotoxicology. Systems and developmental toxicology. Air pollution. Bioactivation/carcinogenesis. Biomarkers. Cardiovascular disease. Genetic susceptibility to toxicants. Immunotoxicology. Liver, renal and respiratory toxicology. Risk assessment. Toxicology and aging. Xenobiotic metabolism.
Projects
Using transgenic mouse models of altered glutathione (GSH) synthesis to investigate the effects of altered GSH synthesis on susceptibility to various exposures, including air pollutants, engineered nanomaterials and various drugs and environmental chemicals. GSH is an important endogenous antioxidant that has roles in free radical scavenging, protecting against reactive oxygen/nitrogen species and in the metabolism/excretion of xenobiotics. We are conducting studies to determine the effects of genetically altered GSH synthesis on cellular susceptibility to toxicant-induced DNA, protein and lipid damage, cell signaling and apoptosis. We are also interested in the factors that regulate the expression of GSH-related genes in humans, rodents and other species.
Defining which physical and chemical characteristics of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) predispose to toxicity and adverse health outcomes. We are participants in the NIEHS Centers for Nanotechnology Health Implications Research Consortium, together with Drs. Elaine Faustman and Michael Yost (DEOHS); William Altemeier (Pulmonary Medicine and UW Center for Lung Biology); Edward Kelly (Pharmaceutics), Xiaohu Gao (Bioengineering); and François Baneyx (Chemical Engineering and UW Center for Nanotechnology). This program is using in vitro toxicology, organotypic microphysiological systems, in vivo toxicology (including systems toxicology/mouse genetics) and risk assessment approaches to investigate the adverse effects of ENMs with the goals of elucidating the mechanisms by which they cause toxicity and inflammation, and using this mechanistic information to facilitate the design of safer ENMs.
Publications
Selected publications
- Silver nanoparticles alter epithelial basement membrane integrity, cell adhesion molecule expression, and TGF-β1 secretion.
- Quantum dots and mouse strain influence house dust mite-induced allergic airway disease.
- Kinetics of Glutathione Depletion and Antioxidant Gene Expression as Indicators of Chemical Modes of Action Assessed in Vitro in Mouse Hepatocytes with Enhanced Glutathione Synthesis.