Cowley Lab Wins 2nd Place in 2021 Paper of the Year Award

Congratulations to the Cowley Lab for winning Second Place in the 2021 Paper of the Year Award presented by the Society of Toxicology Molecular and Systems Biology Specialty Section. The award highlights outstanding papers that integrate molecular or systems biology to toxicology research. Dr Cowley’s paper, published in Scientific Reports, exploits omics approaches to identify novel pathways through which the toxic metal cadmium disrupts neurodevelopment in mice, leading to behavioral changes in adulthood. The most striking observation was perturbation to retinoic acid signaling, which controls Hox gene expression – critical for correct patterning of the central nervous system during development. The work leveraged the expertise and instrumentation in the CHHE Systems Technologies Core, including Genomics, Proteomics and Metabolomics. The study was led by former graduate student Katie Hudson, now a Postdoctoral Fellow at NIEHS. The team’s paper will be highlighted at the 2022 Society of Toxicology meeting in San Diego, CA.