Author Biographies

Valerie H. Adams, MS, PhD, is a Biologist in the Toxicology Portfolio – Health Effects Research Program, U.S. Army Institute of Public Health, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. As an undergraduate at California State University Fresno she majored in Biology, minored in Chemistry, and worked as an intern at an agricultural research facility. During her master’s program at University of Guam, she studied a predation-induced plant defense response, participated in coral reef field studies, and completed coursework in aquatic toxicology and environmental contaminants. Dr. Adams received a PhD in Cellular and Structural Biology from the University of Texas Health Sciences Center, San Antonio, TX where she studied the immune response to chlamydial infection using a mouse model. Dr. Adams completed postdoctoral research at Colorado State University in the field of chromatin biology and protein biochemistry. A prior recipient of NIH predoctoral and postdoctoral training grants, Dr. Adams has published over 30 peer-reviewed articles, abstracts, and technical reports. She is a member of the Society of Toxicology and has previously served as chair of the Triservice Environmental Risk Assessment Workgroup. She volunteers annually for the U.S. Army e-Cybermission as a science project judge and was selected as a 2014 National Junior Science and Humanities Symposium Judge. In her current position, Dr. Adams is the principle investigator for in vivo and in vitro toxicity studies and explores novel approaches for in vitro toxicity assessment.

Christine Ann Arenal, MS, is a Biologist and Ecological Risk Assessor with CH2M HILL, Inc. She earned her BA in Biology at Occidental College in Los Angeles, CA, where she was an instructor for the Classroom at Sea program aboard the college’s research vessel R/V Vantuna. Following this teaching program, Ms. Arenal spent time tracking and studying grizzly bears with the Interagency Grizzly Bear Study Team, in Billings, MT. Ms. Arenal received an MS in Zoology at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, where she conducted field studies to evaluate the reproductive and behavioral effects of polychlorinated biphenyls and metals on avian species. She also studied liver enzyme activity in nesting birds exposed to metals. As a postgraduate fellow at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), TN, Ms. Arenal developed models of wildlife risk assessment, and methods for interspecies extrapolation of avian and mammalian toxicity data. She also performed risk analyses for the endangered gray bat, and completed a regulatory analysis of the Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 as it applies to underwater explosions in military sea range activities. Immediately following this fellowship in 2000, she joined CH2M HILL and currently specializes in ecological risk assessment, wildlife toxicology, ecology, and wildlife biology. As a project scientist, Ms. Arenal has continued to develop methods and tools for ecological risk assessment, including avian and mammalian toxicity reference values for a wide range of chemicals such as petroleum hydrocarbons and military relevant chemicals. She also developed and parameterized an exposure model for incorporation into the Army Risk Assessment Modeling System (ARAMS). Ms. Arenal has given over 20 oral or poster presentations at national and regional professional conferences, authored or coauthored 10 peer-reviewed publications, and has been a member of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) since 1995. She currently lives and works in Sacramento, CA, with her husband and four children.

Desmond I. Bannon, PhD, DABT, is a Toxicologist in the Toxicology Portfolio – Health Effects Research Program, U.S. Army Institute of Public Health, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. Dr. Bannon previously spent 10 years at the Kennedy Krieger Institute Lead Poisoning Program in Baltimore, MD. In addition to his PhD from the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health (2002), Dr. Bannon has been a Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology since 2006. With a focus on toxicology and human health, his interests include metal toxicology (tungsten alloys and lead) bioinformatics/genomics, mechanisms of toxicology, and toxicology studies in support of risk assessment. He recently led a U.S. Army Public Health Command effort to propose new blood lead guidelines for lead exposure and medical management in the Department of Defense. His range of journal publications includes, among others, Biomarkers, Clinical Chemistry, Chemical Research in Toxicology, Environmental Health Perspectives, Environmental Science and Toxicology, Toxicology and Applied Pharmacology, and Nature Communications, indicating broad interests and strong interdisciplinary collaborations. Dr. Bannon currently serves as the Contracting Officer’s Representative for an ongoing Department of Defense contract with the U.S. National Academy of Sciences in Washington, DC.

Adam T. Deck, BS, is an Environmental Scientist and Health Risk Assessor with the Environmental in the Health Risk Management Portfolio – Health Risk Assessment Program, U.S. Army Institute for Public Health (AIPH). Throughout his tenure at the AIPH, his work has focused on ecological and human health risk assessments in both garrison and deployed settings. Mr. Deck currently serves on the AIPH Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee and the administrative team for the chairperson of the Joint Environmental Surveillance Working Group. Mr. Deck’s primary passion is conducting field studies and serving as the primary investigator and team lead for the Comprehensive Reproductive Assessment for Wild Rodents at Contaminated Army Properties. Mr. Deck holds a BS in Biology from the University of Mary Washington with a focus in ecology and zoology.

William S. Eck, PhD, is a Biologist (Chemist/Toxicologist) in the Toxicology Portfolio – Health Effects Research Program, U.S. Army Institute of Public Health, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. His principle efforts at the U.S. Army Institute of Public Health have been directed toward support of the U.S. Army’s Ordnance Environmental Program as Team Leader for preparation of Toxicology Assessments. Dr. Eck is also responsible for QSAR modeling of newly developed explosive, propellant, and pyrotechnic compounds, and is a Subject Matter Expert on perchlorates. Dr. Eck has also served as a Study Director and regularly participates in the general toxicology effort within the Directorate. Prior to joining the Directorate of Toxicology in 2008, Dr. Eck was a university professor, Senior Intelligence Analyst with the Defense Intelligence Agency, and a serving Army officer in the Medical Service and Chemical Corps. Dr. Eck is the primary or coauthor of numerous publications relating to compounds of military interest. He received his PhD in Chemistry (Biochemistry) from the University of Maryland, College Park, MD and a BS in Chemistry, from the College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA.

Rachel M. Hebert, BS, is a Biological Science Technician with the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, positioned with the Toxicology Portfolio – Health Effects Research Program, U.S. Army Institute of Public Health, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. Ms. Hebert received a BS in Biology, with a concentration in Organismal Biology and Ecology and a minor in Geographic Information Systems from Towson University in Towson, MD. While at Towson University, she studied the reproductive biology and behavior of Mountain Bluebirds in the Bighorn Mountains of Wyoming. Ms. Hebert also conducted the first systematic mammal species survey at Eden Mill Park in Pylesville, MD as her departmental honors thesis and spent two years studying plant–mammal interactions in wetlands using exclosures.

Allison M. Jackovitz, BS, is a Biologist with the Toxicology Portfolio – Toxicity Evaluation Program, U.S. Army Institute of Public Health, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. Upon graduating from Pennsylvania State University, Ms. Jackovitz arrived at the U.S. Army U.S. Army Institute of Public Health to work under Dr. Michael Quinn, Jr., in the development of an avian two-generation toxicity test for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program’s Tier 2 battery of tests. Ms. Jackovitz attends the University of Maryland School of Medicine and is working on a PhD in Toxicology. Her most recent research focuses on the endocrine disrupting potential of insensitive munitions.

Glenn J. Leach, PhD, DABT, is a former Senior Toxicologist and Program Manager in the Toxicology Portfolio, U.S. Army Institute of Public Health, Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD. He retired in 2011 and returned to work part-time as a consultant in the same organization. Dr. Leach received a PhD in Biological Sciences from the University of Delaware and had postdoctoral training at the Louisiana State University Medical Center. He became a Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology in 1982 and is a member of the Society of Toxicology. He served for over 10 years on the Acute Exposure Guidelines Committee. His interests include evaluating the toxicity of munitions compounds and risk assessment. Dr. Leach has authored or coauthored more than 50 peer-reviewed papers, book chapters, and technical reports.

Sang Ho Lee, PhD, DVM, is an Officer in the U.S. Army Veterinary Corp., U.S. Army Institute of Public...