Research Programs
Scientifically, the SCEHSC is organized around four Research Affinity Groups that focus on key areas of environmental health. These groups bring together multidisciplinary teams to address the complex intersections of environment, health, and disease. Each group leverages cutting-edge technologies and methodologies to explore critical issues, such as climate-related impacts, exposomic interactions, health disparities, and the role of multi-omics in disease prevention. By advancing exposure science, precision medicine, and community-based health solutions, these groups aim to improve public health outcomes and drive innovation in environmental health research.
Research Affinity Groups
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Climate and Health
The Climate and Health Research Affinity Group investigates the chronic impacts of climate-related exposures, such as heat and wildfire PM2.5, on neurodevelopmental and cardiopulmonary outcomes. The group advances exposure assessment through collaborations with NASA and Caltech and is developing a climate-health registry to map environmental exposures and neighborhood vulnerabilities using USC hospital data.
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Exposomics
The Exposomics Research Affinity Group explores how complex environmental exposure mixtures interact with biological and genetic factors to influence health outcomes. Leveraging geospatial technologies, the group developed a geoexposomic framework to map personal, residential, and neighborhood exposures, and established the U24 NEXUS Network to study built, natural, and chemical/social environments. Innovations include mobility data analysis, deep learning models for wildfire smoke exposure, and wearable monitoring technologies.
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Integrated Multi-Omics for Environmental Health
The Integrated Multi-Omics for Environmental Health Research Affinity Group investigates the complex connections between environmental exposures and health outcomes by integrating multi-omic data, including genomics, epigenomics, and metabolomics. The group has developed novel statistical methods, such as the LUCID model, to link exposures, genotypes, and health outcomes, and created precision health frameworks to identify biomarkers and pathways of disease susceptibility.
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Environmental Health Disparities
The Environmental Health Disparities Research Affinity Group explores how social inequities intersect with environmental risks, disproportionately affecting minority and low-income communities. Key research includes studies on Salton Sea dust exposure, industrial pollution in urban areas, and pregnancy vulnerability to air pollution in the MADRES cohort. The group leads national efforts in environmental justice and aims to expand collaborations, integrate EHD research across initiatives, and support training for early-career investigators in health disparities.
New Initiatives
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Environment and Cancer
The Environment and Cancer Initiative seeks to address the gap in cancer risk factors by leveraging SCEHSC's exposure assessment technologies. Driven by community concerns and collaborations with the USC Cancer Center, the initiative focuses on using exposomics, bench, and population resources to identify new cancer causes, prevention strategies, public health interventions, and precision medicine approaches.
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Artificial Intelligence for Environmental Health
The Artificial Intelligence in Environmental Health Research Affinity Group focuses on integrating big data from sources like GIS, wearables, multi-omics, and imaging to predict environmental health outcomes. The initiative will foster collaboration across Center teams, identify AI applications for data analysis, and support AI-related training. It aims to advance exposure science, discover environmental health factors, and use Explainable AI to uncover novel relationships, all while ensuring sound study design and addressing biases.
