The 2007 election was held via ElectionsOnline. Voting was provided from October 10-19. Members received an email with instructions for casting their ballots online. The winners of the election are listed below along with their respective bios.

President-Elect 

Jeffrey A. Ross received his B.S. in Biochemistry in 1977 from the University of Dallas, and his Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Texas at Dallas in 1982.  His dissertation research focused on the binding of aromatic amines to DNA in chromatin.  From 1982-1985, he was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Texas System Cancer Center, Science Park/Research Division, where he studied the repair and mutagenicity of aromatic amine-DNA adducts in bacterial systems.  From 1985-1986, he was a National Academy of Sciences, National Research Council postdoctoral fellow in the Carcinogenesis and Metabolism Branch of the Genetic Toxicology Division at EPA, where he studied PAH-DNA adducts.  He joined the EPA Carcinogenesis and Metabolism Branch in 1986 as a Research Biologist, and studies the formation, persistence, and molecular consequences of DNA-carcinogen adducts in vivo and in vitro.  In 1999 he became Chief of the Cancer Biology Branch in the Environmental Carcinogenesis Division in US EPA’s National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory.  He is currently serving as Acting Director of the Environmental Carcinogenesis Division. He is a lifetime member of GEMS, and has previously served two terms on the GEMS Board of Councilors.

Dr. Boyer received her Ph.D. in Toxicology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1990.  Under the mentorship of Dr. Marila Cordeiro-Stone she studied the effects of ultraviolet light and benzo(a)pyrene-diol-epoxide on DNA replication and cell transformation.  As a postdoctoral fellow she furthered her research interests in DNA replication and mutagenesis in the laboratory of Dr. Thomas Kunkel at NIEHS from 1990-1995 studying the fidelity of DNA replication and the role of mismatch repair.  Upon returning to UNC-CH she collaborated with Dr. Rosann Farber From 1995 to 2007 on various aspects of microsatellite instability.  She has been a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at UNC-CH since 2002.  Presently she is working with Dr. Charles Jennette and Dr. Ron Falk at UNC-CH studying the effects of autoimmune responses on kidney inflammation.   Dr. Boyer has been a member of GEMS since “sometime in the mid 80’s” and has served on the Board of Councilors from 2004-2007.

 
Treasurer

Dr. Floyd received her Ph.D. in the Department of Cancer Biology (20005) from Wake Forest University.  Under the mentorship of Dr. Mark S. Miller, she characterized the effects of the Ki-ras oncogene on lung tumor development utilizing a bitransgenic mouse model.  After completing her Ph.D., Heather accepted a postdoctoral position with Dr. Gilbert Morris at Tulane University (2005) where she began investigating homing and engraftment of bone marrow progenitor cells in lung tumors, however the devastation of Hurricane Katrina forced Heather to relocate to NC upon accepting a postdoctoral position with Dr. Kevin Dreher at the US Environmental Protection Agency (2006-present).  She is currently studying the molecular effects of environmental pollutants on cardiovascular disease progression.  Heather is active in the scientific community as a member of the Society of Toxicology, currently serving as the vice chair of the postdoctoral assembly.  In regards to GEMS, she was a member (2001-2004) and served as the student representative from 2001-2002.

Councilors

* Joel Meyer
* Peppy Muganda (replaces Jeff Ross for remainder of term)
* John D. Wilson
* Carol Swartz

Joel N. Meyer, Ph.D.

Joel received his Ph.D. (Environmental Toxicology, 2003) from Duke University (Durham, NC), with a certificate from the Integrated Toxicology Program. He worked under the supervision of Dr. Richard Di Giulio, studying a population of Fundulus heteroclitus (Atlantic killifish) that had adapted to survival in a highly contaminated Superfund site. He investigated heritability of the resistant phenotype, mechanisms of resistance to toxicity (focusing on alterations in aryl hydrocarbon receptor pathway proteins and oxidative stress parameters), and costs associated with the resistant phenotype. Following completion of his Ph.D. studies, Joel moved to Dr. Bennett Van Houten’s DNA Repair and Mitochondrial Damage Group at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, NIEHS; Research Triangle Park, NC). While there, he adapted the Van Houten laboratory’s QPCR assay for DNA damage and repair to the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, and began a characterization of nucleotide excision repair in that organism. Joel was also exposed to and impressed with the potential of genomics and systems biology approaches to environmental mutagenesis and toxicology during his postdoctoral work.  He started as an assistant professor at the Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences at Duke University in 2007. There, he has initiated projects designed to 1) further investigate the importance of nucleotide excision repair in the life of C elegans, especially upon exposure to environmental genotoxins; and 2) investigate the effects of, and response to, mitochondrial DNA damage in C elegans. He has been a member of the Environmental Mutagen Society since 2003, the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry since 1998, and has been active in GEMS and local chapters of the Society of Toxicology and Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.

Perpetua (Peppy) Muganda, Ph.D.

Peppy earned a B.S. degree in Biology (1976) from Lock Haven State College, and a M.Sc. degree in Biochemistry (1978) from Howard University. After receiving her Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (1983) under the direction of Dr. Howard J. Edenberg at Indiana University School of Medicine, she joined the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Research Center as a postdoctoral fellow (under the direction of Dr. Eng-Shang Huang) in 1984.  There she studied tumor virology and cancer molecular biology, with funding through the Institutional National Research Service Award fellowship, followed by a supplemental grant from the National Cancer Institute. Upon securing an Assistant Professor of Virology position at the University of Texas at El Paso in 1988, Peppy continued her NIH-funded research in tumor virology, focusing on viral-cellular interactions involving human cytomegalovirus and p53, proto-oncogenes, and casein kinase II.  In 1995, Peppy accepted an Associate Professor of Biological Sciences position at Southern University, Baton Rouge, and was promoted to full Professor of Biological Sciences and Environmental Toxicology in 2000.  In August 2007, Peppy joined the faculty at North Carolina A&T State University as Professor of Biology.  Peppy’s current research, which was initiated upon receipt of NIEHS funding in 1999, focuses on the cellular and molecular toxicology of butadiene.  This research, which is now funded by NIGMS, utilizes various (including genetic) approaches to deduce butadiene-induced p53-mediated apoptotic signaling pathways.  Peppy is a chartered member (2006-2010) of the NIH National Center for Scientific Review CAMP Study section, and regularly reviews manuscripts for Toxicology In Vitro.  She is a member of American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Society for Microbiology, and the Genetics and Environmental Mutagenesis Society (GEMS).

Carol Swartz, D.V.M., Ph.D.

Carol received her Ph.D. in 2004 from Texas A&M University, where she worked under the supervision of Dr. K.C. Donnelly of the Department of Veterinary Anatomy and Public Health and Dr. John Bickham of the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (Dr. Bickham is currently Head of the Center for the Environment at Purdue University). Her graduate work involved a study of genetic effects ranging from direct DNA damage to population genetic shifts resulting from exposure to environmental contaminants in wildlife populations living at sites contaminated by industrial waste. She also earned a D.V.M. from Oklahoma State University in 1990 and a B.S. in Biochemistry in 1986 from OSU, where she worked with Dr. George Odell to characterize the protein components of spider venom.

Carol is currently working with Dr. David DeMarini at the USEPA under a cooperative training grant with UNC. At EPA, she has studied the mutagenicity of sulfur-containing PAHs using the Ames Assay and has examined the influence of various gene deletions built into the Ames Salmonella strains on mutagenicity of several standard compounds. She also used microarray analysis to evaluate gene expression changes in Ames Salmonella bacteria under conditions of mutagenicity. Her latest research project involves determining the potential of zero-valent iron nanoparticles to cause heritable mutation in tandem repeat loci in mouse spermatogonia.

Carol is a member of the EPA Networking and Leadership Training Organization where she serves as the secretary/treasurer. She is also involved in her sons’ Boy Scout Troop and high school PTSA in leadership roles. In these positions, she has enjoyed the opportunity to interact with colleagues and to help keep the organizations responsive to their membership, and she would welcome a similar role as a GEMS Councilor. She has been a member of EMS and SOT since 2004 and has been a GEMS member since 2002.

John David (JD) Wilson, M.S.

John David, better known as ‘JD’ by his friends and colleagues, received his Bachelor of Arts in Biology from UNC Chapel Hill in 1992, and he finished a Master of Toxicology degree at NC State in 2002.  He completed the graduate degree while continuing to work full-time for GlaxoSmithKline, where he has been employed since 1992.  For 9 years, ‘JD’ worked at GlaxoSmithKline in the toxicology labs and his primary responsibility was testing new drugs in the Ames assay.  He was a Study Director (as defined under the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 21 Part 58) for 6 years, and this involved conducting genetic toxicity assays in full compliance with US and international regulations.  He also led an initiative to improve drug-related genotoxicity screening capabilities by validating scaled-down versions of the Ames test, such as using mini-well agar plates.  In 2002, he moved to the Regulatory Affairs department and continues to support drug development efforts in his present role.  In his current position, he is primarily a technical writer for regulatory submissions to US FDA and international authorities.  ‘JD’ has accomplished work on several dozen major submissions and he has also supported clinical functions, including being an author and coordinator for Investigator’s Brochures.  He has a continuing interest in the field of genetic toxicology, in particular as it relates to regulatory issues such as genotoxic risk assessment and genotoxic impurities.  He is a current member of the Environmental Mutagen Society and has attended annual meetings in Minneapolis, St. Louis, San Francisco and New Orleans.  He is a life member of GEMS.