Public Health and Health Professions
Baker Water Lab
Led by Tracie Baker · Environmental and Global Health
What we study
The WATER Lab studies how environmental toxins like endocrine disruptors and contaminants affect health across generations, using zebrafish and other models. They develop new methods for research and care of aquatic species.
What working here is like
- Wet lab
- Computational
- Zebrafish
- Coding required
- Projects
- 3
- Papers
- 5
Current projects
Transcriptomic and epigenetic mechanisms of lead (Pb)-induced neurobehavioral disease in aged populations and subsequent generations
Researching how lead exposure affects brain development and behavior across generations.
Healthy Urban Waters: Holistic Analysis of CECs (Contaminants of Emerging Concern) in the Huron to Erie Corridor
Studying emerging pollutants in the Great Lakes region and their health impacts.
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Multigenerational Transcriptomic Effects of Sublethal Dioxin Exposure in Developing Zebrafish Brains
Zebrafish embryos were exposed to 50 pg/mL TCDD for 1 hour, and brains from the exposed founders (F0) and their unexposed F2 descendants were collected as adults for RNA extraction and cDNA library preparation to compare gene expression across generations.
From the Spring 2025 UF Undergraduate Research Symposium · abstract book, p. 254
Summaries are written by AI in plain language from public symposium abstracts and may be imperfect.
Recent papers, explained
- Comparative Analysis of Influent and Effluent Measurements of PFAS at Wastewater Treatment Facilities
2026 · Journal of Environmental Engineering
Measures how well wastewater treatment removes PFAS chemicals.
- Gene-specific DNA methylation responses to Pb2+ exposure in aged male zebrafish and associations with locomotor dysfunction
2026 · Current Zoology
Finds how lead exposure affects DNA methylation and movement in aged fish.
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- Environmental benzene exposure induces a conserved neutrophil degranulation program across species
2026 · Toxicological Sciences
Shows how benzene exposure triggers a conserved immune response across species.
- Mechanisms of neurotoxicity of fluoride or aluminum: implications for neurodegenerative disease risk
2026 · Current Research in Toxicology
Reviews how fluoride and aluminum may harm brain function.
- Developmental exposure to ethylbenzene: Elucidating the effects of volatile organic compounds on phenotypic and transcriptomic endpoints using zebrafish (Danio rerio)
2025 · Journal of Hazardous Materials
Plain-language summaries are AI-written and reviewed by us; check the paper for details.
How to reach out
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