Professional Summary
Nil Basu is an environmental toxicologist interested in the risk assessment of aquatic pollutants, development of neurochemical biomarkers, and the use of fish and wildlife as sentinels of human and environmental health hazards. Prior to joining the Faculty in September 2007, he spent two years as a NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow at the National Wildlife Research Center (Environment Canada) and the Center for Advanced Research in Environmental Genomics (University of Ottawa).
Courses Taught
EHS509: Ecological Toxicology
EHS801: Research and Communication in the Environmental Health Sciences
Education
Ph.D., Wildlife Biology, McGill University, 2005
M.Sc., Animal Physiology, University of Britsh Columbia, Vancouver, 2001
B.Sc. (Hons), Environmental Sciences & Life Sciences, Queen's University, 1999
Research Interest & Projects
Dr. Basu's research uses basic, applied, and innovative methods to evaluate ecosystem and human health. Research objectives are tested by means of integrative and comparative studies on multiple organisms (fish, birds, wild mammals, humans), pollutants (mostly mercury, but also PCBs, brominated flame retardants, pulp and paper mill effluents), levels of biological organization (high throughput in vitro screens, whole animal bioassays in the laboratory, fieldwork on natural populations), neurological pathways (acetylcholine, glutamate, GABA, dopamine), and techniques (exposure biomarkers, receptor and enzyme biochemistry, animal physiology, gene expression). Cellular events are linked to physiological and ecological processes under a "molecules-to-ecosystem" approach. His current activities focus on: 1) the development, application, and validation of neurochemical biomarkers to assess sub-clinical, neurotoxic damage in wildlife and humans; 2) using fish and wildlife as sentinel organisms to study the etiology of diseases relevant to humans and ecosystems; and 3) development of novel methods to study mercury exposure and effects. FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT THE BASU LAB WEBSITE. CLICK HERE
Selected Publications
Basu, N., Head, J. (In Press). Mammalian wildlife as complementary models in environmental neurotoxicology. Neurotoxicology and Teratology
Basu, N., Ta, C. A., Waye, A., Mao, J., Hewitt, M., Arnason, J., Trudeau, V. (In Press). Pulp and paper mill effluents contain neuroactive substances that potentially disrupt neuroendocrine control of fish reproduction. Environmental Science and Technology
Basu, N., Scheuhammer, A. M., Sonne, C., Letcher, R. J., Born, E. W., and Dietz, R. (2009). Is dietary mercury of neurotoxicological concern to polar bears (Ursus maritimus)? Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 28, 133-140.
Scheuhammer, A.M., Basu, N., Burgess, N., Elliott, J.E., Campbell, G.D., Wayland, M., Champoux, L., Rodrigue, J. (2008). Relationships among mercury, selenium, and neurochemical parameters in common loons (Gavia immer) and bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus). Ecotoxicology, 17, 93-101.
Basu, N., Scheuhammer, A.M. , Rouvinen-Watt, K., Grochowina, N.M., Evans, R.D., O'Brien, M. and Chan, H.M. (2007). Decreased N-methyl-D-aspartic acid (NMDA) receptor levels are associated with mercury exposure in wild and captive mink. Neurotoxicology, 28(3), 587-593.
Basu, N., Scheuhammer, A.M., and O'Brien, M. (2007). Polychlorinated biphenyls, organochlorinated pesticides, and polybrominated diphenyl ethers in the cerbral cortex of wild river otters (Lontra canadensis). Environmental Pollution, 149, 25-30.
Bull, K., Basu, N., Bursian, S., Zhang, S., Martin, J.W., Martin, P. and Chan, H.M. (2007). Dietary and in utero exposure to a pentabrominated diphenyl ether mixture (DE-71) did not affect cholinergic parameters in the cerebral cortex of ranch mink (Mustela vison). Toxicological Sciences, 96(1), 115-122.
Basu, N., Scheuhammer, A.M., Bursian, S., Rouvinen-Watt, K., Elliott, J. and Chan, H.M. (2007). Mink as a sentinel in environmental health. Environmental Research., 103, 130-144.
Basu, N., Scheuhammer, A.M., Rouvinen-Watt, K., Grochowina, N., Klenavic, K., Evans, R.D. and Chan, H.M. (2006). Merthylmercury impairs components of the cholinergic system in captive mink (Mustela vison). Toxicological Sciences, 91, 202-209.
Afonso, L., Basu, N., Nakano, K., Devlin, R.H., and Iwama, G.K. (2004). Sex-related differences in physiological and cellular stress response in juvenile salmon exposed to treated bleached kraft mill effluent. Fish Physiology and Biochemistry, 29, 173-179.
Professional Affiliations
Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry
Society of Toxicology
International Society of Environmental Bioindicators
International Neurotoxicology Association
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