FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 15, 2004
FY04-25
Weber Joins ORISE Assisting the EPA Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS)
OAK RIDGE, Tenn.—Dr. Lutz W.D. Weber recently joined the project team assisting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) as a toxicologist at the Oak Ridge Institute of Science and Education (ORISE).
EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) have an interagency agreement for ORISE to serve as the managing contractor for technical assistance to the IRIS program. The agreement is valued at $10 million over a five-year period. ORISE will research and prepare human health assessments and conduct external peer reviews for chemical substances.
Developed and maintained by the EPA, IRIS is an electronic database that stores information on health effects that may result from exposure to various chemicals in the environment. Combined with specific situational exposure assessment information, the data in IRIS may by used as a source in evaluating potential public health risks from environmental contaminants.
As a toxicologist, Weber will be responsible for developing new IRIS documentation. He will be conducting and directing toxicological reviews for chemical substances and reviewing the most relevant research on selected chemicals. "This is a great opportunity, and I'm excited to be working on this project," Weber said.
Weber earned a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Technische Hochschule Stuttgart; bachelor's and master's degrees in biochemistry from Eberhard Karls University Tübingen; and a Ph.D. from Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich.
Dr. Weber, a Diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology (DABT), previously served as the senior scientist for the Gesellschaft für Strahlenforschung (GSF), the German National Research Center for Environment and Health. He also worked as a partner scientist at the University of Kansas Medical Center through his GSF position.
With 30 years of experience in biochemistry and toxicology, Weber has specific expertise in mechanisms relating the mode of action of biological agents. At GSF, he analyzed blood chemistry and established a methodology to measure radioactivity in tissues of experimental animals. At the University of Kansas Medical Center, Weber conducted dermal penetration studies and performed toxicokinetic studies.
"Dr. Weber's experience as a biochemist/toxicologist, along with his specific expertise in mechanisms relating the mode of action of biological agents, makes him a valuable addition to the ORISE IRIS team," said Marcus Weseman, director of Health, Safety, and Emergency Management programs at ORISE.
ORISE is a U.S. Department of Energy institute focusing on scientific initiatives to research health risks from occupational hazards, assess environmental cleanup, respond to radiation emergencies, support national security and emergency preparedness, and educate the next generation of scientists. ORISE is managed by Oak Ridge Associated Universities.