Dr. Tyrone Hayes on the effects of the pesticide Atrazine on frogs.
Pesticides and the Human Immune System
Dr. Tyrone Hayes' keynote lecture titled "From Silent Spring to Silent Night: The Use of Pesticides and the Human Immune System" will be delivered as part of the 12th Annual URI Diversity Week on Thursday, September 25 at 7:30pm in the Memorial Union, Ballroom.
Dr. Tyrone Hayes’ scientific breakthrough concerning frog hormones, specifically those of a tiny reed frog common in Ethiopia and Uganda served as a red flag of the harmful effects of chemicals to local ecosystems and also mammals. His study found that the males which were normally green had taken on the reddish background and white spots of females. Arriving at the theory that during metamorphosis frogs are very sensitive to changes in their environment, including chemicals in the water or in their food supply, he realised that the abnormal coloration indicated that the frogs' extremely thin, sensitive skin was reacting to contaminants in the water and these pollutants could also harm people as frog and human hormones are surprising similiar. Hayes regards the tiny reed frogs as a potential low-cost method to test for water pollution in developing countries, alerting people to the dangerous, perhaps even cancer-causing chemicals are present in a water source. His work has revealed a crucial link between conservation and health, calling attention to the impact of contaminants not only on the enviornmant but also to people in places where regulated health care and clean water management are not readily available.
After completing his PhD, he joined the faculty at Berkeley as an Assistant Professor in 1994 and receiving tenure in 1998 as the youngest tenured professor in the department. A socially engaged scientist whose work conforms to high professional standards while at the same time placing a high priority on the contribution of science to the common good, Dr. Tyrone Hayes is a biologist, herpetologist, and currently a professor at the University of California, Berkeley. His work presents a very human aspect to the implications of his findings and the potential benefit presented to many in developing countries by the findings of his work, globally impacting the field of human health.
This lecture is sponsored by the University of Rhode Island Multicultural Center, the Office of the President, the Division of Student Affairs, Uhuru SaSa, and the NAACP. For more information, please contact Mailee Kue at 874-5829 or maileekue@uri.edu. Multicultural Center
