Environmental and Bioanalytical Chemistry

• Environmental fate & transport studies:  We utilize mass spectrometric and wet chemical methods to trace the behavior of organic contaminants in water, sediment, and biota both in laboratory and field settings.  Contaminants of particular interest include carbon-based nanomaterials (such as single-walled carbon nanotubes), endocrine disruptors (such as steroid hormones and detergent breakdown products) and hydrophobic organic contaminants (such as polybrominated diphenyl ethers and pesticides).

• Environmental molecular toxicology:  We are utilizing sophisticated proteomic approaches to examine the mechanisms by which natural and anthropogenic organic compounds elicit effects through receptor-mediated transcriptional regulation.  We are particularly interested in endocrine disrupting compounds (e.g. estrogen receptor ligands) and bacterial quorum-sensing molecules (e.g. acyl homoserine lactones).  We use a variety of functional proteomics tools for this work, including HPLC-MS/MS, surface plasmon resonance (SPR) spectroscopy, and tandem-affinity purification (TAP).

P. Lee Ferguson

Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry

University of South Carolina

631 Sumter St.

Columbia, SC 29208

T: 803-777-2203

F: 803-777-9521

lee.ferguson@sc.edu