Epidemiology and Biostatistics Seminar Series

Wednesday, November 1, 2023

2:30 PM-3:30 PM

Aisha Dickerson, PhD, Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, will present "Environmental Neuroepidemiology: A Web of Confusion."

Environmental toxicants and psychosocial stressors (i.e., neighborhood disadvantage, social support, financial strain, adverse childhood experiences) have distinct negative relationships with neuropsychological. While psychosocial stressors are often perceived as confounders between the exposure-brain relationship, emerging research suggests psychosocial stressors may enhance neurotoxicity of chemical exposures. In this talk, I will 1) how do we best measure individual vs area-based environmental and psychosocial stressors, 2) what is the best methodology for assessing risk from joint psychosocial stressors and environmental exposures, and 3) the potential for enrichment and resilience to act as a chemical-brain buffers across the life course. Dr. Aisha S. Dickerson is Assistant Professor in the Department of Epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. She is an environmental neuroepidemiologist with primary research interests in environmental risk factors for neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders, including autism spectrum disorder, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and dementia. Additionally, she investigates the influence of disparities in cognitive assessment and service provision along with environmental justice issues in underserved communities.

Dr. Dickerson holds a BS in Biology and MSPH in Epidemiology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and a PhD in Epidemiology from the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. She received a year of postdoctoral training at the US Environmental Protection Agency before completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Contact Information

Nancy Colon-Anderson
nanderson@drexel.edu