Welcome

Welcome to the National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit (NIHR HPRU) in Chemical and Radiation Threats and Hazards at Imperial College London.

This HPRU is a partnership between Imperial College London and the UK Health Security Agency, in collaboration with King’s College London and the MRC Toxicology Unit at the University of Cambridge.

We have strong links with the Environmental Exposures and Health HPRU and the MRC Centre for Environment and Health. To ensure we operate as a highly collaborative matrix, analogous to UKHSA’s multi-functional, single-agency model, we have created a Joint Steering Committee, Training Programme Committee, Public and Community Involvement, Engagement and Participation Committee and Public and Community Oversight Group.

Mission

The mission of this HPRU is to address today’s most pressing chemical and radiation threats and hazards, to advance our understanding of how the everyday and exceptional contact we have with chemicals and radiation leads to ill health and deliver timely impact on policy to improve the long-term health of the nation. Research of the highest quality will be undertaken, focusing on specific agents and situations, including ionising radiation, electromagnetic fields, ultra-violet light, neurotoxins, flame retardants, re-developed brownfield sites and contaminated drinking water. Our aims are to improve the understanding of the distribution, determinants and pathways linking these exposures to health effects, to provide scientific evidence that will impact directly on public health practice and policy, and to train the next generation of research leaders in environment and health.

Research

The research programme is organised into four complementary themes focusing on: generating new knowledge and understanding of chemical and radiation disease mechanisms and risks to health; information on exposure-response relationships and their quantification based on occupational, patient and population cohorts; discovery and application of biomarkers of exposure, effect and susceptibility; novel methods for the in vitro identification of radiation and chemical causes of cancer, circulatory diseases and neurological dysfunction; application of biomarkers to assess chemical and medical radiation exposure risks and risk mitigation and control of chemical warfare agents and other high toxicity compounds.

microscope

Theme I

Adverse outcome pathways and exposure-response relationships for ionising and non-ionising radiation:

  1. What are the health effects of exposure to ionizing radiation in specific population groups?
  2. What, if any, are the health effects of exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields in users of mobile telecommunications devices?
  3. What are the risks and benefits of UV and light exposures on health?

Theme III

In vitro testing and integration with epidemiological data

  1. What are the cellular processes involved in mutations and other biological changes caused by exposure to chemical carcinogens and ionising radiation?
  2. Can these biological signatures of environmental toxicants be used to identify exposures to particular causal agents in population studies?
  3. What is the effect of the gut microbiome in detoxifying common environmental pollutants?

Theme II

Biomarkers of exposure, effects and susceptibility to chemicals and radiation

  1. Can we identify reliable biomarkers of exposure to chemicals and ionizing radiation?
  2. What are the biochemical and mechanistic pathways linking these exposures to adverse health effects?
  3. Can this knowledge on causal pathways be translated into policies for protection against chemical and radiation hazards?

Theme IV

Neurotoxins and high toxicity agents

  1. What are the mechanisms of neurotoxicity of certain high toxicity chemicals and chemical warfare agents?
  2. Can we design/identify molecules that simulate or absorb and decompose high toxicity agents to develop safe decontamination protocols?
  3. Which high toxicity agents are present in the environment and pose a greater risk in drinking water supplies?

Partners

This HPRU brings together the expertise in epidemiology, biology, chemistry, toxicology, statistics and ‘omics’ technologies, from four leading UK research partners to produce the scientific evidence needed to support the effective protection of the population from chemical and radiation risks.

For information on the research programmes and latest news for the NIHR HPRU in Environmental Exposures and Health and on the MRC Centre for Environment and Health please follow the links to their websites.

Latest News

  • Imperial ranks second in the world in major university ranking

    Posted on July 8, 2024

    Imperial College London has risen to 2nd place in the QS World University Rankings, becoming the top-ranked university in the UK and Europe. QS highlighted Imperial’s world-leading research performance, outstanding employability scores, and exceptional sustainability commitment as some of the reasons why Imperial is in the top two in the world. “Imperial’s ranking is a […]

    Continue reading

  • Dr Leon Barron receives Imperial President’s Award

    Posted on July 8, 2024

    Dr Leon Barron receives collaborative award for Community & Culture for efforts across Imperial and external on parasiticide pollution. Read more here.  

    Continue reading

  • West London families experience science behind air pollution study

    Posted on July 5, 2024

    The WellHome Study recently welcomed a number of participants from the West London Community to the Environmental Research Group, where they could experience the science behind air pollution. Read more about the event here

    Continue reading

  • Spotlighting Air Quality Researchers on Clean Air Day

    Posted on July 5, 2024

    Air pollution is linked to 43,000  deaths each year in the UK.  The World Health Organization and the UK Government recognise that air pollution is the largest environmental threat to our health. To mark Clean Air Day, we’re spotlighting Dr Ian (Gang) Chen and Dr Kayla Schulte from Imperial’s Environmental Research Group who are leading the […]

    Continue reading

  • Professor Paul Elliott elected as Fellow of the Royal Society

    Posted on June 17, 2024

    Imperial experts in medicine, maths and engineering have been announced as new Fellows of the Royal Society. We are thrilled to announce that Professor Paul Elliott is one of the elected Fellows for this prestigious recognition. The seven Imperial researchers elected as Fellows this year are drawn from fields including public health, infectious disease, civil […]

    Continue reading