Biographic Information on the Committee to Develop A Research Strategy For Environmental, Health, and Safety Aspects of Engineered Nanomaterials - Research Progress on Environmental Health and Safety Aspects of Engineered Nanomaterials - page 84

GÜNTER OBERDÖRSTER is a professor in the Department of Environmental Medicine of the
University of Rochester, director of the University of Rochester Ultrafine Particle Center, principal
investigator of a Multidisciplinary Research Initiative in Nanotoxicology, and head of the Pulmonary
Core of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Center Grant. His research includes the
effects and underlying mechanisms of lung injury induced by inhaled nonfibrous and fibrous particles,
including extrapolation modeling and risk assessment. His studies with ultrafine particles influenced the
field of inhalation toxicology, raising awareness of the unique biokinetics and toxic potential of nano-
sized particles. He has served on many national and international committees and is the recipient of
several scientific awards. Dr. Oberdörster has served on several National Research Council committees,
including the Committee on Research Priorities for Airborne Particulate Matter and the Committee on the
Review of the Federal Strategy to Address Environmental, Health, and Safety Research Needs for
Engineered Nanoscale Materials. He is on the editorial boards of the Journal of Aerosol Medicine,
Particle and Fibre Toxicology, Nanotoxicology, and the International Journal of Hygiene and
Environmental Health and is associate editor of Inhalation Toxicology and Environmental Health
Perspectives . He earned his DVM and PhD (in pharmacology) from the University of Giessen, Germany.
KATHLEEN M. REST is the executive director of the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), a science-
based nonprofit. She manages the organization's day-to-day affairs, supervising programs on issues
ranging from climate change and clean energy to global security. Dr. Rest came to UCS from the National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
where she was the deputy director for programs. Throughout her tenure at NIOSH, she held several
leadership positions, including serving as the institute's acting director during the period of September 11,
2001, and the anthrax events that followed. Before her federal service, Dr. Rest served on the faculty of
several medical schools—most recently as an associate professor in the Department of Family and
Community Medicine of the University of Massachusetts Medical Center and an adjunct associate
professor in the University of Massachusetts School of Public Health—where she taught occupational,
environmental, and public health. She has extensive experience as a researcher and adviser on
occupational and environmental health issues in various countries, such as the Netherlands, Slovakia,
Poland, Romania, Canada, and Greece. Dr. Rest was a founding member of the Association of
Occupational and Environmental Clinics, a national nonprofit organization committed to improving the
practice of occupational and environmental health through information-sharing and collaborative
research. She also served as the chairperson of the National Advisory Committee on Occupational Safety
and Health. Dr. Rest earned her PhD in health policy from Boston University.
MARK J. UTELL is a professor of medicine and environmental medicine, a director of occupational
and environmental medicine, and former director of pulmonary and critical-care medicine in the
University of Rochester Medical Center. He serves as associate chairman of the Department of
Environmental Medicine. His research interests have centered on the effects of environmental toxicants
on the human respiratory tract. Dr. Utell has published extensively on the health effects of inhaled gases,
particles, and fibers in the workplace and other indoor and outdoor environments. He is the co-principal
investigator of an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Particulate Matter Center and chair of the
Health Effects Institute's Research Committee. He has served as chair of EPA's Environmental Health
Committee and on the Executive Committee of the EPA Science Advisory Board. He is a former recipient
of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Academic Award in Environmental and
Occupational Medicine. Dr. Utell is currently a member of the National Research Council's Board on
Environmental Studies and Toxicology. He previously served on the National Research Council
Committee on Research Priorities for Airborne Particulate Matter, the Institute of Medicine (IOM)
Committee to Review the Health Consequences of Service during the Persian Gulf War, and the IOM
Committee on Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures. He received his MD from Tufts University
School of Medicine.