Qiang Zhang

My research interest is focused on using computer simulations of biological systems to understand and predict the human health effects of environmental perturbations. These perturbations, elicited by environmental chemicals, dietary supplements, and drugs, can alter the dynamics of the molecular adverse outcome pathways (AOP) operating in cells, leading to multiple disease endpoints. In close collaboration with experimental biologists and toxicologists, I develop mechanistic quantitative AOP (qAOP) models and physiologically based toxicokinetic (PBTK) or pharmacokinetic (PBPK) models. These models will help us to make better predictions of the dose-response relationship and chemical safety assessment. The current research focuses on the following areas:

• Modeling humoral immune response and its disruption by the environmental contaminant dioxin
• Modeling the hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid (HPT) axis to make health risk predictions for endocrine-disrupting chemicals
• Modeling cellular stress pathways to understand nonlinear dose-response and threshold effect of low-level environmental exposure, including oxidative stressors
• Modeling the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonad (HPG) axis and ovarian aging and their disruption by endocrine-disrupting chemicals
• Modeling circadian rhythm
• PBTK/PBPK modeling of tissue dosimetry and chemical exposure as in silico NAM tools for in vitro to in vivo extrapolation