Brooks Gump

Falk Family Endowed Professor, Public Health Link

Faculty Affiliate, Center for Aging and Policy Studies

CAPS Biography:

My program of research is grounded in a life course understanding of the development of cardiovascular disease; that is, origins and subsequent trajectories of cardiovascular disease in aging populations are established in early childhood. We have documented several neuroendocrine and cardiovascular changes as a function of low-level environmental toxicants, including lead (Pb). This research was cited as part of the body of evidence to justify the CDC’s decision to lower the “threshold of concern” in children for blood Pb levels. We are currently conducting research on epigenetic clocks (aging and age acceleration) in relation to toxicant exposures in order to better understand the impact of long-term chronic toxicant exposure (i.e., “weathering”) on diseases that emerge clinically in adulthood. My program of research closely aligns with the CAPS signature theme, health and well-being, as well as the cross-cutting theme of specific populations (namely, racial/ethnic minoritized populations and populations with low socioeconomic status).