Education and Outreach

Yuching Yang, Ph.D.

Division of Computational Biology

Yuching Yang, Ph.D.

Education

B.S., Botany, National Taiwan University, Taiwan, 1994.
M.S., Environmental Health and Sciences and Engineering, Tulane University, 1996.
Ph.D., Environmental Sciences and Exposure Assessment, joined program of Rutgers and UMDNJ, 2006.
Postdoctoral training, Center for Human Health Assessment, The Hamner Institutes for Health Sciences, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, 2006-current.

Research

Under the guidance of Dr. Harvey Clewell and Dr. Melvin Andersen, I am currently working for several different projects. First is the development of a "Harmonization PBPK Model" for cyclic siloxanes. Cyclic siloxanes, D4 and D5, are low molecular weight siloxanes which can be found in various consumer products. The general population may be exposed through dermal, inhalation and oral exposure. A harmonized multi-dose route, multi-compound PBPK model provides a useful platform to describe the variety of datasets across species, routes, and compounds. Second is the development of a lactation sub-model for the existing D4 PBPK model to simulate D4 distribution to breast milk. Third is to use the in vitro microsome data to predict in vivo kinetics in the mice after inhalation exposure to Beta-chloroprene. Beta-chloroprene (CD) is a known animal carcinogen and this 'in vitro to in vivo extrapolation' (IVIVE) approach could be used with human metabolism data to predict human kinetics. Fourth is the evaluation of biomonitoring data of human perchlorate exposure. This work employs PBPK model to interpret human biomonitoring data from the perspective of exposure reconstruction and risk characterization. An exposure model will be developed to reconstruct individual’s time-activities based on questionnaire and databases.

Selected Publications

Y.C. Yang, P.G. Georgopoulos, “A Bayesian Population PBPK Model for Multiroute Chloroform Exposure” Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, 2009, May (Epub doi: 10.1038/jes.2009.29)

Tan Y-M, Yang Y, Andersen ME, Clewell HJ, Plotzke KP, “Harmonization of Cyclic Siloxanes PBPK Model Structures”, Toxicologist, Supplement of Toxicology Sciences, 2009, March; 108(1):98

Yang Y, Clewell HJ, Tan Y-M, Andersen ME, Sochaski M and Himmelstein MW, “ In Vitro to In Vivo Extrapolation with a PBTK Model for 2-Chloro-1,3-Butadiene” , Toxicologist, Supplement of Toxicology Sciences, 2009, March; 108(1) :199 Yang Y., Allen B. C. , Tan Y. M. , Clewell H. J. “Sequential Bayesian Analysis of the Formaldehyde Cancer Model, Part 2: Calibration of Rat Clonal Growth Model” , Toxicologist, Supplement of Toxicology Sciences, 2008, March; 102(1) :207

Yang Y., Liao K. H., Allen B. C. , Tan Y. M. , Clewell H. J. “Characterization of sensitivity of risk estimates to uncertainties associated with biologically based modeling of formaldehyde carcinogenicity” , Toxicologist, Supplement of Toxicology Sciences, 2007, March; 96(1) :332

Y. M. Tan, Y. C. Yang, M. E. Andersen, and H. J. Clewell; "Exposure Assessment: Exposure Modeling and Measurement -Toxicokinetic Modeling". Encyclopedia of Environmental Health (in print), 2008

Y. C. Yang, B. C. Allen, Y. M. Tan, K. H. Liao, and H. J. Clewell; "Markov Chain Monte Carlo Analysis of a Rat Formaldehyde-DPX Model' (under review)

Y.C. Yang, X. Xu, and P.G. Georgopoulos; 'A Bayesian Population PBPK Model for Multiroute Chloroform Exposure' JESEE May 27, 2009

P.G. Georgopoulos, S.W. Wang, Y.C. Yang, J. Xue, V.G. Zartarian, T. McCurdy, and H. Ozkaynak; "Modeling multimedia/multipathawy exposures to arsenic using mentor/sheds-4M." Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology, Sep 2008;18(5):462-76

P.J. Lioy, P. Hore, V. Zartarian, J. Xue, H. Ozkaynak, S.W. Wang, Y.C. Yang, P.L. Chu, L. Sheldon, M. Robson, L. Needham, D. Barr, N. Freeman, and P.G. Georgopoulos; "Children's Residential Exposure to Chlorpyrifos: Application of CPPAES Field Measurements of Chlorpyrifos and TCPy within MENTOR/SHEDs Pesticides Model"; Science of the Total Environment, 2005 Dec

M. Wintermyer, A. Roy, Y. Yang, P. Georgopoulos, J. Burger, and K. Cooper; "The development of a PBPK model using the distribution of 2,3,7,8-TCDD in the tissues of the eastern oyster;" Marine Environmental Research. 2005 Aug; 60(2):133-52