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Heather M. Stapleton

Ronie-Richele Garcia-Johnson Distinguished Professor
Dr. Stapleton's research focuses on understanding the fate and transformation of organic contaminants in aquatic systems and in indoor environments. Her main focus has been on the bioaccumulation and biotransformation of brominated flame retardants, and specifically polybrominated diphenyl ethers,(PBDEs). Her current research projects explore the routes of human exposure to flame retardant chemicals and examine the way these compounds are photodegraded and metabolized using mass spectrometry to identify breakdown products/metabolites. She uses both in vivo techniques with fish, and in vitro techniques with cell cultures to examine metabolism of this varied class of chemicals. Also of interest to Dr. Stapleton is the study of the fate of PBDEs in the environment which may lead to bioaccumulation in aquatic systems and examining their bioavailability under different environmental conditions.
Appointments and Affiliations
- Ronie-Richele Garcia-Johnson Distinguished Professor
- Professor
- Member of the Duke Cancer Institute
Contact Information
- Office Location: 9 Circuit Drive, Box 90328, LSRC Room A207, Durham, NC 27710
- Office Phone: (919) 613-8717
- Email Address: heather.stapleton@duke.edu
- Websites:
Education
- Ph.D. University of Maryland, College Park, 2003
- M.S. University of Maryland, College Park, 2000
- B.S. Long Island University, Southhampton College, 1997
Awards, Honors, and Distinctions
- Highly Cited Researcher. Thomson Reuters. 2014
Courses Taught
- CEE 563: Chemical Fate of Organic Compounds
- ENVIRON 360: Environmental Health: Pollutant Chemistry and Toxicology
- ENVIRON 393: Research Independent Study
- ENVIRON 394: Research Independent Study
- ENVIRON 540: Chemical Fate of Organic Compounds
- ENVIRON 593: Independent Studies and Projects
- ENVIRON 780: Environmental Exposure Analysis
- ENVIRON 899: Master's Project
In the News
- Welcome to the Microbial Revolution (Jan 20, 2023 | Pratt School of Engineering)
- Duke Superfund Center Receives $11.7 Million Grant to Study Sites of Industrial Contamination (Oct 25, 2022 | Nicholas School of the Environment)
- Global Concerns for Maternal Health Come Close to Home (Jul 27, 2022)
- Duke Research Helps Firefighters Track Exposure to Harmful Chemicals (May 25, 2022 | Nicholas School of the Environment)
- Direct Impact: NIH Funding and the Duke Superfund Research Center (Mar 22, 2022)
- Beware Those Anti-Fogging Sprays and Cloths (Jan 11, 2022 | Nicholas School of the Environment)
- Identifying Exposure Risks from Common Household Chemicals in Durham Homes (Nov 19, 2021 | Pratt School of Engineering)
- Duke Celebrates Women and Girls in Science Day (Feb 10, 2021)
- Duke Study Finds High PFAS Levels in Pittsboro Residents’ Blood (Oct 30, 2020 | North Carolina Health News)
- Earth Day at 50 (Apr 22, 2020 | Nicholas School of the Environment)
- Duke Awards 29 University Distinguished Professorships (Apr 14, 2020)
- What's in North Carolina Drinking Water? (Feb 7, 2020)
- Toxic PFAS is in Your Drinking Water. Most Filters Aren't Completely Removing Them (Feb 5, 2020 | Nicholas School of the Environment)
- New Nicholas Environmental Analysis Lab To Watch the Toxins We Are Exposed to in Daily Life (Oct 7, 2019 | Nicholas School of the Environment)
- Chemicals in Your Sofa, Health Risks in Your Children (Feb 18, 2019 | Nicholas School of the Environment)
- From Clean Up To Cutting Edge Research (Nov 3, 2017 | Nicholas School of the Environment)
- Superfund Center Wins Five-Year Renewal (Jul 11, 2017)
- Camping tents toxic? Duke study reveals troubling chemical exposure (May 18, 2016 | Gear Junkie)
- Four Pratt Faculty Listed Among Most Highly Cited (Jan 26, 2016)
- Heather Stapleton’s lab: Popular car seats found to contain flame retardant (Dec 21, 2015 | “CBS This Morning”)
- Are Flame Retardant Chemicals Fueling Thyroid Cancer? (Dec 14, 2015)
- Study finds toxic nail-polish chemicals in women's bodies (Oct 20, 2015 | Fox News)
- House dust chemicals activate receptor linked to obesity (Jul 30, 2015 | Chemical Watch)
- House Dust May Trigger Obesity Receptor (Jul 28, 2015)
- Why more scientists are speaking out on contentious issues (Jun 12, 2015 | National Geographic)
- How to test a couch for toxins (Sep 29, 2014 | The Atlantic)
- Moms and toddlers may be at risk -- from sofas (Sep 22, 2014 | The News & Observer)
Representative Publications
- Young, AS; Herkert, N; Stapleton, HM; Coull, BA; Hauser, R; Zoeller, T; Behnisch, PA; Felzel, E; Brouwer, A; Allen, JG, Hormone receptor activities of complex mixtures of known and suspect chemicals in personal silicone wristband samplers worn in office buildings., Chemosphere, vol 315 (2023) [10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.137705] [abs].
- Wiegand, J; Avila-Barnard, S; Nemarugommula, C; Lyons, D; Zhang, S; Stapleton, HM; Volz, DC, Triphenyl phosphate-induced pericardial edema in zebrafish embryos is dependent on the ionic strength of exposure media., Environment International, vol 172 (2023) [10.1016/j.envint.2023.107757] [abs].
- Crute, CE; Landon, CD; Garner, A; Hall, SM; Everitt, JI; Zhang, S; Blake, B; Olofsson, D; Chen, H; Stapleton, HM; Murphy, SK; Feng, L, Maternal exposure to perfluorobutane sulfonate (PFBS) during pregnancy: evidence of adverse maternal and fetoplacental effects in New Zealand White (NZW) rabbits., Toxicological Sciences (2022) [10.1093/toxsci/kfac126] [abs].
- Crute, CE; Hall, SM; Landon, CD; Garner, A; Everitt, JI; Zhang, S; Blake, B; Olofsson, D; Chen, H; Murphy, SK; Stapleton, HM; Feng, L, Evaluating maternal exposure to an environmental per and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) mixture during pregnancy: Adverse maternal and fetoplacental effects in a New Zealand White (NZW) rabbit model., The Science of the Total Environment, vol 838 no. Pt 4 (2022) [10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.156499] [abs].
- Hammel, SC; Nordone, S; Zhang, S; Lorenzo, AM; Eichner, B; Moody, MA; Harrington, L; Gandee, J; Schmidt, L; Smith, S; Stapleton, HM; Hoffman, K, Infants' diminished response to DTaP vaccine is associated with exposure to organophosphate esters., The Science of the Total Environment, vol 837 (2022) [10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.155782] [abs].