Combined Exposures and Mixtures Research: An Enduring NIEHS Priority

• Published in: Environmental health perspectives Vol. 132; no. 7; pp. 75001 - 11
• Main Authors: Carlin, Danielle J., Rider, Cynthia V.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences 01.07.2024; Environmental Health Perspectives
• Subjects: Arteriosclerosis; Atherosclerosis; Breast cancer; Cancer; Chemicals; Climate change; Climate justice; Climatic changes; Collaboration; Complex Mixtures - toxicity; Consumer products; Data integration; Environmental aspects; Environmental Exposure - statistics & numerical data; Environmental health; Environmental justice; Environmental Pollutants; Epidemiology; Exposure; Grants; Health aspects; Health disparities; Health sciences; Humans; In vivo methods and tests; Interdisciplinary aspects; Management; Mass spectrometry; Mixtures; National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (U.S.); Perfluoroalkyl & polyfluoroalkyl substances; Personal care industry; Personal grooming; Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; Public health; Research projects; Scientific imaging; Socioeconomic factors; Socioeconomics; Statistical methods; Superfund Amendments & Reauthorization Act 1986-US; Toiletries; Toxicology; United States; Wildfires; United States
• ISSN: 0091-6765; 1552-9924; 1552-9924
• DOI: 10.1289/EHP14340

The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) continues to prioritize research to better understand the health effects resulting from exposure to mixtures of chemical and nonchemical stressors. Mixtures research activities over the last decade were informed by expert input during the development and deliberations of the 2011 NIEHS Workshop "Advancing Research on Mixtures: New Perspectives and Approaches for Predicting Adverse Human Health Effects." NIEHS mixtures research efforts since then have focused on key themes including ) prioritizing mixtures for study, ) translating mixtures data from and studies, ) developing cross-disciplinary collaborations, ) informing component-based and whole-mixture assessment approaches, ) developing sufficient similarity methods to compare across complex mixtures, ) using systems-based approaches to evaluate mixtures, and ) focusing on management and integration of mixtures-related data. We aimed to describe NIEHS driven research on mixtures and combined exposures over the last decade and present areas for future attention. Intramural and extramural mixtures research projects have incorporated a diverse array of chemicals (e.g., polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, botanicals, personal care products, wildfire emissions) and nonchemical stressors (e.g., socioeconomic factors, social adversity) and have focused on many diseases (e.g., breast cancer, atherosclerosis, immune disruption). We have made significant progress in certain areas, such as developing statistical methods for evaluating multiple chemical associations in epidemiology and building translational mixtures projects that include both and models. Moving forward, additional work is needed to improve mixtures data integration, elucidate interactions between chemical and nonchemical stressors, and resolve the geospatial and temporal nature of mixture exposures. Continued mixtures research will be critical to informing cumulative impact assessments and addressing complex challenges, such as environmental justice and climate change. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP14340.