From lab to publication: NSERC URA winner, Kara Loudon, studies health risks in food storage plastics
Kara B. Loudon is an undergraduate student in the department of chemistry and a perennial NSERC URA winner who moved forward with the research published recently in the Royal Society of Chemistry. The study, “Estimating dietary exposure to polycyclic aromatic compounds from food grade plastics” looks at the migration of chemicals from food-storage containers under typical usage conditions and how they might impact human health. In the summer of 2023, as part of her summer research program, Loudon performed the experiments in the study. This past summer, she wrote the majority of the manuscript while continuing research in Dr. Gregg Tomy’s lab.
Tomy is a professor, director of the Centre for Oil and Gas Development and an associate head in the chemistry department. His lab develops analytical methods to detect and measure chemicals in the environment and then makes toxicological assessments on the potential health impacts these chemicals have on non-targeted biological organisms.
Watch the full interview with Loudon, as we learn more about her journey in science, her experience with the summer research program, and the work they have recently published.