Leading exposome expert Prof. Gary Miller speaks at LIH seminar

• Department of Precision Health
• Xpose DTU

On June 15, Prof. Gary Miller, Professor of Environmental Health Sciences and Vice Dean for Research Strategy and Innovation at Columbia University, visited Luxembourg on the invitation of the FNR-funded XPOSE Doctoral Training Unit (DTU).

While genetics influence what health issues people might be more prone to, it is the ongoing interaction between genes and the exposome—the sum of everything an individual is exposed to in daily life, such as diet, pollution, lifestyle, and social conditions—that truly shapes health. As one of the pioneers of the field, Prof. Gary Miller, Director of the Center for Innovative Exposomics at Columbia University and a leading scientist of the NEXUS Exposomics network in the USA, shared his perspectives on the future of the exposomics domain.

In his “Exposomics Crosses the Rubicon” lecture, which attracted strong interest from the research community, Prof. Miller talked about the necessity to incorporate exposomics into all facets of human health and disease research, and ultimately into healthcare systems themselves. The post-lecture discussions, in particular with the XPOSE DTU PhD students, ranged from promising research approaches to everyday student life, the role of social media in science communication, and career development. It was a valuable and unique opportunity to engage directly with one of the world’s leading experts in exposomics, exchange ideas and gain insights from his extensive experience in advancing the field.

The lecture was organized by the FNR-funded XPOSE DTU in Luxembourg under the coordination of the Department of Precision Health (DoPH) of the LIH. The recorded lecture is available online.

About the XPOSE DTU:

The XPOSE DTU is an inter-institutional doctoral training program in Luxembourg coordinated by the Department of Precision Health (DoPH) of the LIH with partners from the Department of Infection and Immunity (DII) of the LIH, the Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER), the Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine (LCSB) and the Faculty of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences (FHSE) of the University of Luxembourg. It is financially supported by the Luxembourg National Research Fund (FNR) through the PRIDE funding scheme (PRIDE23/18356118) and co-financed via intramural funds from the partners. The initiative aims to train the next generation of researchers capable of addressing the complex interactions between environmental exposures and human health.

More info on the XPOSE DTU can be found here.