Dr David Spurgeon

Research interests

My research focuses on understanding the long-term risks of environmental stressors (especially contaminating chemicals and engineered nanomaterials) mainly for terrestrial ecosystems. The overarching aim of the work is to provide practical tools for risk assessment and modelling of stress induced environmental change. This focus on providing reasonable approaches for ecological risk assessment and management does not, however, preclude us applying innovative methods, when and where these provide greater insight into underlying mechanisms.

Main areas of my research are:

• Molecular mechanism of toxicity and adaptation to chemical exposure
• Environmental impacts of nanotechnology products
• Mixtures
• Large scale risk
• Ecological risk assessment
• Chemical risks for human health

Brief CV

• 1991-1994: PhD University of Reading School of Animal and Microbial Sciences
• 1994-1997: three-year post-doctoral researcher at University of Reading School of Animal and Microbial Sciences with Dr S.P. Hopkin
• 1998-2003: NERC Advanced Fellowship CEH Monks Wood awarded under the Environmental Diagnostic Thematic Programme
• 2001-2005: Project leader CEH component of Environment Agency project on development of an Ecological Risk Assessment Framework of Contaminated Land
• 2003-2006: Project leader CEH component of Ecoworm Environmental Genomics Thematic project joint with Cardiff University, Edinburgh University, Aberystwyth University and Astra Zeneca
• 2004-2009: Research Pillar Coordinator for effect components of EU FP VI integrated project Novel Methods for NOvel Methods for Integrated Risk Assessment of CumuLative stressors in Europe (NOMIRACLE)
• 2006-2010: Contribution to Countryside Survey Work Package 4 Soils project led by CEH’s Bangor and Lancaster sites
• 2007-2009: NERC grants in Environment and Human Health and Environmental Nanoscience Programmes
• 2010 onwards: NERC grants on Environmental metabolomics and mechanisms of evolutionary adaptation to trace elements
• 2010 onwards: Deputy Coordinator EU project Nanoparticle Fate and Toxicity in the Environment (NanoFATE)

Publications

Some examples since 2008 are below. See also the NERC Open Research Archive.

Owen, J., Hedley, B.A., Svendsen, C., Wren, J., Jonker, M.J., Hankard, P.K., Lister, L.J., Stürzenbaum, S.R., Morgan, A.J., Spurgeon, D.J., Kille, P.1 and Blaxter, M.L. and Kille, P.(2008). Transcriptome profiling of developmental and xenobiotic responses in a keystone soil animal, the oligochaete annelid Lumbricus rubellus. BMC Genomics 9, 1-21.

Bundy, J.G., Sidhu, J.K., Rana, F., Spurgeon, D.J., Svendsen, C. Wren, J.F., Stürzenbaum, S.R., Morgan, A.J., Kille, P. (2008). ‘Systems toxicology’ approach identifies coordinated metabolic responses to copper in a terrestrial non-model invertebrate, the earthworm Lumbricus rubellus. BMC Biology 6, 1-25.

Gomezeyles, J., Svendsen, C., Lister, L. J., Spurgeon, D.J. (2009). The Measurement and Modelling of Mixture Toxicity of Imidacloprid and Thiacloprid on the Soil Dwelling Nematode Caenorhabditis elegans and the Earthworm Eisenia fetida. Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 72, 71-79.

Martin, H.L., Svendsen, C., Spurgeon, D.J., Lister, L. J., Gomezeyles, J. (2009). Measurement and Modelling the Combined Toxicity of Binary Mixtures in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans – a Test of Independent Action. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 28, 97-104.

Long, S.M., Reichenberg, F., Lister, L.J., Hankard, P.K., Townsend, J., Mayer, P., Wright, J., Holmstrup, M., Svendsen, C., Spurgeon D. J. (2009). Combined chemical (fluoranthene) and drought effects on Lumbricus rubellus demonstrates the applicability of the independent action model for multiple stressor assessment. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 3, 629-636.

Guo, Q. Sidhu, J.K., Ebbels, T.M.D. Rana, F., Spurgeon, D.J., Svendsen, C. Sturzenbaum, S.R. Kille, P. Morgan, A.J. Bundy, J.G. (2009). Validation of metabolomics for toxic mechanism of action screening with the earthworm Lumbricus rubellus. Metabolomics 5, 72-83.

LaCourse, E.J., Hernandez-Viade, M., Jefferies, J.R., Svendsen, C. Spurgeon, D.J., Barrett, J., Kille, P., Brophy, P.M. (2009). Glutathione transferase (GST) as a candidate molecular-based biomarker or soil toxin exposure in the earthworm Lumbricus rubellus. Environmental Pollution, 157, 2459-2469.

Swain, S., Wren, J., Stürzenbaum, S.R., Kille, P., Jager, T., Jonker, M.J., Hankard, P.K., Svendsen, C., Chaseley, J., Hedley, B.A., Blaxter, M. and Spurgeon, D.J. (2010). Linking toxicants mechanism of action and physiological mode of action in Caenorhabditis elegans. BMC Systems Biology, 4, 32.

Bartlett, M.D., Briones, M.J.I., Neilson, R. Schmidt, O., Spurgeon, D. Creamer, R. E. (2010). A critical review of current methods in earthworm ecology: From individuals to populations. European Journal of Soil Biology 46, 67-73.

Svendsen C. Siang, P., Lister, L. J., Rice, A., Spurgeon, D.J. (2010). Similarity, independence or interaction for binary mixture effects of nerve toxicants for the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 5 1182-1191.

Tipping, E, Bringmark, L. Frey, B., Hooper, H., Lofts, S., Spurgeon, D., Svendsen, C. (2010). Critical Limits for Hg(II) in soils, derived from laboratory toxicity data. Environmental Pollution 158, 2335-2526.

Spurgeon, D.J., Jones, O.A.H., Dorne, J-L.C.M., Svendsen, C., Swain, S., Stürzenbaum, S.R. (2010). Systems toxicology approaches for understanding the joint effects of environmental chemical mixtures – model and non-model species. Science of the Total Environment 408, 3725-3734.

Laskowski, R., Bednarska, A.J., Spurgeon, D., Svendsen, C., Van Gestel, C.A.M. (2010). Three-phase metal kinetics in invertebrates exposed to high metal concentrations. Science of the Total Environment 408, 3794-3802.

Dimitrova, N., Dimitrov, S., Georgieva, D., Van Gestel, C.A.M., Hankard, P., Spurgeon, D., Li, H., Mekenyan, O. (2010). Elimination kinetic model for organic chemicals in earthworms. Science of the Total Environment 408, 3787-3793.

Holmstrup, M. Bindesbøl, A-M., Oostingh, G.J., Duschl, A., Scheil, V., Köhler H-R., Loureiro, S., Soares, A. M.V.M., Ferreira, A.L.G, Kienlee, C., Gerhardt, G., Laskowski, R., Kramarz, P., Bayley, M., Svendsen, C., Spurgeon, D.J. (2010). Interactions between effects of environmental chemicals and natural stressors: a review. Science of the Total Environment 408, 3746-3762.

Lister, L., Svendsen, C., Hooper, H., Wright, J., Spurgeon, D. (2011). Modelling the joint effects of a metal and a pesticide on reproduction and toxicokinetics in Lumbricid earthworms. Environmental International 37, 663-670.

Wren, J., Spurgeon, D.J., Kille, P. Sturzenbaum, S.R. Jager, T. (2011). Application of physiologically based modelling and transcriptomics to probe the systems toxicology of aldicarb for Caenorhabditis elegans (Maupas 1900). Ecotoxicology, 20, 397-408.