We are pleased to invite the campus community and colleagues to Wayne State University’s Integrative Environmental Health Sciences Seminar Series. The series is hosted by Wayne State’s CURES P30ES036084 Environmental Health Sciences Core Center and the CLEAR P42 Superfund Research Program.

Our next seminar will be held on March 13, 2025 from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. EST via Zoom. Zoom details will be emailed to all registrants.

The guest speaker will be Dr. Hilary Marusak, a developmental neuroscientist and tenured associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral neurosciences at Wayne State University School of Medicine. She will present, "Talk Title: Adolescent Mental Health in Context: Trauma, Air Pollution, and Cannabis Effects on the Developing Brain."

Abstract:

Adolescence is a sensitive window for brain development, during which environmental and psychosocial factors shape mental health. This talk explores how trauma, air pollution, and cannabis exposure influence adolescent neurodevelopment and psychiatric risk. Marusak will examine trauma’s impact on brain structure, function, and the endocannabinoid system, linking early adversity to anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) risk. She will then review emerging evidence on air pollution, particularly PM2.5 exposure, suggesting effects on inflammation, cognition, and fear regulation. Adolescent cannabis use, its influence on neurodevelopment, and its interactions with trauma and environmental stressors also will be discussed. Additionally, Marusak will highlight secondhand cannabis smoke/vapor as a growing concern for children’s health. Finally, she will explore prevention and intervention strategies, including biomarkers of risk and evidence-based approaches to mitigate harm. The newly funded CURES Pilot Project will be introduced, focusing on co-designing a behavioral intervention to reduce children’s exposure to secondhand cannabis smoke and vapor in homes.

Biography:

Dr. Hilary Marusak is a developmental neuroscientist and tenured associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral neurosciences at the Wayne State University School of Medicine. She directs the Division of Cannabinoids in Neurodevelopment (CANDID), which advances understanding of cannabis, cannabinoids, and the endocannabinoid system through rigorous research on their effects on brain development and mental health. Dr. Marusak also leads the Trauma History Investigation of Neurodevelopment in Kids (THINK) lab. The THINK lab employs neuroimaging, behavioral, and physiological approaches to study neurodevelopmental mechanisms underlying stress-related psychiatric disorders, such as anxiety and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), in children and adolescents.