Boston University School of Public Health

Roberta White became chair of the department of environmental health in June 2003. A neuropsychologist, Dr. White studies the effects of exposures to industrial chemicals and chemical pollutants on brain function, using both behavioral measures and neuroimaging techniques. She has studied occupational lead exposures in adults, environmental lead exposure in children, prenatal exposure to methylmercury and polychlorinated biphenyls from maternal diet, and solvent exposures in children and adults. A current project examines the effects of prenatal pesticide exposure among farm workers in South Africa. Recent brain neuroimaging studies include functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in adolescents with prenatal exposure to methylmercury and biphenyls, magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) of lead-exposed workers, and structural MRI in Gulf War veterans. She has also studied the neurocognitive sequelae of neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis and Alzheimer’s disease and is interested in gene-environment interactions underlying these disorders. Dr. White holds appointments in the Neurology and Psychology departments at BU and has trained over 100 students in environmental health, behavioral neuroscience, behavioral neurology, and neuropsychology.

Read stories about Roberta White:

• Gulf War Veterans' Health Complaints Should Be Taken Seriously, White Tells Congress
• White Offers Testimony on Gulf War Illness to Congressional Committee
• BUSPH-based Gulf War Research Panel Finds 1 in 4 Veterans Suffers from Illness Caused by Toxic Exposure
• "Gulf War Illness Committee Meets at BUSPH"
• "Looking for Clues to Gulf War Illness"
• "Roberta White Testifies to Senate Committee on Environmental Exposures Linked to Gulf War Illness"
• "Gulf War I Health Problems" (WBUR Radio)
• "Gas May Have Harmed Troops, Scientists Say" (New York Times)