Felipe de Oliveira Galvão

Felipe de Oliveira Galvão

Research Specialist
Visiting address: Nobels väg 13, 17177 Stockholm
Postal address: C6 Institutet för miljömedicin, C6 Biokemisk toxikologi Dreij, 171 77 Stockholm
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About me

  • I hold an M.Sc. (2011) and Ph.D. (2016) in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Brazil. During my doctoral studies, I was awarded a visiting fellowship at the Unit of Biochemical Toxicology, IMM, Karolinska Institutet, where I later joined Professor Kristian Dreij’s group as a postdoctoral researcher in Genetic Toxicology. Since 2023, I have held the position of Research Specialist at IMM.

    My research focuses on Genetic Toxicology and Environmental Mutagenesis, with a particular emphasis on characterizing air pollution from biomass burning. This includes particulate matter sampling, physicochemical analysis, pollutant dispersion modeling, and the evaluation of biological effects in both in vitro and in vivo systems.

    I am currently involved in the development of a new model for cancer risk assessment (CRA) of air pollution, based on in vitro testing of collected environmental samples. Our recent study at IMM demonstrates that new approach methodologies (NAMs) can serve as effective tools to enhance CRA strategies, particularly in the context of complex environmental mixtures such as air pollution.

Research

  • Development of new approach methodologies for assessing cancer risks associated with air pollution mixtures

    Air pollution is a complex mixture of compounds with different biological activities that makes risk assessment a challenge. Current strategies for cancer risk assessment (CRA) of air pollution are today based on a pollutant-by-pollutant approach. This is a great simplification and excludes the possibility of mixture effects that may underestimate actual human health risks. The aim of this project is to address these issues by developing a New Approach Method (NAM) for CRA of air pollution mixtures. We propose that CRA of complex mixtures should be based on in vitro toxicity testing of whole mixtures and determination of relative Mixture Potency Factors (MPFs) (Toxicology 2014). We have previously shown that this approach can accurately determine the genotoxic potency of individual air pollutants (Environ Sci Technol 2017). Using this NAM, we aim to show that CRA of air pollution based on in vitro MPFs better predict the lung cancer risk associated with exposure to ambient air PM than currently accepted component-based approaches. We are now applying this NAM with samples representing different emission sources and environments (Environ Int 2022, Environ Int 2024). This project is funded by the Swedish Research Council FORMAS, STINT/CAPES, and Karolinska Institutet. PI: Kristian Dreij

    Assessment of acute respiratory and cardiovascular health effects due to biomass smoke exposure in the Brazilian Amazon

    Biomass burning poses serious global threats to climate, biodiversity, and public health. Nearly 3 billion people worldwide are exposed to biomass-derived particulate matter (PM), yet the acute health effects of outdoor wildfires remain underexplored in many regions. This project investigates the acute respiratory and cardiovascular effects of short-term biomass smoke exposure among populations living in the Amazon deforestation arc. We combine personal exposure monitoring,  biomarkers of cardiopulmonary function, and in vitro toxicological analysis of collected PM using lung cell models. This integrative approach provides both mechanistic insights and real-world relevance. To our knowledge, this is the first study to link personal exposure data with functional and mechanistic endpoints in this region. The project is supported by the Swedish Research Council FORMAS and Karolinska Institutet.PI: Felipe de Oliveira Galvão

Articles

All other publications

Grants

  • Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq)
    1 October 2024 - 1 January 2027
  • Swedish Research Council for Environment Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning
    1 January 2023 - 31 December 2026
    Biomass burning is a global concern in terms of climate change, biological diversity, and health hazards. Globally, ca 3 billion people are exposed to biomass particulate matter (PM). Biomarkers of exposure and effect are fundamental for understanding environmental exposures, mechanistic pathways, and monitoring early adverse outcomes. Our aim is to assess the acute cardiopulmonary (CP) health effects due to short-term exposure to biomass PM among the population in Amazon deforestation arc together with in vitro analyses of sampled PM in a lung cell model to provide a mechanistic characterization of the health hazard. The project is based on a panel study in Amazon, with measurements of CP health and effect biomarkers using an exposure lag of 1-7 days during the wet and dry season with exposure assessment based on personal PM monitoring and urinary metabolites. The mode of action is assessed by in vitro studies using sampled PM. The project addresses the so far neglected and less understood issue of acute CP effects due to short-term exposure to PM from wildfires. This project will be the first of its kind to combine personal monitoring of exposure, specific CP biomarkers, and functional tests with mechanistic in vitro studies of collected PM in Amazon. How does this translate to public awareness? To reduce the gap between high-quality research and effectively engaging affected communities we will use environmental education strategies among the exposed population.
  • Karolinska Institutet Research Foundation Grants
    28 September 2022 - 28 September 2024
  • Swedish Research Council for Environment Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning
    1 January 2020 - 31 December 2022
  • Coordenação de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior
    1 January 2020
    Biomass PM exposure has emerged as a global risk factor of equal magnitude for COPD and lung cancer pathogenesis as tobacco smoke. To limit negative health effects of biomass PM accurate risk assessment (RA) is required, which requires a complete understanding of the mode-of-action. Air pollution is a complex mixture of compounds with different biological activities that makes risk assessment a challenge. Current strategies for risk assessment of air pollution are however based on a pollutant-by-pollutant approach. This is a great simplification and excludes the possibility of mixture effects that may underestimate actual human health risks. Authorities have recommended risk assessment approaches based on toxicity evaluations of whole mixtures since they inherently address interaction effects among pollutants, but such models are still lacking. The main objective of this project is to improve the knowledge about health effects of biomass burning PM. The focus will be on increasing the understanding of mixture effects and mode-of action of biomass PM in relation to development of COPD and lung cancer. For this we will use whole mixture biomass PM samples from Brazilian Amazon and Cashew roasting regions and three different in vitro models.
  • Swedish Foundation for International Cooperation in Research and Higher Education
    1 January 2020 - 1 January 2023
  • Cancer risk assessment of airborne pollutants based on in vitro mixture potency factors
    Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior
    1 November 2018 - 1 November 2019

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