Associate Professor of Environmental Health
Professor Heather Stapleton is an environmental chemist and exposure scientist in the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University. Her research interests focus on identification of halogenated and organophosphate chemicals in building materials, furnishings and consumer products, and estimation of human exposure, particularly in vulnerable populations such as pregnant women and children. Her laboratory utilizes mass spectrometry, including targeted and nontargeted approaches, to characterize chemical burdens in both environmental samples and biological tissues to support environmental health research. Currently she serves as the Director for the Duke Superfund Research Center, and Director of the Duke Environmental Analysis Laboratory, which is part of NIH’s Human Health Environmental Analysis Resource.
Appointments and Affiliations
- Ronie-Richele Garcia-Johnson Distinguished Professor
- Professor
- Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Member of the Duke Cancer Institute
Contact Information
- Office Location: 9 Circuit Drive, Box 90328, LSRC Room A207, Durham, NC 27710
- Email Address: heather.stapleton@duke.edu
- Websites:
Education
- B.S. Long Island University, Southhampton College, 1997
- M.S. University of Maryland, College Park, 2000
- Ph.D. University of Maryland, College Park, 2003
Research Interests
- Human exposure in indoor environments
- Use of silicone wristbands to measure human exposure
- Chemical exposures and cancer risk
- Targeted & Nontargeted mass spectrometry methods applied to environmental samples
- Effects of halogenated organic contaminants (e.g. BFRs, PFAS) on thyroid hormone regulation
Awards, Honors, and Distinctions
- Highly Cited Researcher in the field of Environment. Clarivate. 2021
- Thomas Langford Lectureship Award. Duke University. 2020
- Highly Cited Researcher. Clarivate. 2019
- Best Paper of the Year Award. Environmental Science & Technology. 2011
Courses Taught
- ENVIRON 899: Master's Project
- ENVIRON 898: Program Area Seminar
- ENVIRON 780: Environmental Exposure Analysis
- ENVIRON 593: Independent Studies and Projects
- ENVIRON 540: Chemical Fate of Organic Compounds
- ENVIRON 393: Research Independent Study
- ENVIRON 360: Environmental Health: Pollutant Chemistry and Toxicology
- CEE 563: Chemical Fate of Organic Compounds
In the News
- Welcome to the Microbial Revolution (Jan 20, 2023 | Pratt School of Engineering)
- Duke Superfund Center Receives $11.7 Million Grant to Study Sites of Industrial…
- Global Concerns for Maternal Health Come Close to Home (Jul 27, 2022)
- Duke Research Helps Firefighters Track Exposure to Harmful Chemicals (May 25, 2…
- Direct Impact: NIH Funding and the Duke Superfund Research Center (Mar 22, 2022)
- Beware Those Anti-Fogging Sprays and Cloths (Jan 11, 2022 | Nicholas School of …
- Identifying Exposure Risks from Common Household Chemicals in Durham Homes (Nov…
- Duke Celebrates Women and Girls in Science Day (Feb 10, 2021)
- Duke Study Finds High PFAS Levels in Pittsboro Residents’ Blood (Oct 30, 2020 |…
- Earth Day at 50 (Apr 22, 2020 | Nicholas School of the Environment)
- Duke Awards 29 University Distinguished Professorships (Apr 14, 2020)
- What's in North Carolina Drinking Water? (Feb 7, 2020)
- Toxic PFAS is in Your Drinking Water. Most Filters Aren't Completely Removing T…
- New Nicholas Environmental Analysis Lab To Watch the Toxins We Are Exposed to i…
- Chemicals in Your Sofa, Health Risks in Your Children (Feb 18, 2019 | Nicholas …
- From Clean Up To Cutting Edge Research (Nov 3, 2017 | Nicholas School of the En…
- Superfund Center Wins Five-Year Renewal (Jul 11, 2017)
- Camping tents toxic? Duke study reveals troubling chemical exposure (May 18, 20…
- Four Pratt Faculty Listed Among Most Highly Cited (Jan 26, 2016)
- Heather Stapleton’s lab: Popular car seats found to contain flame retardant (De…
- Are Flame Retardant Chemicals Fueling Thyroid Cancer? (Dec 14, 2015)
- Study finds toxic nail-polish chemicals in women's bodies (Oct 20, 2015 | Fox N…
- House dust chemicals activate receptor linked to obesity (Jul 30, 2015 | Chemic…
- House Dust May Trigger Obesity Receptor (Jul 28, 2015)
- Why more scientists are speaking out on contentious issues (Jun 12, 2015 | Nati…
- How to test a couch for toxins (Sep 29, 2014 | The Atlantic)
- Moms and toddlers may be at risk -- from sofas (Sep 22, 2014 | The News & Obser…
Representative Publications
- Fowler, Carina H., Aaron Reuben, Heather M. Stapleton, Kate Hoffman, Nicholas Herkert, Lubna Barakat, and Michael S. Gaffrey. “Children's exposure to chemical contaminants: Demographic disparities and associations with the developing basal ganglia.” Environmental Research 263, no. Pt 1 (December 2024): 119990. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2024.119990.
- Baker, Brennan H., Drew B. Day, Marnie F. Hazlehurst, Nicholas J. Herkert, Heather M. Stapleton, and Sheela Sathyanarayana. “Associations of environmental chemical exposures measured in personal silicone wristbands with sociodemographic factors, COVID-19 restrictions, and child respiratory health.” Environmental Research 262, no. Pt 1 (December 2024): 119776. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2024.119776.
- Reddam, Aalekhya, Nicholas Herkert, Heather M. Stapleton, and David C. Volz. “Silicone wristbands reveal ubiquitous human exposure to ortho-phthalates and non-ortho-phthalate plasticizers in Southern California.” Environmental Research 258 (October 2024): 119465. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2024.119465.
- Hickman, Elise, Jenna Frey, Amanda Wylie, Hadley J. Hartwell, Nicholas J. Herkert, Sarah J. Short, W Roger Mills-Koonce, et al. “Chemical and non-chemical stressors in a postpartum cohort through wristband and self report data: Links between increased chemical burden, economic, and racial stress.” Environment International 191 (September 2024): 108976. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2024.108976.
- Hoxie, Taylor, Sharon Zhang, Nicholas J. Herkert, Rachel A. Bauer, Ying Guo, Ankita Bhattacharya, Courtney C. Carignan, Kate Hoffman, Christopher P. Higgins, and Heather M. Stapleton. “Silicone Wristbands as a Personal Passive Sampler to Evaluate Indoor Exposure to Volatile and Non-volatile PFASs.” Environmental Science & Technology 58, no. 37 (September 2024): 16316–26. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.4c05707.