Barbara Kaplan

Barbara Kaplan is an immunotoxicologist in the Center for Environmental Health Sciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine. She earned her BS in environmental toxicology from UC Davis and her PhD in pharmacology and toxicology from Michigan State University. The focus of her lab is deciphering the effects and mechanisms by which drugs or chemicals affect the immune system. She has two major projects. The first project, which is funded by the National Institutes of Health, is investigating environmental chemicals on antibody-triggered signaling in innate immune cells. The second project focuses on understanding how chemicals from marijuana and hemp affect immune function. The latter project in particular uses cells from various species, including immune cells from dog blood. Dogs and other companion animals are susceptible to immune diseases like osteoarthritis, and the research suggests that chemicals from marijuana and hemp (i.e., CBD oil) may possess anti-inflammatory actions.

More recently, Kaplan has been involved in the Global Center for Aquatic Health and Food Security as a toxicologist, characterizing environmental exposures in bottlenose dolphins and their prey species in the Mississippi Sound. Marine mammals and other aquatic species can be exposed to various chemicals in the air, water, and soil in marine environments. These studies will clarify our understanding of a possible bioaccumulation pathway for environmental chemicals in bottlenose dolphins. Further, the research team is studying whether freshwater incursions from lakes or rivers into the Mississippi Sound alter chemicals and elements in the bottlenose dolphins, so researchers can better understand the influence of the marine environment on dolphin health.