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Tammy
L. Jones-Lepp, M.S.
Research Chemist
Environmental Chemistry, Environmental Sciences, NERL/ORD
EXPERTISE: Method development and research focused on mass spectrometry using GC/MS, LC/MS (hands-on expertise with thermospray and electrospray), MS/MS (hands-on expertise with triple quadrupole mass spectrometry and ion trap mass spectrometry), LC-charged aerosol Detector (LC-CAD), and CE-MS [hands-on expertise with interfacing CE with electrospray-mass spectrometry (quadrupole and ion trap)]. Analytical methods to detect textile dyes, herbicides, organometallics, and pharmaceuticals in environmental matrices.
INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH MISSION: Immediate research objectives: Solve analytical problems relating to the detection, speciation, and identification of human waste markers (i.e., urobilin) and pharmaceuticals by electrospray-ion trap mass spectrometry and apply these results to environmental monitoring. Long-term research objectives: Developing a rapid and definitive chemical indicator test for human waste in source waters. Relevance of fate and transport of pharmaceuticals in the environment. Extrapolating the environmental data to the resultant exposure and effects on humans.
SIGNIFICANCE/RELEVANCE OF RESEARCH IN RISK ASSESSMENT PARADIGM: Analytical chemistry plays a central, critical, and crosscutting role not just in hazardous waste management, environmental monitoring, site characterization, and risk assessment, but also in numerous engineering processes required for manufacturing, waste treatment, and site remediation. Development of methods for environmental chemical analysis must necessarily be a continual process because these methods serve as the foundation for all data collected under regulatory programs and also serve as key elements in assessing risk to human and ecological health. Research development efforts for methods in support of RCRA are also directly applicable and essential to other regulatory programs such as CERCLA/SARA, TSCA, CWA, SDWA, FIFRA, and the new CCA. These methods, such as the high-resolution capillary column GC/MS protocol and SW-846 Method 8321(thermospray LC/MS/MS) developed by Ms. Jones-Lepp and coworkers in the 1980’s, served as the foundation for collection of all environmental status and trends data for the determination of transport, fate, and distribution of chemicals in air, water, soil, sediments, wastes, biota, and tissues. The use of Method 8321 has enabled the Agency to comprehensibly monitor such diverse nonvolatile compounds as organic dyes and organophosphorus pesticides. The activities supported by these methods include environmental monitoring and ecological surveys (e.g., early warning of health/ecological effects such as those sought by EMAP); human/health surveys (e.g., The National Human Exposure Assessment Survey, NHEXAS); waste characterization; site characterization; monitoring of engineered site containment integrity; and risk and human-exposure assessment (e.g., biomarkers). Ms. Jones- Lepp was responsible for converting her research application of electrospray-ion trap mass spectrometry to the speciation and detection of organotins into a new SW-846 method, Method 8323, this was the first EPA-approved LC-electrospray-MS/MS method. Her research has also supported the listing of organotins on the draft Contaminant Candidate List (CCL) as published in the Federal Register (Monday, March 2, 1998 Part III Environmental Protection Agency, Announcement of the Drinking water Contaminant Candidate Listing Notice, vol. 63, no. 40, pg 10282). Her recent research efforts are centered on developing sensitive and rapid methodology for detecting human waste in source waters as well as improving on technologies, i.e., electrospray-ion trap mass spectrometry, to detect low-levels of select pharmaceuticals (e.g., macrolide antibiotics) in the environment.
SIGNIFICANT PIONEERING CONTRIBUTIONS: First research group to use triple quadrupole mass spectrometry (MS/MS) as a detector for thermospray LC/MS; this effort enabled the use of structural identification techniques to monitor nonvolatile pollutants. Her recent pioneering work has been in developing a new approach for determining organotins in problematic matrices by means of micro-liquid chromatography-electrospray/ion trap mass spectrometry (μ-LC-ES/ITMS) and the application of this new technique to addressing several environmental and public health issues. In 1995 Ms Jones-Lepp was one of the first-ever EPA recipients of the Arthur S. Flemming Award in Science category, (http://www.gwu.edu/~flemming/index.html). In 2000 she was awarded the Agency's highest science award - Science Achievement Award (SAA) for her novel approaches towards organotin research.
IMPACT OF CONTRIBUTIONS ON SCIENTIFIC/REGULATED COMMUNITY: The use of thermospray LC/MS/MS is an integral part of SW-846 Method 8321 for nonvolatile pollutants. This method, which is chiefly applicable to the detection of dyes and nonvolatile pesticides (e.g., organophosphorus pesticides, chlorinated herbicides, tris-BP), enables the Agency to confirm the presence of these nonvolatile compounds. She converted her new approach for determining organotins from a research application into a new EPA approved SW-846 method, Method 8323, the Agency’s first-ever approved method using electrospray-mass spectrometry. Also, Ms. Jones- Lepp's organotin research efforts have been used by the Office of Water in support of listing organotins on the draft Contaminant Candidate List (CCL) as published in the Federal Register (Monday, March 2, 1998 Part III Environmental Protection Agency, Announcement of the Drinking Water Contaminant Candidate Listing Notice, vol. 63, no. 40, pg 10282). Currently, the Office of Water is using her, and colleagues, research efforts regarding pharmaceuticals present in biosolids for potential future regulatory efforts.
EXTERNAL COLLABORATIONS: Development of enhanced thermospray LC/MS for dye analysis: collaboration with Dr. Jehuda Yinon, Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel. Development of "Fast Capillary Electrophoresis/Time-of-flight Mass Spectrometry for Environmental Monitoring": co-operative agreement, with Dr. Milton Lee, Brigham Young University, 5/95-4/98. Collaboration on project to study the effects of dibutyltin dichloride on fetal rat neural cells with Dr. Florianne Monnet -Tschudi, Institut de Physiologie, Lausanne, Switzerland. Past collaborative efforts centering on an IAG with the USGS-CERC (Dr. Jim Petty and Dr. David Alvarez) utilizing their expertise in sequestering organic pollutants from the environment using POCIS and Ms. Jones-Lepp's ES-ITMS expertise. Currently, she is working with Dr. Jaci Batista (http://www.ce.unlv.edu/fac/Jaci_Batista.html), University of Nevada – Las Vegas, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, regarding development of a rapid indicator of human wastes in source waters.
EDUCATION: B.S. degree in Chemistry, 1982, University of Nevada-Las Vegas. MS degree in Environmental Analytical Chemistry. Thesis: A Study of Fluorinated Organic Tracers in Alkaline Groundwaters.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: February 1987 - present: Research Chemist, U.S. EPA, National Exposure Research Laboratory, Characterization Research Division, Las Vegas, Nevada. December 1982 - February 1987: Chemist, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency - Region 9 - Laboratory Support Section.
ANCILLARY AGENCY RESPONSIBILITIES: Analytical Methods Review - Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER) workgroup on SW-846 methods. Review methods for EPA’s Office of Homeland Security. Provide technical guidance regarding organotins to Regions, States, and Agency Offices as needed.
PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES/ACTIVITIES/OFFICES: American Chemical Society.
SIGNIFICANT AWARDS:
2006 Scientific and Technological Achievement Award (STAA) (level iii) for developing new technologies for discovering emerging contaminants in the Nation’s water supply
2001 Superior Accomplishment Recognition · 2000 EPA/ACS Science Achievement Award for Chemistry. · 1995 Arthur S. Flemming Award - scientific category · U.S. EPA Scientific and Technological Achievement Awards (STAA) for 1990 (level III award): "Analysis of Organophosphorus Pesticide Samples by High-Performance Liquid Chromatography /Mass Spectrometry and High Performance Liquid Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry/Mass Spectrometry" (1990). · 1991 U.S. EPA Bronze Medal · Special Achievement Awards for 1983, 1984, 1990, 1993.
PUBLICATIONS: Over 30 publications in peer-reviewed journals. Selected recent publications/books:
Alvarez, DA, JN Huckins, JD Petty, TL Jones-Lepp, F Stuer-Lauridsen, DT Getting, JP Goddard, A Gravell "Tool for Monitoring Hydrophilic Contaminants in Water: Polar Organic Chemical Integrative Sampler (POCIS)," R. Greenwood, G. Mills, B. Vrana (ed.), Passive Sampling Techniques. Elsevier, Amsterdam, Holland, 48:171-197 2007
Jones-Lepp TL, Stevens R. 2007. “Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products in Biosolids/Sewage Sludge - The Interface between Analytical Chemistry and Regulation,” invited, special issue of Anal Bioanal Chem, 387, 1173-1183 2007
Jones-Lepp TL, “Chemical markers of human waste contamination: Analysis of urobilin and pharmaceuticals in source waters,” J Environ Monit. 8, 472–478 2006
Jones-Lepp TL, Momplaisir G-M “New applications of LC-MS and LC-MS2 toward understanding the environmental fate of organometallics,” Trends Anal. Chem. 24(7), 590-595 2005
Jones-Lepp TL, Alvarez D, Petty J, Huggins J "Polar Organic Chemical Integrative Sampling (POCIS) and LC-ES/ITMS for Assessing Selected Prescription and Illicit Drugs in Treated Sewage Effluents," Archives Environ Cont Toxicol, 47(4), 427-439 2004
Jones-Lepp TL, Varner KE, Heggem D "Monitoring dibutyltin and triphenyltin in fresh waters and fish in the United States using micro-liquid chromatography-electrospray/ion trap mass spectrometry," Archives Environ Cont Toxicol, 46(1), 90-95, 2004
Daughton, CG; Jones-Lepp TL (eds.) "Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products in the Environment: Scientific and Regulatory Issues", Symposium Series 791; American Chemical Society: Washington, D.C., 2001, 416 pp.
Daughton, C.G.; Jones-Lepp, TL. "Preface," in Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products in the Environment: Scientific and Regulatory Issues, Daughton, C.G. and Jones-Lepp, T. (eds.), Symposium Series 791; American Chemical Society: Washington, D.C., 2001.
Jones-Lepp TL, Gerlach, C.L., Cooter, E.J., "Pilot Field Study Tests Power of Analytical Methods for Measuring Suspected Endocrine Disrupting Compounds," Trends Anal. Chem., 2000, 19(0), 1-6.
Keith, L.H., Jones-Lepp TL, Needham, L.L., (eds.) Analysis of Environmental Endocrine Disruptors, Symposium Series 747; American Chemical Society: Washington D.C., 2000.
Recent Presentations:
Jones-Lepp TL "Developing methods for emerging contaminants in biosolids," Pacific Organic Residuals Conference, UC Davis, Sept 25-27, 2007 (oral presentation invited)
Jones-Lepp TL "Meeting today's emerging contaminants with tomorrow's research tools," Water Reuse and Treatment II conference, Feb. 11-16, 2007, Tomar, Portugal (oral presentation invited)
Jones-Lepp TL “Investigating Environmental Sinks of Macrolide Antibiotics with Analytical Chemistry,” 19th Rocky Mountain Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society "Chemistry at the Borders", Oct. 15-18, 2006, Tucson, AZ.
Jones-Lepp TL “Chemical markers of human waste contamination in source waters: A simplified analytical approach”, 5th National Monitoring Conference, Monitoring Networks: Connecting for Clean Water, 11 May, 2006, San Jose, CA
Jones-Lepp TL, and D. A. Alvarez. “Advanced Tools for Assessing Selected Prescription and Illicit Drugs in Treated Sewage Effluents and Source Waters”, Presented at Pharmaceuticals in the Environment, Las Vegas, NV, August 23 - 25, 2005
Jones-Lepp TL, Alvarez DA, Casey CR, Petty JD "Monitoring of waterways for emerging contaminants using integrative sampling coupled with liquid chromatography -electrospray/mass spectrometry" CA -NV AWWA (American Waste Water Association), 16 April, 2004, Las Vegas, NV (invited)
Jones-Lepp TL "A new SW-846 method: Micro-liquid chromatography-electrospray/ion trap mass spectrometry as applied to the detection and identification of organotins - Method 8323." Oral Presentation for NEMC (National Environmental Monitoring Conference)meeting (formerly the WTQA), July (21 - 24) 2003, Crystal City, VA (invited)
Jones-Lepp TL "Unique Environmental Chemistry Solutions to Superfund Problems," oral presentation for NIEHS, June 11, 2003 (web-based) (invited)
Jones-Lepp TL; Alvarez, D.A.; Petty, J.D.; Osemwengie, L.I.; Daughton, C.G. "Analytical Chemistry for Mapping Trends of Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Product Pollution from Personal Use: Some Current Research and Future Needs," 2001. http://www.epa.gov/nerlesd1/chemistry/pharma/index.htm. (Presented at 10th Annual Symposium on Handling of Environmental and Biological Samples, Wiesbaden, Germany), NERL-LV 01-058, 10 September 2001.