Denali Boon, Ph.D., M.P.H.
Senior Epidemiologist
she/her
Dr. Boon is a senior epidemiologist with expertise in pesticides, infectious diseases, and molecular biology. Before joining Gradient, Dr. Boon was a senior epidemiologist at an agriscience company, where she led the company’s environmental epidemiology strategy and efforts, and was also responsible for global human health risk assessments of a portfolio of chemicals. Dr. Boon focused her doctoral and postdoctoral research on the development and implementation of novel methods to estimate the incidence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HIV infections. She also contributed to research on the molecular epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19, and served as co-lead of the Johns Hopkins University Novel Coronavirus Research Compendium’s Diagnostics Team. Prior to pursuing her graduate studies, Dr. Boon worked at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on science communication and grants administration in the extramural research program, and conducted research on the host immune response to and pathogenesis of human viral infections in the intramural research program.
Epidemiological Literature Review: Reviewed epidemiology literature related to trichloroethylene, tetrachloroethylene, benzene, and vinyl chloride and adverse health outcomes.
Analysis of Ambient PM2.5 and Risk of Asthma: Reviewed and commented on a methodological approach to estimating the risk of mortality and the onset of asthma in relation to low levels of PM2.5 in ambient air.
Review of Adverse Health Effects and Nickel Exposure: Critically reviewed epidemiology literature on the respiratory and cardiovascular health effects of exposure to nickel as a constituent of particulate matter in ambient air.
Methodological Review and Bias Assessment: Reviewed and provided comments on methodological limitations that may be subject to bias in the epidemiology literature examining the association between Bisphenol A (BPA) exposure and cancer.
Methyl Tert-Butyl Ether (MTBE) and Cancer Analysis: Reviewed epidemiology literature regarding the association between MTBE and cancer.
Déglin, SE; Burstyn, I; Chen, CL; Miller, DJ; Gribble, MO; Hamade, AK; Chang, ET; Avanasi, R; Boon, D; Reed, J. 2022. “Considerations towards the better integration of epidemiology into quantitative risk assessment.” Global Epidemiology. In press.
Burns, CJ; LaKind, JS; Naiman, J; Boon, D; Clougherty, JE; Rule, AM; Zidek, A. 2022. “Research on COVID-19 and air pollution: A path towards advancing the science.” Environ. Res. In press.
Schneider, K; Webb, L; Boon, D; Johnson, RM. 2022. “Adolescent steroid use in association with substance use, team sports participation, and injection drug use.” J. Child Adolesc. Subst. Abuse. In press.