Focus on ISF's PFAS Strategic Research Team

PFAS, or “Forever Chemicals,” pose a threat to both human and environmental health. They can take millennia to break down, and often degrade into smaller-chain chemicals. They appear in hundreds of common domestic products including stick-free cookware, waterproof treated fabrics, cleaning products, food packaging and fire-fighting foams and have been shown to increase the risk of cancer, increase cholesterol levels, impact the immune system as well as hormonal functioning in animals including humans. Having been widely used around the globe since the 1940s, they are found in tissues of most people.

Co-lead by Dr. Jennifer Freeman (HSCI) and Marisol Sepúlveda (FNR) ISF supports the work of a collaborative and interdisciplinary team of about a dozen scientists across 4 colleges and 8 departments that is committed to addressing challenges posed by PFAS through the PFAS Strategic Research Team (SRT). ISF uses the SRT mechanism to provide targeted and strategic support for a group of affiliates with a history of multi-disciplinary research and publications on an important sustainability topic to advance impact and support additional opportunities for research funding and outreach.

The 2024-2025 academic year saw the team significantly advance research in, and awareness of, PFAS around the state and nation through publications, events, education and outreach. A key aspect of the team’s efforts this year has involved engaging scientists, state employees and the general public through webinars, in-person events and seminars, as well as through the publication of public-facing information representing the work of scientists from around the state of Indiana.

In collaboration with the Hoosier Environmental Council (HEC), members of the SRT participated in two webinars. The first, which took place in December, “Forever Chemicals I: Unpacking PFAS: Risks, Regulations, and Resilience” (12/12), provided an overview that featured the SRT’s co-leads Jennifer Freeman (HSCI), Marisol Sepúlveda (FNR), as well as Tyler Hoskins (FNR), who also served as a part-time research scientist for ISF this academic year. Together, they provided current information on sources, uses and impacts of PFAS on human health and the environment. They were joined by Hannah Nelson, from the Southern Environmental Law Center, who discussed policy and legal Impacts of PFAS at both state and federal levels. The webinar, with almost 600 views as of June 2025, is available on the ISF YouTube channel.

A more Indiana-focused look was provided through a second co-sponsored webinar that took place in January, “Forever Chemicals II: Examining Impacts and Implications for Indiana,” that featured John Howarter (Materials Eng) from Purdue, as well as scientists from University of Notre Dame, the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, as well as two state legislators who have authored bills on PFAS. This second webinar provided current information on the implications of PFAS in biosolids, how it is used for "Essential Uses" like advanced manufacturing, current science around its presence in consumer products, and insight into legislation introduced to the Indiana State Legislature. This event is also available on the ISF YouTube page. Another co-sponsorship with HEC was an outreach event in Indianapolis when they organized a showing of Dark Waters (2019); Tyler Hoskins (FNR) participated in a post-film discussion. Another outreach event occurred in March when several members of the team also met, in an event organized by the Indiana Water Resources Research Center, with state employees and scientists to discuss research gaps in our knowledge of PFAS.

The team also helped support the visit of Dr. Tamarra James-Todd, the Mark and Catherine Winkler Associate Professor of Environmental Reproductive Epidemiology, Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, who gave a seminar on “"PFAS Exposure Across the Reproductive Life Course and Later-Life Cardiometabolic Health." Tyler Hoskins (FNR) also gave an on-campus seminar talk this spring, “Maximizing Ecological Relevance in Ecotoxicology Research: A Case Study with Per-and Polyfluoroalkyl Substance (PFAS) in Aquatic Systems.” In April, the team invited Dr. Martha Venier, Assistant Professor in the Paul H. O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University, to give a talk entitled, “The Ins and Outs of Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances in the Great Lakes: The Role of Atmosphere Deposition.”

Several faculty on the team also appeared in a variety of media outlets discussing a range of PFAS-related issues, including  The Washington Post & Chemistry World (Linda Lee, AGRY, on biosolids and fertilizers), Real Simple and Health.com (Jennifer Freeman, HSCI, on limiting exposures & impacts on public health). The team, and the topic, were also covered in three College of Agriculture articles—most recently highlighting perhaps the biggest highlight for the team this spring—the publication of the ISF-supported Indiana Statewide PFAS Assessment. This report, led by Tyler Hoskins, provides an overview of the current state of scientific knowledge concerning PFAS, as well as a concise assessment of current and potential impacts of its continued use. It discusses exposure pathways impacting the health of the people, organisms and environment in Indiana and the region. Also included are recommendations regarding pressing challenges and how individuals can work to reduce the presence of PFAS while also limiting exposure and negative impacts. With over 500 downloads from ISF’s ‘e-pubs’ site in the first six weeks since publication, it has been well received and further promoted by numerous agencies, non-profits and outlets across the state.

In terms of research, numerous members of the team, including, in alphabetical order: Jason Cannon (HSCI), Youn Jeong Choi (FNR), Dan Foti (Psych), Jennifer Freeman (HSCI), Jose Garcia Bravo (Mechanical Eng. Tech), Tyler Hoskins (FNR), Linda Lee (AGRY), Carlos Martinez (Materials ENG), Marisol Sepúlveda (FNR), David Warsinger (ME), Ellen Wells (HSCI), Jeff Youngblood (Materials Eng), Chongli Yuan (Chem ENG), were involved with award grants totaling over $4.3 million dollars in FY 2025. Various members also submitted over $28 million dollars of PFAS research grants between FY 2024-2025. Most recently, in May 2025, David Warsinger (ME) received a Ralph W. and Grace M. Showalter Research Trust Award for his project “Electrocatalytic Nanofiltration for rapid removal and destruction of PFAS to safeguard human health.”

In June, ISF and the PFAS SRT received an “Outstanding Achievement Award” from the Indiana Water Resources Association, which was accepted by Lynne Dahmen, Senior Managing Director, and Tyler Hoskins, first author of the study, at the IWRA annual conference in Brown County.

The upcoming year will advance additional initiatives including creating a state wide PFAS Research Network, publishing of a peer-reviewed article representing regional research and additional events.