# Rapid Uranium Sensors to Minimize Health Impacts in the Navajo Nation

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF IOWA · 2020 · $315,553

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
A serious public health threat to Native American communities in the Four Corners region of the US is
chemical toxicity arising from exposure to uranium through water resources contaminated by abandoned
mines. Chronic environmental exposure to uranium, a documented nephrotoxin, negatively impacts DNA
repair, disrupts regulation of transcription factors and gene expression, and promotes apoptosis thus
increasing the risk of cancer and other health problems. Effective risk management for uranium
contamination requires reliable exposure assessment and biomonitoring tools for these impacted
populations; however, the current analytical “gold standards” require laborious pretreatment steps and data
collection and interpretation can be time-consuming, particularly in complex matrices such as urine and
surface or ground water. As a result, the goal of this project is to reduce public health risks and negative
side effects of uranium exposure for at risk populations through the development of enabling technology for
the near real-time and trace detection of total uranium concentration in media relevant to exposure
mechanisms and biomonitoring so that contamination threats can be dealt with in a timely manner. The
innovation of this proposal is derived from our ability to confront the analytical challenge of uranium
speciation, which often hinders the efficacy of standard detection and quantification methods with improved
detection selectivity through functionalized electrospun polymer mats with detection sensitivity using surface
enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). By using equilibrium speciation modeling to predict most probable
uranium complexes in environmentally and biologically relevant media, we can guide the design of
selective, high capacity sorbent materials that can be easily integrated into sensing platforms harnessing
the sensitivity of SERS, which notably produces distinct signatures for different bound uranium species.
Importantly, selectivity of uranium detection in synthetic urine has been demonstrated using the sorbent
materials and SERS. This total systems approach allows for a highly sensitive and rapid approach for
measuring not only total uranium in a sample but also the potential to distinguish distinct chemical forms
using portable Raman spectrometers and simple barcode outputs will provide ease of use. While standard
techniques provide isotopic signatures, aqueous speciation that is crucial for environmental remediation,
chelation therapies and improved risk assessment cannot be attained. We anticipate the development of
this novel sensing platform will produce empowering technologies that improve the health and overall
quality of life of a currently overlooked and underserved population, the Navajo Nation and other
neighboring communities.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9861246
- **Project number:** 5R01ES027145-04
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF IOWA
- **Principal Investigator:** Jose Manuel Cerrato
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $315,553
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-02-01 → 2022-01-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9861246

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9861246, Rapid Uranium Sensors to Minimize Health Impacts in the Navajo Nation (5R01ES027145-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9861246. Licensed CC0.

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