Susan Mackintosh

• Environmental Analytical Chemistry Environmental Analytical Chemistry
  
• Impacts of Persistent Environmental Pollutants on Ecosystems

Susan Mackintosh is a graduate with a Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry.  Growing up in the Adirondacks of upstate New York and spending each summer on Chateaugay Lake, NY sparked her lifelong fascination and understanding of nature.  This curiosity motivates Susan to study the environment through chemistry and participate in the ERIE-IGERT program.

In 2008, Susan graduated from SUNY Oneonta with a B.S. in Chemistry receiving an Academic Achievement award.  In the fall of 2008, she enrolled at the University of Buffalo to continue her studies and pursue a Ph.D. in Chemistry.  Due to her interests in the environment Susan joined Dr. Diana Aga’s research group which specializes in Analytical Environmental Research.  Her current work involves structural identification of the metabolic pathway of synthetic estrogen within wastewater treatment.  This is significant as estrogens can have various adverse effects on species within an ecosystem.  The degradation  products of these estrogens can also produce the same effects; therefore, the identification of these compounds is essential.  Additionally, Susan will be studying the extent of biomagnification and bioaccumulation of brominated flame retardants within the food web of Lake Erie.  Understanding the presence and impacts of these persistent organic pollutants on ecosystems is imperative especially when working towards restoration.

In the long term, Susan plans to conduct research in the area of Environmental Chemistry in either an industry or government setting.  She hopes to continue working with methods for identifying emerging contaminates believing this provides an important understanding of the degradation of ecosystems, and as a consequence, ways degradation can be avoided.  Susan looks forward to participating in the ERIE-IGERT program and feels her research will benefit through the interaction with fellow IGERT students from different academic disciplines. 

• B.S. in Chemistry (SUNY Oneonta, 2008)

Publications

Susan A. Mackintosh, Alicia Pérez-Fuentetaja, Lisa R. Zimmerman, Grazina Pacepavicius, Mark Clapsadl, Mehran Alaee, Diana S. Aga*. Analytical performance of a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer compared to a high resolution mass spectrometer for the analysis of polybrominated diphenyl ethers in fish. Anal. Chim. Acta. 2012, 747, 67-75.

Taewoo Yi, Susan A. Mackintosh, Diana S. Aga, Willie F. Harper, Jr*.  Exploring 17α-ethinylestradiol removal, mineralization, and bioincorporation in engineered bioreactors. Water Res. 2011, 45, 1369-1377.

Wendell O. Khunjar, Susan A. Mackintosh, Jolanta Skotnicka-Pitak, Seungyon Baik, Diana S. Aga, Nancy G. Love*. Elucidating the relative roles of ammonia oxidizing and heterotrophic bacteria during the biotransformation of 17 α-ethinylestradiol and trimethoprim. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2011, 45, 3605-3612.

Oral Presentations

Susan A. Mackintosh, Alicia Pérez-Fuentetaja, Lisa R. Zimmerman, Grazina Pacepavicius, Mark Clapsadl, Mehran Alaee, Diana S. Aga. “Levels and bioaccumulation of halogenated flame retardants in the Lake Erie aquatic food web”. 2012 Dioxin Conference. Cairns, Australia, August 26-31 2012.

Susan A. Mackintosh, Alicia Pérez-Fuentetaja, Lisa R. Zimmerman, Grazina Pacepavicius, Mark Clapsadl, Mehran Alaee, Diana S. Aga. “Analysis of brominated flame retardants in the Lake Erie food web: levels, bioaccumulation, and trophic transfer”. 2012 International Association for Great Lakes Research (IAGLR) Conference. Cornwall, ON Canada, May 13-17 2012.  

Susan A. Mackintosh, Alicia Pérez-Fuentetaja, Lisa R. Zimmerman, Grazina Pacepavicius, Mark Clapsadl, Mehran Alaee, Diana S. Aga. “Analysis of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in the Lake Erie food Web”. 29th University at Buffalo, Department of Chemistry Graduate Student Symposium. Buffalo, NY, May 12-13 2011.

Susan A. Mackintosh, Lisa R. Zimmerman, Grazina Pacepavicius, Mehran Alaee, Diana S. Aga. “Advantages and limitations of tandem mass spectrometry, high resolution mass spectrometry, and electron capture detection for analysis of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in fish”. 2011 PittCon Conference. Atlanta, GA, March 13-18 2011.

Poster Presentations

Susan A. Mackintosh, Alicia Pérez-Fuentetaja, Lisa R. Zimmerman, Grazina Pacepavicius, Mark Clapsadl, Mehran Alaee, Diana S. Aga. “Analysis of methoxylated and hydroxylated polybrominated diphenyl ethers in plasma of fish from eastern Lake Erie”. 33rd Society of Envrionmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) North America Annual Meeting. Long Beach, CA, November 11-15 2012

Susan A. Mackintosh, Alicia Pérez-Fuentetaja, Lisa R. Zimmerman, Grazina Pacepavicius, Mark Clapsadl, Mehran Alaee, Diana S. Aga. “Catch of the day-brominated flame retardants’ in the food web of Lake Erie”. 2011 NSF IGERT Poster Competition. http://www.igert.org/posters2011/posters/117, NSF, Washington D.C., May 25 2011.

Susan A. Mackintosh, Alicia Pérez-Fuentetaja, Lisa R. Zimmerman, Grazina Pacepavicius, Mark Clapsadl, Mehran Alaee, Diana S. Aga. “Determination of levels of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in fish from eastern Lake Erie providing insights on food web-mediated transport and bioaccumulation”. 2010 Dioxin Conference. San Antonio, TX, September 12-17 2010.

Susan A. Mackintosh, Wendell O. Khunjar, Jolanta Skotnicka-Pitak, Diana S. Aga, Nancy G. Love, Willie F. Harper, Jr. “Metabolite identification by LC/MS/MS to understand the role of ammonia oxidizing and heterotropic bacteria during treatment of 17α-ethinylestradiol in wastewater”. 2010 American Society of Mass Spectrometry (ASMS) Conference. Salt Lake City, UT, May 23-27 2010.