Publications:69
Megan K Horton, PhD, MPH
About Me
Megan Horton, PhD, MPH, is Professor in the Department of Environmental Medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Her research at Mount Sinai combines state-of-the-art environmental exposure assessment with structural and functional neuroimaging and behavioral phenotyping to understand how early life exposure to developmental neurotoxicants impacts typical brain development and leads to aberrant cognitive and behavioral outcomes in children. Recently, her research extends to investigate how environmental, social and occupational stressors impact later life health outcomes including PTSD and cognitive impairment.
Dr. Horton’s research has been funded from grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), the New York/New Jersey Educational Research Center (NY/NJERC) and the Honest Company. Her research is highly collaborative and involves several on going studies that are based in New York City, Italy, Mexico.
Dr. Horton earned her doctoral degree in Environmental Health Sciences at Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University. During her doctoral training, she gained expertise in the development and use of biological markers to measure prenatal and early life exposures to environmental toxicants, focusing mainly on residential exposure to pesticides. Subsequently, she completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Sergievsky Center for the Epidemiologic Study of Neurologic Diseases. The focus of this postdoc was to explore the use of brain imaging (i.e., magnetic resonance imaging – MRI) to investigate the impact of prenatal exposure to pesticides and secondhand smoke on neuropsychological and behavioral function throughout childhood.
Language
English
Position
PROFESSOR | Environmental Medicine
Multi-Disciplinary Training Areas
Neuroscience [NEU]
Education
BA, Loyola University Chicago
MA, University of Nebraska at Omaha
MPH, Columbia University
PhD, Columbia University
Awards
2011
Prenatal exposure to a mixture of endocrine disrupting compounds and child neurodevelopment
NIEHS
Research
- This ongoing pilot study is currently enrolling active welders from the New York City area (i.e., ironworkers, steelworkers, dockbuilders, etc) and uses PET/MRI to examine associations between welding fume exposure and cerebrovascular and cardiovascular health.
Publications
Selected Publications
- MRI signature of brain age underlying post-traumatic stress disorder in World Trade Center responders. Azzurra Invernizzi, Francesco La Rosa, Anna Sather, Elza Rechtman, Ismail Nabeel, R. Sean Morrison, Alison C. Pellecchia, Stephanie Santiago-Michels, Evelyn J. Bromet, Roberto G. Lucchini, Benjamin J. Luft, Sean A. Clouston, Erin S. Beck, Cheuk Y. Tang, Megan K. Horton. Translational Psychiatry
- The Chemical Exposome on Ovarian Aging in Adult Women: a Narrative Review. Lauren M. Petrick, Lauren A. Wise, Elena Colicino, Megan K. Horton, Jaron Rabinovici, Tzipora Strauss, Batya Sarna, Liat Lerner-Geva, Michal A. Elovitz, Rosalind J. Wright, Andrea A. Baccarelli, Ronit Machtinger. Current Pollution Reports
- Childhood Pb-induced cognitive dysfunction: structural equation modeling of hot and cold executive functions. Jamil M. Lane, Shelley H. Liu, Vishal Midya, Cecilia S. Alcala, Shoshannah Eggers, Katherine Svensson, Sandra Martinez-Medina, Megan K. Horton, Roberta F. White, Martha M. Téllez-Rojo, Robert O. Wright. Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology
Industry Relationships
Physicians and scientists on the faculty of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai often interact with pharmaceutical, device, biotechnology companies, and other outside entities to improve patient care, develop new therapies and achieve scientific breakthroughs. In order to promote an ethical and transparent environment for conducting research, providing clinical care and teaching, Mount Sinai requires that salaried faculty inform the School of their outside financial relationships.
Dr. Horton has not yet completed reporting of Industry relationships.
Mount Sinai’s faculty policies relating to faculty collaboration with industry are posted on our website. Patients may wish to ask their physician about the activities they perform for companies.