NEXUS at AAAS in Boston
An exciting few days for the Exposome at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Boston
At this year’s American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the exposome was well-represented. During the session The Three Legged Stool of Trust in Science, NEXUS Co-Investigator Thomas Hartung, PhD presented his efforts in exposomics, and in driving the Human Moonshot Meeting in May, 2025. His talk Shaping the Future: Towards a Human Exposome Project outlined these exciting efforts.
After 40 years of the Human Genome Project, researchers know that there are three pathways to disease: genetics, pathogens, and exposure. Hartung focused on the estimated 70-90 percent of diseases impacted by exposure and on the rollout of the 2023 visionary report prepared by the U.S. Department of Defense calling for a groundbreaking Human Exposome Project. He described a vision for the immediate future by explaining revolutionary changes in biomedical research where stem-cell-derived human models allow science to study organ physiology and its perturbation in diseases as part of the emerging field–organoid intelligence.
In addition, other NEXUS colleagues were involved in the session, “After the Genome: What Comes Next and Are We Ready?”. The session was organized by chemist and NEXUS Co-Investigator Thomas Metz, PhD and data scientist Katrina Waters, PhD of the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Arpana Vaniya, PhD of the University of California at Davis served as the moderator.
“The genome revolution has been incredible,” said Metz, an expert on the types of small molecules that are present in living systems and that influence biological functions. “But genes don’t explain everything. In people, it’s been shown that our genes predict maybe 40 percent or less of our long-term health and disease risk. What accounts for the rest?”
The AAAS session brought together a panel of three experts in genomics and phenomics to explore the many emerging factors that work downstream of the DNA “instruction manual” to bring about the world around us. Aristides Patrinos, PhD, New York University Langone Health kicked off the session, leading a discussion about the origins and accomplishments of the Human Genome Project as well as future directions. That project was launched by the Department of Energy and completed by a collaboration of hundreds of scientists funded through DOE and the National Institutes of Health, as well as a private sector effort headed by J. Craig Venter.
NEXUS MPI Gary Miller, PhD of Columbia University explained how his team is using exposomics to study environmental factors and how they affect biological processes to influence living organisms. Waters rounded out the session with her talk, “Predictive Phenomics: The Next Revolution in Life Sciences.”
Phenomics is unknown to most people outside of science, but it’s a pivotal concept that explains much of the world around us. An organism’s phenome includes all its observable traits: tall or short, fast or slow, green eyes or blue, and so on. The genes provide a starting point for such traits, but then countless interrelated chemical changes happen moment to moment that determine what actually results. Examples include some turtles whose gender is determined by the temperature in which they incubate as eggs, and hydrangeas, whose color is determined by the pH level of soil. The PNNL team has organized the first-ever Predictive Phenomics Conference, to be held April 29–May 1 in Richland, WA.
After a lively 25-minute discussion period, panelists and attendees lingered for an additional 30 minutes exchanging ideas, posing questions, and planning future interactions.
Miller notes, “It was an exciting few days for the exposome. In addition to the AAAS sessions, Chirag Patel (NEXUS MPI) and I were able to meet with colleagues from the Broad Institute and the Harvard Business School to discuss future directions for the field.”