Miriam C. Poirier, Ph.D.
- Center for Cancer Research
- National Cancer Institute
- Building 37, Room 4032C
- Bethesda, MD 20892
- 240-760-6949
- poirierm@exchange.nih.gov
RESEARCH SUMMARY
Dr. Poirier pioneered antibody-based methodologies for determining chemical carcinogen-induced DNA damage in humans. Cell culture, animal models and human subjects were employed to elucidate factors associated with human cancer risk. Information on DNA adduct processing in nuclear and mitochondrial DNA was correlated with: tumorigenesis, clinical response, toxicity, and integrity of organelles. The carcinogens of intensive investigation included: the environmental polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs); the adjuvant chemotherapeutic drug tamoxifen (TAM); and the antiretroviral nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) used for therapy of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1).
Areas of Expertise
Biography
Miriam C. Poirier, Ph.D.
Miriam C. Poirier received an B.Sc. in Chemistry from Marygrove College, (Detroit, MI), an M.Sc. in Biochemistry from McArdle Laboratory for Cancer Research, University of Wisconsin-Madison (Madison WI), and a Ph.D. in Microbiology from the Catholic University of America (Washington, DC). Dr. Poirier obtained her Ph.D. in 1977 while also working at the NIH, and shortly afterwards pioneered the use of immunoassays, with antisera specific for carcinogen-DNA adducts, for measurement of DNA damage in human tissues. In 1997 she became Head of the Carcinogen-DNA Interactions Section, Laboratory for Cancer Biology and Genetics, CCR, NCI. Dr. Poirier is a recipient of the NIH Merit Award, the Marygrove College Distinguished Alumna Award, the NCI Leading Diversity Award, the NCI Women Scientist Advisors (WSA) Mentoring and Leadership Award, and the Environmental Mutagenesis and Genomics Society Alexander Hollaender Award.
Dr. Poirier retired as a Senior Investigator in 2016 and is now an NCI Scientist Emeritus.