University of Illinois Chicago · BiologyThe Placenta Clock Lab
Almudena Veiga-Lopez · Chicago, Illinois
Research Focus
Dr. Almudena Veiga-Lopez's lab at the University of Illinois at Chicago studies how exposure to environmental chemicals affects placental health and pregnancy outcomes. The lab focuses on the placental molecular clock, a system that regulates various biological functions and may play a crucial role in fetal development. By examining how chemicals disrupt this clock, the lab aims to uncover the links between environmental toxins and adverse reproductive health issues.
placental healthchemical exposuremolecular clockreproductive outcomesenvironmental toxins
Research Aims
5AIM 01Investigate how environmental chemicals disrupt the placental molecular clock.
AIM 02Examine the effects of gestational age and placenta layer on sensitivity to chemical exposures.
AIM 03Identify the mechanisms of molecular clock proteins in cellular function during chemical exposure.
AIM 04Assess the impact of pesticide exposure on placental clock gene dysregulation in a human pregnancy cohort.
AIM 05Establish causal relationships through comparisons between mouse and human models.
Skills the Lab Values
cell culturemouse modelsmolecular biology techniquesgene expression analysisbiochemical assays
Output against the department
Publications142top 48% of dept.497th of 1,033
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations4.2kbottom 32% of dept.707th of 1,033
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.