Sandra Nilsson

Dr. Sandra Nilsson is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences (QAEHS) within the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Behavioural Sciences at the University of Queensland. She specializes in environmental health sciences with a focus on chemical exposure assessment and human biomonitoring.

Dr. Nilsson's educational background includes:

• Bachelor (Honours) from Lund University
• Doctor of Philosophy in Environmental Science from the University of Queensland (submitted June 2022)

Her research focuses on identifying and monitoring chemical exposure in humans and wildlife, with particular expertise in per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Dr. Nilsson's work spans environmental epidemiology, exposure science, and toxicology, with applications to occupational health, community exposure assessment, and ecological risk evaluation. She has developed innovative approaches to human biomonitoring using serum and urine samples, including pooled sample analysis techniques that enhance efficiency while maintaining scientific rigor. Her PhD assessed occupational exposure to PFAS in airport firefighters by determining blood serum concentration and half-lives of PFAS and assessing relationships between exposure and health effects.

Dr. Nilsson's publication record demonstrates a strong trajectory in PFAS research, with recent work expanding into flame retardants, benzotriazoles, and benzothiazoles. Her studies reveal important patterns in chemical exposure across geographical regions, over time, and across different population groups. She has made significant contributions to understanding how chemical structure (particularly carbon chain length) influences biological accumulation and potential health effects. Her work bridges laboratory science with community-based research, addressing both fundamental scientific questions and practical public health concerns.

Dr. Nilsson is currently leading or contributing to several significant research projects funded by major organizations including the Australian Research Council and Universities Australia. Her current projects focus on evaluating pathology samples for human biomonitoring and assessing human exposure to halogenated natural products across Australian communities. She has previously worked on projects analyzing clothing textiles for concerning chemicals and developing passive samplers to inform seafood dietary advice related to PFAS contamination.

Available for supervision, Dr. Nilsson welcomes opportunities to mentor students interested in environmental health sciences, chemical exposure assessment, and biomonitoring techniques.