Sepulveda honored with inaugural Susan Bulkeley Butler Distinguished Lecture

The Office of the Provost in partnership with the Susan Bulkeley Butler Center for Leadership Excellence honored Maria (Marisol) Soledad Sepúlveda, professor in the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources, with the inaugural Susan Bulkeley Butler Distinguished Lecture on Monday (April 10).

The award recognizes women faculty who have made significant contributions to their respective academic communities. It is the only distinguished award for scholarship that cuts across all Purdue campuses and disciplines and is awarded to one scholar per year in areas of discovery, learning, and/or engagement.

Sepúlveda, professor of forestry and natural resources, presented a 30-minute talk on the “Use of Aquatic Animals for Assessing the Toxicity of Emerging Pollutants,” followed by a brief question-answer session.

Sepúlveda earned a doctorate in veterinary medicine from Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile, and a master of science degree in wildlife ecology and a doctorate in veterinary sciences from University of Florida. Sepúlveda’s main area of research is ecotoxicology. Over the last 20 years, she has conducted extensive research evaluating the sublethal effects of a wide range of environmental contaminants on the physiology of numerous aquatic species. Within the field of ecotoxicology, Sepúlveda’s main area of interest involves the health effects of environmental contaminants in populations of free-ranging fish and wildlife. Specifically, Sepúlveda’s research has focused on understanding the effects of pollutants on reproduction and early life-stage development. 

Besides examining whole animal and tissue-level responses to environmental contaminants, Sepúlveda also investigates the effects of chemicals at the subcellular and molecular levels. She has published more than 125 refereed publications, authored nine book chapters, and presented her research in multiple invited lectures and presentations at national and international conferences.