Lida L Chatzi, MD, PhD

Biography

I am a physician, environmental epidemiologist, and Professor of Population and Public Health Sciences in the Division of Environmental Health at the University of Southern California (USC). I have over 20 years of experience in environmental health research with a strong track record of productivity in multidisciplinary, translational science. My work focuses on the effects of environmental chemical exposures on human health by integrating data from epidemiologic cohorts and experimental models.
I serve as Director of the USC Center for Translational Research on Environmental Health (USC-R-TEN), Director of the NIEHS-funded Southern California Superfund Research Program for PFAS Assessment, Remediation, and Prevention (ShARP), and Deputy Director of the NIEHS-funded P30 Southern California Environmental Health Sciences Center (SCEHSC). Through these leadership roles, I direct teams focused on bench-to-population science, community-engaged, solution-oriented research, and transdisciplinary career development.
My research program is dedicated to understanding how environmental pollutants—particularly endocrine-disrupting chemicals such as PFAS—influence metabolic health outcomes across the life course. My studies examine links between chemical exposures and obesity, type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance, and iver disease, with a strong focus on vulnerable populations.
I lead several large, multi-center studies in Southern California and has established transatlantic collaborations to leverage intellectual resources and population cohorts in both the U.S. and Europe. I am the principal investigator on multiple NIH/NIEHS and EU-funded research initiatives aimed at advancing precision environmental health through integrative exposomics and multi-omics approaches.