Currently, 60% of adults in the United States take at least one prescription medication. Of these medications, the World Health Organization and Centers for Disease Control identify 22 commonly- prescribed classes of medications that “increase risk of harm [from heat- related illness and death (HRID)] on hot days,” either by impairing thermoregulation or increasing core body temperature. With the frequency, duration, and intensity of extreme heat events increasing alongside the number of patients prescribed these medications, understanding the risk of climate-related health harms is vital.

However, despite these vulnerabilities, there is little understanding of the basic neuroscientific mechanisms underpinning how these medications alter thermoregulation and increase susceptibility to extreme heat events. Our project aims to elucidate the biological mechanism(s) of action on the brain of these medications under heat stress conditions, using zebrafish as a model.

Concurrently, we hope to work directly with the communities most affected by this issue. With the goal of building community partnerships throughout this process, we have initiated conversations with community groups and advocates to discuss and adapt the goals and intentions of our project. Through fostering these connections with community groups and physicians, we hope to conduct oral histories with community members to a) inform our research and outcomes such that they address the concerns of the community with integrity and transparency and b) create a platform (i.e. website) for those affected to share their concerns with a wider audience.

Thus, we aim to develop an empirical understanding of how medications interact with heat in vivo informed by real experience. These findings will allow for the development of climate resilient public health initiatives, including possible alterations to prescription practices, targeted towards the communities most affected by the compounded effects of extreme heat and medication use.