Dr. Lehmler is a professor in the Department of Occupational and Environmental Health at the University of Iowa (UI). He earned his PhD in synthetic organic chemistry from the University of Bonn, Germany, and received training in chemical and analytical toxicology at the University of Kentucky and the UI. He has extensive experience with assessment of the toxicity of environmental contaminants and their metabolites in vitro and in vivo. He has served as director of the Environmental Health Sciences Research Center (EHSRC) and as leader of the Synthesis Core of the Iowa Superfund Research Program (ISRP) since 2006. Together with Jonathan Doorn, he directs the Oxidative Stress and Metabolism Thematic Area of the EHSRC.

As deputy director of the ISRP, Dr. Lehmler assists the director in scientific and administrative oversight of the program and in facilitating effective and timely communication of research findings and interactions among the investigators in the individual projects and cores. He leads the Synthesis Core, where he oversees and coordinates the chemical synthesis and the chemical characterization of synthetic compounds. He also leads Project 1. 

In 2021 he received the John Doull Award from the Central States Society of Toxicology. The John Doull award is presented each year by the CSSOT to honor the contributions of its members to the discipline of toxicology.

Dr. Lehmler is internationally recognized for his studies on the disposition and toxicity of chiral PCBs. His current NIEHS-funded research employs novel animal models, including germ-free mice, transgenic animals, and population-based animal models, to characterize how the metabolism of chemical hazards affects toxic outcomes.