Research Reports

HEI’s mission is to provide credible science to support environmental regulations and other policy decisions. The results of each HEI-funded project undergo peer-review by outside scientists and the Health Review Committee. The HEI Research Reports contain the Investigator’s Report and the Review Committee’s evaluation of the study, summarized in a Commentary or short Critique.

ISSN 1041-5505 (print)        ISSN 2688-6855 (online) 

Research Report 218
Amir Hakami
Shunliu Zhao
Marjan Soltanzadeh
Petros Vasilakos
Anas Alhusban
Burak Oztaner
et al
2024

This report presents a study that estimated potential health benefits associated with reducing emissions from transportation and other sources at locations across the United States and Canada. Amir Hakami of Carleton University, Canada, and colleagues estimated the improvement in fine particulate matter concentrations and how many fewer deaths would be expected if fine particulate matter, ammonia, nitrogen oxides, and sulfur dioxide emissions were reduced.

Research Report 217
Scott Weichenthal
Marshall Lloyd
Arman Ganji
Leora Simon
Junshi Xu
Alessya Venuta
et al
2024

This report presents a study that assessed associations between long-term exposure to outdoor ultrafine particles (UFPs) and black carbon with mortality using several modeling approaches. The investigators applied exposure models developed through mobile monitoring in Toronto and Montreal to 1.5 million Canadian adults residing in both cities.

Research Report 216
Joshua Apte
Sarah E Chambliss
Kyle P Messier
Shahzad Gani
Adithi R Upadhya
Meenakshi Kushwaha
et al
2024

This report presents the results of a study led by Joshua Apte of the University of California, Berkeley, a recipient of HEI’s Walter A. Rosenblith New Investigator Award. Apte and colleagues evaluated the use of mobile monitoring for several air pollution mapping and exposure assessment applications.

Research Report 215
Manabu Shiraiwa
Ting Fang
Jinlai Wei
Pascale SJ Lakey
Brian CH Hwang
Kasey C Edwards
et al
2023

This report presents the findings of a study led by Manabu Shiraiwa of the University of California, Irvine, a recipient of HEI’s Walter A. Rosenblith New Investigator Award. Shiraiwa and colleagues evaluated the mechanisms of aerosol-induced reactive oxygen species formation by two pathways in the respiratory tract: by chemical reactions  and by immune cells called macrophages.

Research Report 214
Zorana J Andersen
Jiawei Zhang
Youn-Hee Lim
Rina So
Jeanette T Jørgensen
Laust H Mortensen
et al
2023

This report presents a study that evaluated whether there is an association between exposure to outdoor air pollution and the risk of COVID-19 incidence, hospitalization, and mortality in a cohort of 3.7 million Danish adults.

Research Report 213
George S. Downward
Roel Vermeulen
2023

This study by Dr. George S. Downward and Dr. Roel Vermeulen from Utrecht University, the Netherlands, addresses a clear research gap by leveraging harmonized data from the Asia Cohort Consortium, a large multicenter collaborative research effort in Asia that began in 2008.

Research Report 207
H Christopher Frey
Andrew P Grieshop
Andrey Khlystov
John J Bang
Nagui Rouphail
Joseph Guinness
et al
2022

This report presents a study led by H. Christopher Frey of North Carolina State University in Raleigh. The investigators measured six air pollutants (nitrogen oxides, ultrafine particles, black carbon, fine particles, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone) near a freeway and in an urban area.

Research Report 212
Michael Brauer
Jeffrey R. Brook
Tanya Christidis
Yen Chu
Dan Crouse
Anders Erickson
et al
2022

This report presents a comprehensive HEI study examining potential health risks from low levels of air pollution exposure in millions of Canadian citizens. Michael Brauer at The University of British Columbia and his colleagues combined satellite data, air monitor sampling, and atmospheric modeling to estimate outdoor PM2.5 exposures across Canada from 1981 to 2016.

Research Report 209
Mònica Guxens
Małgorzata J. Lubczyńska
Laura Pérez-Crespo
Ryan L. Muetzel
Hanan El Marroun
Xavier Basagaña
et al
2022

Research Report 209 presents a study by Mònica Guxens of the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) and colleagues. The team used new neuroimaging technology to assess the possible relationship of air pollution exposure during pregnancy and childhood with brain outcomes in children. 

Research Report 211
Francesca Dominici
Antonella Zanobetti
Joel Schwartz
Danielle Braun
Ben Sabath
Xiao Wu
2022

Research Report 211 presents a major HEI study by Dr. Francesca Dominici of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and colleagues. The investigators examined the risk of mortality associated with exposure to low ambient air pollution concentrations in a cohort of 68.5 million older Americans.