Publications

This page is a list of publications in reverse chronological order. Please use search or the filters to browse by research areas, publication types, and content types.

Displaying 131 - 140 of 346. Show 10 | 25 | 50 | 100 results per page.


Air Toxics Exposure from Vehicle Emissions at a U.S. Border Crossing: Buffalo Peace Bridge Study

John Spengler
Jamson Lwebuga-Mukasa
Jose Vallarino
Steve Melly
Steve Chillrud
Joel Baker
Taeko Minegishi
2011
Research Report 158

This report describes a study that tested whether emissions from traffic caused an air toxics "hot spot" in a neighborhood in Buffalo, New York. Dr. Spengler and colleagues hypothesized that vehicle-related emissions from heavy traffic at the Peace Bridge in Buffalo, one of the nation's busiest border crossings and a potential air pollution hot spot, would result in elevated downwind levels of mobile-source air toxics (MSATs) and other traffic-related pollutants. The investigators measured levels of a large number of MSATs as well as six criteria pollutants using both fixed-site and mobile monitoring in order to examine the relation between traffic at the bridge and the spatial distribution of ambient pollutant concentrations at the bridge and in an adjacent neighborhood.

Role of Neprilysin in Airway Inflammation Induced by Diesel Exhaust Emissions

Simon S Wong
Nina N Sun
Cynthia D Fastje
Mark L Witten
R Clark Lantz
Bao Lu
Duane L Sherrill
Craig J Gerard
Jefferey L Burgess
2011
Research Report 159

This report evaluates airway inflammatory responses and expression of the enzyme neprilysin in response to diesel exhaust particle exposure. Dr. Wong and colleagues hypothesized that components of diesel exhaust decrease neprilysin levels in airways, leading to airway function disorders and heightened responses to diesel exhaust. They exposed normal mice, mice genetically deficient in neprilysin, human subjects, and human airway epithelial cells to diesel exhaust particles and measured airway inflammation, neprilysin expression, and any unique responses in neprilysin-deficient mice.

The Impact of the Congestion Charging Scheme on Air Quality in London

Frank Kelly
H Ross Anderson
Ben Armstrong
Richard Atkinson
Benjamin Barratt
Sean Beevers
Dick Derwent
David Green
Ian Mudway
Paul Wilkinson
2011
Research Report 155

This report describes a study that was funded under HEI's research program aimed at measuring the possible health impacts associated with actions taken to improve air quality (health outcomes research). Dr. Kelly and colleagues used a multifaceted approach to exploring the impact of the Congestion Charging Scheme on air quality, which involved a variety of emissions and exposure modeling techniques, analysis of air monitoring data, and a newly developed assay for the oxidative potential of particulate matter collected on filters at urban backgrounds and roadside monitors.

Public Health and Air Pollution in Asia (PAPA): Coordinated Studies of Short-Term Exposure to Air Pollution and Daily Mortality in Two Indian Cities

Kalpana Balakrishnan
et al.
Uma Rajarathnam
et al.
2011
Research Report 157

This report contains studies in Chennai and Delhi led by Dr. Kalpana Balakrishnan and Dr. Uma Rajarathnam, respectively. These time-series studies of air pollution and mortality in India were funded under HEI's PAPA Program to provide information to inform regulatory and other decisions that would be relevant to local populations, with the added goal of supporting scientific capacity building in the region.

The Future of Vehicle Fuels and Technologies: Anticipating Health Benefits and Challenges

Health Effects Institute
2011
Communication 16

This report reviews new vehicle fuels and technologies that are likely to be commercially available within the next 10 years in the United States and other industrialized countries at a level that could result in significant population exposure. It highlights expected changes in emissions and other effects from the use of each technology and fuel, along with any life-cycle and regulatory issues.

Concentrations of Air Toxics in Motor Vehicle-Dominated Environments

Eric M Fujita
David E Campbell
Barbara Zielinska
William P Arnott
Judith C Chow
2011
Research Report 156

This report describes research funded under HEI's Air Toxics Hot Spot program. Dr. Eric Fujita and colleagues characterized concentrations of mobile-source air toxics (MSATs) and other pollutants in potential Los Angeles County pollution hot spots, including on urban highways with a varying mix of gasoline- and diesel-powered traffic and sites at various distances from the highways and close to other roads.

Improved Source Apportionment and Speciation of Low-Volume Particulate Matter Samples

James J Schauer
Brian J Majestic
Rebecca J Sheesley
Martin M Shafer
Jeffrey T DeMinter
Mark Mieritz
2010
Research Report 153

This report investigates methods with the high sensitivity and low limits of detection needed to analyze a wide range of chemical species in particulate matter collected with personal samplers. Dr. Schauer and colleagues developed sensitive methods to detect trace metals, nonpolar organic compounds, and polar organic compounds in personal samples collected in exposure studies. Methods used in this study are of interest to researchers seeking to gain greater insight into the relationships between the components of inhalable particulates and their health effects.

Evaluating Heterogeneity in Indoor and Outdoor Air Pollution Using Land-Use Regression and Constrained Factor Analysis

Jonathan I. Levy
Jane E Clougherty
Lisa K Baxter
E Andres Houseman
Christopher J Paciorek
2010
Research Report 152

This report explores how land-use regression and source-apportionment techniques can be used to characterize individual-level exposure to both indoor and outdoor air pollution sources. Dr. Levy and colleagues utilized health and air monitoring data from an ongoing prospective cohort study on childhood asthma in Boston, Massachusetts to model variability in outdoor and indoor residential air pollution, identify potential sources, and evaluate the effectiveness of various indoor exposure surrogates for predicting childhood asthma development.

Outdoor Air Pollution and Health in the Developing Countries of Asia: A Comprehensive Review

Health Effects Institute
2010
Special Report 18

This comprehensive literature review to come out of HEI's Public Health and Air Pollution in Asia (PAPA) program builds on an initial assessment conducted in 2004 and describes the current scope of the Asian literature on the health effects of outdoor air pollution, enumerating and classifying more than 400 studies. In addition, the report includes a systematic and quantitative assessment of 82 time-series studies of daily mortality and hospital admissions for cardiovascular and respiratory disease.

Public Health and Air Pollution in Asia (PAPA): Coordinated Studies of Short-Term Exposure to Air Pollution and Daily Mortality in Four Cities

Haidong Kan
et al.
Zhengmin Qian
et al.
Nuntavarn Vichit-Vadakan
et al.
Chit-Ming Wong
et al.
2010
Research Report 154

This report describes the first set of coordinated time-series studies ever undertaken in Asian cities: four time-series studies of the health effects of air pollution in Bangkok, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Wuhan. These studies were intended to help bridge the gaps between studies conducted in different locations around the globe.