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 121 - 130 of 340. Show 10 | 25 | 50 | 100 results per page.


Assessing the Impact of a Wood Stove Replacement Program on Air Quality and Children’s Health

Curtis W Noonan
Tony J Ward
William Navidi
Lianne Sheppard
Megan Bergauff
Chris Palmer
2011
Research Report 162
This report describes a study evaluating a community-wide program to improve air quality in a rural mountain community (Libby, Montana) by replacing older, more polluting wood stoves with new, less polluting stoves. Over the course of 4 winters, Dr. Noonan and colleagues measured PM2.5 and markers for wood smoke outdoors, in schools, and in about 20 homes before and after stove changeout. In parallel, they tracked children's respiratory symptoms (based on parental surveys) and school absences.

Pulmonary Particulate Matter and Systemic Microvascular Dysfunction

Timothy R Nurkiewicz
Dale W Porter
Ann F Hubbs
Samuel Stone
Amy M Moseley
Jared L Cumpston
Adam G Goodwill
Stephanie J Frisbee
Peter L Perrotta
Robert W Brock
Jefferson C Frisbee
Matthew A Boegehold
David G Frazer
Bean T Chen
Vincent Castranova
2011
Research Report 164

This report describes a study that evaluated whether exposure to fine or nano-titanium dioxide (TiO2) particles may affect cardiovascular endpoints, in particular endothelium-dependent vascular dilation. Dr. Nurkiewicz and colleagues exposed rats via inhalation to 0.5 to 20 mg/m3 TiO2 for up to 12 hours and evaluated them for vascular dilation and for markers of oxidative stress, coagulation, and inflammation. This study was funded under the Walter A. Rosenblith New Investigator Award.   

The London Low Emission Zone Baseline Study

Frank Kelly
Ben Armstrong
Richard Atkinson
H Ross Anderson
Benjamin Barratt
Sean Beevers
Derek Cook
David Green
Dick Derwent
Ian Mudway
Paul Wilkinson
2011
Research Report 163

This report describes a study evaluating the feasibility of studying potential changes in air quality and health associated with the London Low Emission Zone (LEZ), which went into effect in 2008 and restricts entry of older, more polluting vehicles into Greater London. Based on their earlier study of London's Congestion Charging Scheme, Dr. Kelly and colleagues conducted emissions and exposure modeling to estimate the projected effects of LEZ implementation. They also assessed the feasibility of using medical records from private practices to evaluate the relationships between exposure to traffic and indicators of respiratory and cardiovascular disease.

Personal and Ambient Exposures to Air Toxics in Camden, New Jersey

Paul J Lioy
Zhihua (Tina) Fan
Junfeng (Jim) Zhang
Panos Georgopoulos
Sheng-Wei Wang
Pamela Ohman-Strickland
Xiangmei Wu
Xianlei Zhu
Jason Herrington
Xiaogang Tang
Qingyu Meng
Kyung Hwa Jung
Jaymin Kwon
Marta Hernandez
et al
2011
Research Report 160

This report describes a study that tested whether an air toxics "hot spot" existed in Camden, NJ. Dr. Lioy and colleagues evaluated ambient and personal exposures of nonsmoking residents to PM2.5, VOCs, aldehydes, and PAHs in two neighborhoods in Camden, NJ, one of which was hypothesized to be a regional air toxics "hot spot." The investigators compared concentrations of air pollutants in the two neighborhoods with each other and then with concentrations at other locations in the United States. They also assessed the effects of seasonality, contributions from mobile sources, and spatial variability.

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.