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 171 - 180 of 341. Show 10 | 25 | 50 | 100 results per page.

Time-Series Analysis of Air Pollution and Mortality: A Statistical Review

Francesca Dominici
2004
Research Report 123
Air Pollution
Particulate Matter
Innovation
Statistical Methods

This report describes a study funded under the Walter A. Rosenblith New Investigator Award. Dr Francesca Dominici and colleagues at Johns Hopkins University developed more flexible methods and statistical models for the National Morbidity, Mortality, and Air Pollution Study database.

Uptake Distribution of Ozone in Human Lungs: Intersubject Variability in Physiologic Response

James S Ultman
Abdellaziz Ben-Jebria
Steven F Arnold
2004
Research Report 125
Ozone & Oxidants

Dr James Ultman and colleagues at Pennsylvania State University recruited 32 men and 28 women to examine differences in ozone uptake in the lung. The subjects (all non smokers) first took a series of single breaths of air–ozone mixtures, which allowed the investigators to examine how ozone was distributed in the airways and where the major fraction of ozone was taken up. In a follow-up test, the subjects pedaled a bicycle ergometer to produce conditions of moderate exercise for one hour while breathing clean air, followed by a third test while breathing ozone at 0.25 ppm).

Evaluation of a Personal and Microenvironmental Aerosol Speciation Sampler (PMASS)

Alison S Geyh
Susanne Hering
Nathan Kreisberg
Walter John
2004
Research Report 122
Air Pollution
Particulate Matter
Innovation
Exposure Methods

Dr Alison S Geyh and colleagues at Johns Hopkins University evaluated the personal and microenvironmental aerosol speciation sampler (PMASS) prototype developed by Dr. Susanne Hering with HEI funding (HEI Research Report 114). The precision and accuracy of the prototype, which measures PM2.5 mass, elemental and organic carbon, sulfate, and nitrate, was evaluated in two locations with different PM composition. Baltimore, Maryland (outdoors), and Fresno, California (indoors). Geyh and colleagues set a target of 10% precision and 10% accuracy for all species measured.

Field Evaluation of Nanofilm Detectors for Measuring Acidic Particles in Indoor and Outdoor Air

Beverly Cohen
Maire SA Heikkinen
Yair Hazi
Hai Gao
Paul Peters
Morton Lippmann
2004
Research Report 121
Air Pollution
Particulate Matter
Innovation
Exposure Methods

Dr. Beverly Cohen and her colleagues at New York University School of Medicine tested the performance of iron nanofilms to collect and measure sulfuric acid particles of different sizes under a variety of temperature and humidity conditions. The iron nanofilm detector is a thin iron-coated silicon chip. Particles would react with the iron, creating an elevated site or bump on the film surface, which can be visualized using an atomic force microscope.

Effects of Concentrated Ambient Particles on Normal and Hypersecretory Airways in Rats

Jack R Harkema
Gerald Keeler
James Wagner
Masako Morishita
Edward Timm
Jon Hotchkiss
Frank Marsik
Timothy Dvonch
Norbert Kaminski
Edward Barr
2004
Research Report 120
Particulate Matter

Dr. Jack Harkema and colleagues at Michigan State University conducted a 2-year study with rats to evaluate the short-term effects of inhaling concentrated ambient particles derived from the air in an area of Detroit, Michigan that has a high incidence of childhood asthma. The investigators used two animal models, BN rats that were sensitized with ovalbumin to induce some features of asthma, and F344 rats pretreated with endotoxin to have some features of mild bronchitis. Animals were exposed for 10 hours/day for 1 day or for 4 or 5 consecutive days.

National Morbidity, Mortality, and Air Pollution Study. Part III: Concentration–Response Curves and Thresholds for the 20 Largest US Cities

Michael J Daniels
Francesca Dominici
Scott L Zeger
Jonathan M Samet
2004
Research Report 094-III
Particulate Matter

In Part III of the National Morbidity, Mortality, and Air Pollution Study (NMMAPS), Dr. Daniels and colleagues at Johns Hopkins University and Harvard University evaluated the shape of the relation between PM10 concentrations measured at fixed monitoring sites and daily mortality among residents from all causes (excluding accidental causes), from all cardiovascular and respiratory causes combined, and from causes other than cardiovascular-respiratory disease.

Health Effects of Outdoor Air Pollution in Developing Countries of Asia: A Literature Review

Health Effects Institute
2004
Special Report 15
Air Pollution
Particulate Matter
Global Health

A Special Report by the HEI International Scientific Oversight Committee of HEI Public Health and Air Pollution in Asia (PAPA) Program (a program of the Clean Air Initiative for Asian Cities). This first publication to come from HEI's PAPA Program was undertaken to help inform the Clean Air Initiative for Asian Cities. This special report has identified and summarized more than 135 studies of air pollution and health conducted across Asia. In addition, it critically reviews for the first time a key subset of these studies: 28 studies of daily mortality. The report is a valuable resource for policy makers in Asia and beyond.

Manganese Toxicokinetics at the Blood-Brain Barrier

Robert A Yokel
Janelle S Crossgrove
2004
Research Report 119
Air Pollution
Air Toxics
Emerging Technologies
Fuels & Fuel Additives

Drs. Yokel and Crossgrove at the University of Kentucky Medical Center studied the mechanisms by which manganese enters and leaves the brain across the blood–brain barrier and, in particular, whether transporter molecules are involved. The investigators used in vivo brain perfusion in rats as well as in vitro tests in several cell lines to assess specific characteristics of manganese transport, such as pH and energy dependence. Manganese transport rates were compared with those of sucrose and dextran, which do not easily cross the blood–brain barrier.

Peroxides and Macrophages in the Toxicity of Fine Particulate Matter in Rats

Debra L Laskin
Lisa Morio
Kimberly Hooper
Tsung-Hung Li
Brian Buckley
Barbara J Turpin
2003
Research Report 117
Particulate Matter

Dr. Laskin and her colleagues at the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute at Rutgers University tested the hypothesis that oxidants in ambient air, such as hydrogen peroxide, may be transported by fine particulate matter into the lungs and thus contribute to lung tissue injury. The investigators used ammonium sulfate particles because of their prevalence in the ambient air of the eastern United States and their reportedly low toxicity in animals and humans.

Health Effects of Acute Exposure to Air Pollution

Stephen T Holgate
Thomas Sandström
et al
Stephen T Holgate
Robert B Devlin
et al
2003
Research Report 112
Diesel Exhaust
Particulate Matter
Global Health

Stephen Holgate and his colleagues at the University of Southampton proposed that inflammatory changes in lung fluids and blood from humans exposed to PM were related to the chemical composition of the particles. He obtained samples from two human studies in which participants were exposed to diesel exhaust and concentrated ambient particles (CAPs). At a Swedish laboratory 25 healthy and 12 asthmatic participants were exposed to diesel exhaust or filtered air on separate days. At a US laboratory, 12 healthy participants were exposed to filtered air and 30 different healthy participants were exposed to a range of CAPs concentrations. All participants underwent bronchoscopy to obtain lung tissues and fluids to analyze inflammatory markers, including numbers of specific white blood cells, expression of activation markers, and levels of cytokines in addition to analysis of lung function, lung fluids, and blood.