Grantee Research Project Results

Final Report: The Short and Long-Term Respiratory Effects of Exposure to PAHs from Traffic in a Cohort of Asthmatic Children

EPA Grant Number: R828678C017
Subproject: this is subproject number 017 , established and managed by the Center Director under grant R824834
(EPA does not fund or establish subprojects; EPA awards and manages the overall grant for this center).
Center: Center for Integrative Research on Childhood Leukemia and the Environment - 2015
Center Director: Metayer, Catherine
Title: The Short and Long-Term Respiratory Effects of Exposure to PAHs from Traffic in a Cohort of Asthmatic Children
Investigators: Hammond, S. Katharine
Institution: University of California - Berkeley
EPA Project Officer: Chung, Serena
Project Period: January 2, 2001 through December 31, 2005 (Extended to December 31, 2008)
RFA: Targeted Research Center (2004) Recipients Lists
Research Category: Targeted Research

Objective:

The investigators studied the relationship between exposure to vehicular polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and the short- and long-term respiratory effects on children who have well-characterized asthma. This research complements an ongoing study of 302 children with asthma, ages 6-11 at intake, in Fresno, California, who are already recruited and for whom voluminous health and exposure data are available (the Fresno Asthmatic Children’s Environment Study [FACES]). An intensive assessment of exposure to PAHs was undertaken to test the hypothesis that acute exposures to PAHs lead to increased symptoms among asthmatic children.

The major hypothesis tested in this study was that acute exposures to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) lead to increase in symptoms among asthmatic children. To accomplish this there were three major specific aims:

Aim 1: Develop two datasets of PAH concentrations throughout Fresno, California, based on 500 collected filter samples and pine needles.
Aim 2: Develop temporal and spatial models of PAH concentrations to estimate daily PAH concentrations outside the homes of 315 children in the FACES study for eight years.
Aim3: Perform epidemiologic analyses of the respiratory health effects of PAHs on asthmatic children.

Summary/Accomplishments (Outputs/Outcomes):

The main finding of the study was an observed consistent association between the estimated individual-level increased concentration of PAHs and daily occurrence of morning wheeze. The reported odds ratio (95% confidence interval) was 1.22 (0.99-1.50) for a 10 ng/mg³ increase in concentration of PAH with 2, 5, or 6 rings. When the respiratory function measurement forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV₁) was analyzed against exposure, no associations were observed.

Airborne concentrations were measured in 497 filter samples collected at 83 homes over the course of 1 year. Methods were developed to use pine needles as passive samplers for PAHs to capture spatial variability alone; samples from 91 locations were collected and analyzed. These data were used in land use regression analyses to construct spatial-temporal models of PAH concentrations throughout Fresno. These models were combined with data collected at the US EPA Supersite to estimate daily PAH concentrations from PAH compounds with 4-, 5- or 6-rings ("PAH456") outside of the homes of 315 asthmatic children from 2000 to 2007 (532,135 individual daily exposure estimates) who participated in 2-week panel studies, during which time they completed twice-daily spirometry and reported symptoms; 19,616 observations from 276 children were available for the epidemiologic analyses. These analyses demonstrated a consistent association between estimated individual-level increased concentrations of PAHs and the daily occurrence of morning wheeze. The odds ratio (95% confidence interval) was 1.22 (0.99-1.50) for a 10 ng/m³ increase in concentration of PAH456.

Journal Articles on this Report : 3 Displayed | Download in RIS Format

Publications Views
Other subproject views:	All 4 publications	3 publications in selected types	All 3 journal articles
Other center views:	All 144 publications	62 publications in selected types	All 53 journal articles

Publications
Type	Citation	Sub Project	Document Sources
Journal Article	Noth EM, Hammond SK, Biging GS, Tager IB. Characterizing the spatial distribution of ambient PAHs using vegetation biomonitoring. Epidemiology 2008;19(6):S330-S331.	R828678C017 (Final)	Abstract: Epidemiology-Abstract Exit
Journal Article	Noth EM, Hammond SK, Biging GS, Lurmann F, Tager IB. Mixed modeling for land use regression with traffic-related pollutants. Epidemiology 2008;19(6):S327.	R828678C017 (Final)	Abstract: Epidemiology-Abstract Exit
Journal Article	Noth EM, SK Hammond, GS Biging, and IB Tager. 2011. A spatial-temporal regression model to predict daily outdoor residential PAH concentrations in an epidemiologic study in Fresno, CA. Atmospheric Environment 2011;45(14):2394-2403.	R828678C017 (Final) R835435 (Final)	Full-text: ScienceDirect-Full Text HTML Exit Other: ScienceDirect-PDF Exit

Supplemental Keywords:

Acute health effects, inhaled, human susceptibility, cardiotoxicity, cardiopulmonary, mortality, air contaminant exposure, air quality, environmental hazard exposures, toxics, airborne urban contaminants, cardiovascular disease, acute exposure, RFA, Health, Scientific Discipline, PHYSICAL ASPECTS, Air, HUMAN HEALTH, particulate matter, Environmental Chemistry, Health Risk Assessment, air toxics, Exposure, Epidemiology, Risk Assessments, Susceptibility/Sensitive Population/Genetic Susceptibility, Physical Processes, genetic susceptability, copollutant exposures, sensitive populations, atmospheric particulate matter, cardiopulmonary responses, fine particles, PM 2.5, long term exposure, inhaled pollutants, acute cardiovascular effects, acute lung injury, morbidity, air pollution, susceptible subpopulations, cardiac arrest, chronic health effects, lung inflammation, time series analysis, particulate exposure, National Cohort Studies, cardiopulmonary response, human exposure, Acute health effects, inhaled, human susceptibility, cardiotoxicity, cardiopulmonary, mortality, air contaminant exposure, air quality, environmental hazard exposures, toxics, airborne urban contaminants, cardiovascular disease, acute exposure

Progress and Final Reports:

Original Abstract

Main Center Abstract and Reports:

R824834 Center for Integrative Research on Childhood Leukemia and the Environment - 2015

Subprojects under this Center: (EPA does not fund or establish subprojects; EPA awards and manages the overall grant for this center).
R824834C001 Air Toxics Exposures Among Teenagers in New York City and Los Angeles - A Columbia-Harvard Study (TEACH)
R824834C002 Cardiopulmonary Response to Particulate Exposure
R824834C003 VOC Exposure in an Industry Impacted Community
R824834C004 A Study of Personal Exposure to Air Toxics Among a Subset of the Residential U.S. Population (VOC Project)
R824834C005 Methods Development Project for a Study of Personal Exposures to Toxic Air Pollutants
R824834C006 Relationship Between Indoor, Outdoor and Personal Air (RIOPA)
R824834C007 Development of the "Leland Legacy" Air Sampling Pump
R824834C008 Source Apportionment of Indoor Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Urban Residences
R824834C009 Development of a Personal Cascade Impactor Sampler (PCIS)
R824834C010 Testing the Metals Hypothesis in Spokane
R828678C001 Air Toxics Exposures Among Teenagers in New York City and Los Angeles—A Columbia-Harvard Study (TEACH)
R828678C002 Cardiopulmonary Effects of Metal-Containing Particulate Exposure
R828678C003 VOC Exposure in an Industry Impacted Community
R828678C004 A Study of Personal Exposure to Air Toxics Among a Subset of the Residential U.S. Population (VOC Project)
R828678C005 Oxygenated Urban Air Toxics and Asthma Variability in Middle School Children: A Panel Study (ATAC–Air Toxics and Asthma in Children)
R828678C006 Relationship between Indoor, Outdoor and Personal Air (RIOPA). Part II: Analyses of Concentrations of Particulate Matter Species
R828678C007 Development of the “Leland Legacy” Air Sampling Pump
R828678C008 Source Apportionment of Indoor PAHs in Urban Residences 98-03B
R828678C009 Development of a Personal Cascade Impactor Sampler (PCIS)
R828678C010 Testing the Metals Hypothesis in Spokane
R828678C011 A Pilot Geospatial Analysis of Exposure to Air Pollutants (with Special Attention to Air Toxics) and Hospital Admissions in Harris County, Texas
R828678C012 Impact of Exposure to Urban Air Toxics on Asthma Utilization for the Pediatric Medicaid Population in Dearborn, Michigan
R828678C013 Field Validation of the Sioutas Sampler and Leland Legacy Pump – Joint Project with EPA’s Environmental Technology Validation Program (ETV)
R828678C014 Performance Evaluation of the 3M Charcoal Vapor Monitor for Monitor Low Ambient Concentrations of VOCs
R828678C015 RIOPA Database Development
R828678C016 Contributions of Outdoor PM Sources to Indoor and Personal Exposures: Analysis of PM Species Concentrations” Focused on the PM Speciation and Apportioning of Sources
R828678C017 The Short and Long-Term Respiratory Effects of Exposure to PAHs from Traffic in a Cohort of Asthmatic Children

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The perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.