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  • Breann Coffaro

Mohamed J Ruzmyn Vilcassim

Assessment of personal exposure levels and composition of particulate
matter pollution and their associated health impacts in individuals traveling
to selected global Megacities from New York City.

Abstract
Large cities are known to have high levels of ambient air pollution that have been shown to have health
impacts on individuals living in such cities. Each city’s particulate matter (PM) pollution profile and
concentrations vary depending on the main sources that contribute to air pollution in those cities. When
individuals travel from one city to another (in this project, from NYC to the selected cities abroad) they
are exposed to higher levels and a different profile of air pollution within a matter of hours. Therefore,
understanding the exposure levels, constituents, and toxicity of PM pollution in these cities and its
health impact on such travelers is important. This project aims to understand the composition and
exposure concentrations of PM in five selected global Megacities and study it’s impact on the
respiratory and cardiopulmonary system of individuals who are exposed to this change in inhaled PM
within a matter of hours, i.e. Travelers.
The study will use the travel of subjects traveling from NYC to five selected cities; London, Prague,
Shanghai, Beijing, and New Delhi. The cities were selected to represent developed, as well as
developing urban centers and the frequency of travel from NY to these cities. Study subjects will
measure their exposure to PM pollution by carrying a low cost PM measuring device (an Airbeam)
with them and conduct non-invasive health measurements in the morning and evening. Health end
points measured include lung function (PEF and FEV1), blood pressure (BP), heart rate and heart rate
variability (HRV). Pollution measurements and health endpoint measurements will be taken for 1
week before, during, and after travel to the city abroad. All Airbeams were pre-calibrated in NYC using
concentrated ambient PM2.5 (CAPs) in chambers. Selected study subjects will also collect gravimetric
samples of PM2.5 using size selective impactors (PEMs) and Teflon filters, simultaneously with the
Airbeam. Collected particles will be analyzed for trace elements using X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) and
also used to expose airway epithelial cells to study its toxicity. PM2.5 data from central monitors will
also be collected and used for the analyses. Central monitor data for each of the travel abroad cities will
be obtained (primarily from United States embassies whenever available) and the data will be used for
analysis of associations with health effects.
The exposure data, central monitor ambient concentrations and respiratory health effects will be
statistically analyzed using a mixed-effects regression model and other applicable statistical tests to
determine associations between PM2.5 exposure concentrations and health effects. The findings of the
study will be useful to understand how a change in air pollution levels due to a change in environment
within a short time period can impact respiratory and cardiovascular health in travelers and which
components are most responsible.

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