Chemical and Cellular Formation of Reactive Oxygen Species from Secondary Organic Aerosols in Epithelial Lining Fluid

This report, available for downloading below, presents the findings of a study led by Manabu Shiraiwa of the University of California, Irvine, a recipient of HEI’s Walter A. Rosenblith New Investigator Award. Shiraiwa and colleagues evaluated the mechanisms of aerosol-induced reactive oxygen species formation by two pathways in the respiratory tract: by chemical reactions and by immune cells called macrophages. The investigators quantified aqueous reactive oxygen species formation under various experimental conditions and developed kinetic models of the respiratory tract. They also evaluated ambient air samples in contrast to the laboratory-generated pollutants.