ARB Research Seminar
This page updated June 19, 2013
Effects on the Respiratory System of Sensitive Animals and Asthmatic Humans
Dr. Kent Pinkerton, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California, Davis
June 17, 2004
Cal EPA Headquarters, 1001 "I" Street, Sacramento, CA
- John Balmes, M.D., Mechanisms of Particulate Toxicity: An Overview
- Colin Solomon, Ph.D., Health Effects in Susceptible Humans
- Karron Power, M.D., Heart Rate Variability Following Controlled Exposure to Particles and Ozone in Asthmatic Individuals
- Michael T. Kleinman, Ph.D., Inflammatory and Cardiovascular Responses to Inhaled Fine Particles
Overview
This project examined rats that were sensitized to ovalbumin (egg whites) prior to PM exposure, in order to develop an animal model that physiologically mimics asthmatic conditions found in humans. The PM exposures in these rats led to effects such as altered airway epithelial cells and increased airway inflammation. This project also involved the assay of cellular endpoints in human lung tissue samples obtained from asthmatics exposed to PM at UCSF. Based on these assays, PM exposure led to detectable changes in levels of cytokine expression, which help generate immune responses.
Speaker Biography
Kent Pinkerton received his Ph.D. in pathology from Duke University Medical Center. He is a professor in the Department of Anatomy, Physiology, and Cell Biology in the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of California at Davis, where he serves as director of the Center for Health and the Environment. He has been studying the effects of air pollutants on lung structure and function, the interaction of gases and airborne particles within specific sites and cell populations of the lungs, and the effects of environmental tobacco smoke and combustion emissions on lung growth and development.
