The Effect of Low Level Ozone Exposure on Healthy Volunteers
Status:
Withdrawn
Trial end date:
2009-11-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
The purpose of this research study is to learn more about the effects of 0.12 ppm ozone
exposure on humans. We know from other studies that exposure to levels of ozone that are seen
on bad air pollution days, can cause an increased risk of illness and even death in some
people with certain health problems like asthma and heart disease. We also know from studies
we have done in our lab that even healthy people can have an inflammatory (an increase in the
amount of bacteria fighting cells) response to high levels of ozone. We suspect that exposure
to low levels of ozone makes the body more susceptible to things like allergens. For
instance, in persons allergic to pollen, exposure to ozone in the environment may cause them
to have more allergy symptoms when they are around pollen than they would have if they were
not exposed to ozone first. In this study we are looking to find the lowest level of ozone to
which healthy people can be exposed without seeing that increased immune response. We will
use 0.12 ppm ozone; this is roughly the amount of ozone you would be exposed to on a "yellow"
ozone day in the triangle area in the summer if you spent the entire day out of doors and
exercising moderately.
Phase:
Phase 1
Details
Lead Sponsor:
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Collaborators:
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)