Effect-based strategy for identification and assessment of potential health effects of hazardous organic chemicals in indoor environments

This project aims to develop applicable analytical methodologies for improved risk assessment of indoor air chemicals.

Today there is a considerable lack of knowledge concerning which hazardous chemicals can be found in indoor environments and their potential health effects, and there is even less knowledge about the combination effects, so-called cocktail effects, of all chemicals.

A main focus of the project is to explore the car cabin environment, identify and increase the knowledge of hazardous airborne chemicals inside the car cabin and their sources. The project will use a battery of in-vitro bioreporter assays for a broad range of toxicity mechanisms to perform an effect-based assessment of the air quality within the car carbine and other indoor environments including offices and houses, and outdoor environments. This will gain understanding of the total toxic effects of all airborne chemicals present inside car cabins compared to other environments. Applying the strategy of effect-directed analysis, the bioreporter assays will be combined with chemical characterization and high-resolution fractionation aiming to identify the key toxicants that are causing the bioreporter effects.