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Current Areas of Research
Current Areas of Research
Home » Study Results & Research Projects » Current Areas of Research » Occupational Mixtures and Exposures
The NTP is coordinating an effort between NIEHS/NIH and NIOSH/CDC to better characterize worker exposures, educate workers, and identify occupational health research gaps. Current efforts are addressing worker exposure to asphalt fumes and 1-bromopropane and future initiatives are proposed for occupational mixtures such as welding fumes, abrasive blasting compounds, and metal working fluids. An industry consortium has petitioned the EPA to list 1-bromopropane as an alternative for ozone-depleting solvents for general metals, precision, and electronics cleaning, aerosols, and adhesives. If this occurs, there is the potential for a vast increase in the exposure of workers and the public to this compound. Currently an appropriate occupational exposure limit for 1-bromopropane is not available. Asphalt fumes generated during road paving have been linked to acute irritation of mucous membranes and skin, but to date no cancer risk has been established. A study is underway to characterize asphalt fume composition including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, develop a bioanalytical method that can be used to characterize exposure in laboratory inhalation studies, and assay gene expression response to asphalt fume exposure.
Web page last updated on January 19, 2006
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences is one of the National Institutes of Health within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The National Toxicology Program is headquartered on the NIEHS campus in Research Triangle Park, NC.