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Publications
This page is a list of peer-reviewed manuscripts published in journals and reports produced by researchers at EPA's Office of Research and Development and by EPA-funded researchers.
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Bibliography (1997-2008) (PDF) (247 pp, 1.45 MB, About PDF)
May 2008
EPA's National Exposure Research Laboratory (NERL) in the Office of Research and Development (ORD) has prepared a document on scientific and ethical approaches for observational exposure studies through recommendations from an expert panel, public comment, and external peer review. The document, Scientific and Ethical Approaches for Observational Exposure Studies (EPA Report No. EPA/600/R-08/062) (PDF) (132 pp, 1.8 MB, About PDF), identifies key scientific and ethical issues and provides information and resources to assist researchers as they plan and implement observational exposure studies. The document is not meant to represent an official Agency "guidance document." Moreover, it recognizes that researchers will work with others - EPA's Human Subjects Research Review Official, Institutional Review Board (IRB) members, the participants and their community, and other stakeholders - to identify and address all of the relevant issues for any specific study to ensure that all participants are respected and protected.
March 2008
Biomonitoring Workshop Report (35 pp, 640KB, About PDF)
January 2008
A report summarizing presentations at a workshop held January 2008 describes research directions to provide the tools to assess risk management decisions. The report is entitled U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Research and Development Research Approaches To Assessing Public Health Impacts of Risk Management Decisions. (18 pp, 90KB, About PDF)
December 2007
A Decade of Children's Environmental Health: Highlights from EPA's Science to Achieve Results Program (PDF) (40 pp, 1.4 MB, About PDF)
Research Progress to Benefit Public Health (PDF) (2 pp, 762 KB, About PDF)
October 2007
Community Based Risk Assessment Research Needs Workshop Report (115 pp, 2.95 MB, About PDF)
September 2007
Assessing Public Health
EPA´s Office of Research and Development (ORD) has developed a document entitled Framework for Assessing the Public Health Impacts of Risk Management (PDF) (44 pp, 1.24MB, About PDF).
The purpose of the document is to address the research needs to develop and validate indicators for use in evaluating risk management decisions to protect public health. Such indicators are essential for developing approaches to assess the public health impacts of risk management decisions.
The need for indicators that can be used to assess risk management decisions was identified in EPA´s Report on the Environment (ROE) in 2003 and 2007. Both reports provided a national assessment of the condition of the environmental.
The framework document is intended to provide the strategic direction for future human health research in ORD.
Human Health Research Contributions Report
The Human Health Research Contributions Report (PDF) (32 pp, 1.6MB, About PDF) summarizes the critical research conducted by scientists in EPA's Office of Research and Development over the past five years to protect public health. The report highlights the program's key accomplishments which have advanced our risk assessment capabilities.
May 2007
Important Exposure Factors for Children Report
EPA's Office of Research and Development announces the availability of the report, Important Exposure Factors for Children: An Analysis of Laboratory and Observational Field Data Characterizing Cumulative Exposure to Pesticides (EPA 600/R-07/013). The report integrates results from 13 different research studies that include pilot-scale and large observational exposure studies, as well as laboratory evaluations of sampling and analysis methods used in these studies. It includes real-world data which are critical for improving exposure assessments. The findings ensure that EPA exposure scientists, modelers and risk assessors have the most up-to-date scientific information available for use in developing more accurate risk assessments and risk reduction measures.
For a copy of the report, visit the National Exposure Research Laboratory Web site at: http://www.epa.gov/nerl/research/data/exposure-factors.pdf (231 pp, 9.39M, About PDF)
Also available at this Web site is the report, The U.S. EPA National Exposure Research Laboratory's (NERL's) Workshop on the Analysis of Children's Measurement Data: Workshop Summary Report (EPA 600/R-06/026). This workshop brought together a group of experts in September 2005 to discuss currently available data on children's exposures, the draft report, and additional analyses that could be performed with the data.
December 2006
STAR Biomarkers Summary Report
The Science to Achieve Results (STAR) grants program is pleased to announce the release of a new report entitled “Feasibility of Estimating Pesticide Exposure and Dose in Children Using Biological Measurements.“ This report provides an overview of 12 research grants funded through the STAR program aimed at advancing the state of knowledge concerning children's exposure to pesticides through the use of biological markers, or biomarkers.
Biomarkers are tools that can strengthen risk assessment by filling in important gaps along the exposure-to-disease continuum, refine estimates of exposure, dose and effect, and provide information about human susceptibility. The STAR program on biomarkers research has increased our understanding of human exposure and its relationship to dose at the target site through the use of biological measurements and the development of physiologically-based pharmacokinetic models. This research has added to the available data on children's pesticide exposure patterns and confirmed the usefulness of biomarkers for assessing exposure. Additionally, the research has been used by EPA to develop handbooks, guidance documents, and risk assessments.
For a copy of the report, please see the NCER Web site at: Synthesis Report of Research from EPA's Science to Achieve Results (STAR) Grant Program: Feasibility of Estimating Pesticide Exposure and Dose in Children Using Biological Measurements (PDF) (42 pp, 3.87 MB, About PDF)
September 2006
EPA Develops an Information Resource on the Application of Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic Models in Risk Assessment
EPA's research and development office, a leader in the area of human health risk assessment, has written a report on physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PBPK) modeling that should become a standard desk reference for risk assessors and risk managers who want to know more about using PBPK models in their work. This peer-reviewed report, “Approaches for the Application of Physiologically Based Pharmacokinetic (PBPK) Models and Supporting Data in Risk Assessment”, is both an important learning tool for novices in risk assessment, as well as an information resource for experienced risk assessors and risk managers.
Pharmacokinetics is the study of the biological processes that affect the absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion of a substance, such as a drug or a toxicant. Pharmacokinetic data and models have important applications in risk assessment. Given sufficient physiological and pharmacokinetic data, PBPK models, which mathematically represent pharmacokinetic processes based on known biological properties, can be developed. Such models then can predict an internal dose (generally, blood or target tissue level) that would result from different exposure regimens or in different species. In risk assessment, PBPK models allow for the extrapolation of data for species and exposure scenarios where there is not enough data from existing studies. Also, they allow the risk assessor to incorporate variability into a model.
Publication: Aging and Toxic Response: Issues Relevant to Risk Assessment
EPA has released a final report entitled “Aging and Toxic Response: Issues Relevant to Risk Assessment”. This document contributes to the Agency's efforts to better understand the physiology of aging to protect the health of older persons and identifies several data gaps and research needs that may inform the Office of Research and Development's Research Initiative on Aging in conducting research for better characterization of risk to the elderly population from exposure to environmental agents.