Columbia University Health Sciences

Center for Environmental Health in Northern Manhattan

Regina M Santella, Ph.D.
rps1@columbia.edu
http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/niehs/

Project Description

The NIEHS Center for Environmental Health in Northern Manhattan brings together basic scientists, physicians, epidemiologists, biostatisticians and citizens in a partnership focusing on a central theme that stresses understanding and preventing environmental components of disease. Much of the work of the 28 Center investigators is focused in three main areas: air pollution, oxidative stress and gene environment interactions. While much of the research is focused on a disadvantaged community that receives a disproportionately high exposure to hazardous substances in the New York City environment, other projects study health effects of environmental exposures around the world, including Taiwan, Bangladesh, China and Poland. Research is facilitated by five service cores including: (1) Exposure Assessment, (2) Biomarkers, (3) Trace Metals, (4) Biostatistics/ Epidemiology/Data Management and (5) Administrative. Activities are focused around three Research Cores including: (1) Cancer, (2) Neurotoxicology/Neurodegenerative Diseases, and (3) Respiratory Disorders. A successful pilot project program is used to bring in new investigators and ideas. The Center recently established an Associate Membership category to also help in this process. The Community Outreach and Education Core is an active collaboration between Center investigators and WE ACT. Their activities include community forums, national conferences, mentoring of high school students and various educational activities. An Executive Committee, comprised of Research Core leaders, helps the Director administer the program. An External Advisory Committee consisting of outside experts in the research areas covered and an Internal Advisory Committee consisting of eminent scientists with administrative skills provide additional guidance.

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Project Highlights

Manganese  Impacts Intellectual Function in Children

Exposure to manganese via inhalation is associated with neurotoxicity in adults (Parkinsonism), but little is known about possible consequences of exposure via drinking water. In this study, Center investigators reported results of a cross-sectional investigation of intellectual function in 142 ten-year-old children in Araihazar, Bangladesh, who had been consuming tube-well water with an average concentration of 793 µg Mn/L and 3 µg arsenic/L. After adjustment for sociodemographic covariates, water Mn was associated with reduced Full-Scale, Performance, and Verbal raw scores, in a dose-response fashion; the low level of As in water had no effect. In the United States, roughly 6% of domestic household wells have Mn concentrations that exceed 300 µg Mn/L, the current U.S. EPA lifetime health advisory level. In both Bangladesh and the U.S., some children are at risk for Mn-induced neurotoxicity.

Wasserman, G.A,, Liu, X., Parvez, F., Ahsan, H., Levy, D., Factor-Litvak, P., Kline, J., van Geen, A., Slavkovich, V., LoIacono, N.J., Cheng, Z., Zheng, Y., Graziano, J.H.   Water manganese exposure and children’s intellectual function in Araihazar, Bangladesh.  Environ Health Perspect 114:124-129, 2006.

Endotoxin in Inner-city Homes 

An inverse association between domestic exposure to endotoxin and atopy in childhood has been observed. The relevance of this aspect of the hygiene hypothesis to U.S. inner-city communities that have disproportionately high asthma prevalence has not been determined.  Among the samples collected from 301 participants' homes, the geometric mean endotoxin concentration (95% CI) was 75.9 EU/mg (66-87), and load was 3892 EU/m2 (3351-4522).  Lower endotoxin concentrations were associated with wet mop cleaning and certain neighborhoods.  Endotoxin concentration correlated weakly with cockroach and mouse allergens in the dust.  Children in homes with higher endotoxin concentration were less likely to have eczema at age one year and more likely to wheeze at age two years.  These associations were stronger among children with a maternal history of asthma.  Endotoxin levels in this inner-city community are similar to those in nonfarm homes elsewhere.  In this community, domestic endotoxin exposure was inversely associated with eczema at age one year, but positively associated with wheeze at age two years.

Perzanowski, M.S., Miller, R.L., Thorne, P.S., Barr, R.G., Divjan, A., Sheares, B.J., Garfinkel, R.S., Perera, F.P., Goldstein, I.F., Chew, G.L.  Endotoxin in inner-city homes: associations with wheeze and eczema in early childhood.  J Allergy Clin Immunol.117:1082-9, 2006.

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