Publications by authors named "Jennifer Keir"

Article Synopsis
  • Firefighters are exposed to harmful substances like polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and flame retardants (FRs) during fires, and this study used silicone wristbands (SWBs) to measure these exposures in various settings related to fire stations and firefighters.
  • The findings revealed that fire station areas generally had higher concentrations of low molecular weight PAHs and specific organophosphate flame retardants compared to office areas, with truck interiors showing particularly high levels.
  • Exposure to these harmful substances was lower when firefighters did not respond to fires, but significantly increased in conditions involving heavy smoke, indicating the influence of both work environments and fire conditions on exposure levels.
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Firefighters experience exposures to carcinogenic and mutagenic substances, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Silicone wristbands (SWBs) have been used as passive samplers to assess firefighters' exposures over the course of a shift but their utility in measuring short term exposures, source of exposure, and correlations with other measurements of exposure have not yet been investigated. In this study, SWBs were used to measure the concentrations of 16 priority PAHs inside and outside of firefighters' personal protective equipment (PPE) while firefighting.

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Firefighters are exposed to carcinogenic and mutagenic combustion emissions, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Fire service and firefighter cancer advocacy groups recommend skin cleaning using wipes or washing with detergent and water after exposure to smoke, although these strategies have not been proven to reduce exposures to harmful combustion products such as PAHs. This study assessed dermal decontamination methods to reduce PAH exposures by firefighters participating in live fire training scenarios.

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Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a group of compounds formed during the incomplete combustion of organic matter. Several are mutagenic carcinogens; the magnitude of exposure can be assessed by examining urinary levels of PAH metabolites. Data from biomonitoring studies that record urinary PAH metabolite levels, as well as demographic and lifestyle information, can be used to investigate relationships between PAH exposure and variables, such as smoking status, workplace smoking restrictions, age, sex, household income, home age, and occupation.

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This study examined occupational exposures of Ottawa firefighters to combustion by-products and selected metals. We measured exposures to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), antimony, cadmium, and lead using (1) personal air samplers worn by firefighters during emergency fire suppression; (2) wipe samples from skin, personal clothing, and personal protective equipment (PPE) collected before and after emergency firefighting (n = 29); and (3) air samples collected in three fire stations vehicle bays, truck cabs, and one administration office. We assessed OFS PPE decontamination procedures using wipe samples collected before and after laundering (n = 12).

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The Canadian Domestic Substances List (DSL) contains chemicals that have not been tested for genotoxicity as their use pre-dates regulatory requirements. In the present study, (quantitative) structure-activity relationships ((Q)SAR) model predictions and in vitro tests were conducted for genotoxicity assessment of 13 data-poor chemicals from the DSL (i.e.

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Occupational exposures to combustion emissions were examined in Ottawa Fire Service (OFS) firefighters. Paired urine and dermal wipe samples (i.e.

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A protection-deprotection strategy for strained alkynes used for bioorthogonal chemistry is reported. A strained alkyne can be protected with dicobalt-octacarbonyl and we demonstrate for the first time that a strained alkyne can be re-formed and isolated under mild reaction conditions for further bioorthogonal reactivity. The protection-deprotection strategy herein reported will expand the versatility of strained alkynes for the preparation of substrates in chemical biology and materials applications.

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Although the toxic metal Cd is an established human nephrotoxin, little is known about the role that interactions with plasma constitutents play in determining its mammalian target organs. To gain insight, a Cd-human serum albumin (HSA) complex was analyzed on a system consisting of size exclusion chromatography (SEC) coupled on-line to a flame atomic absorption spectrometer (FAAS). Using phosphate buffered saline (pH 7.

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