Air toxics exposure from vehicle emissions at a U.S. border crossing: Buffalo Peace Bridge Study.

The Peace Bridge in Buffalo, New York, which spans the Niagara River at the east end of Lake Erie, is one of the busiest U.S. border crossings.

Local ecological factors, ultrafine particulate concentrations, and asthma prevalence rates in Buffalo, New York, neighborhoods.

Previous to this study various healthcare utilization studies and house-to-house surveys had shown that Buffalo's west side had a high utilization rate for asthma and high asthma prevalence in comparison with neighboring communities. The relative contributions of traffic-related pollution and personal and local ecological factors to the high asthma rates were still unknown. To investigate the potential roles of personal home environmental factors and local ecological factors in variations of asthma prevalence in Buffalo neighborhoods, we conducted a cross-sectional survey of a systematic random sample of 2000 households in the city of Buffalo, New York, with a response rate of 80.

Risk factors for asthma prevalence and chronic respiratory illnesses among residents of different neighbourhoods in Buffalo, New York.

Study Objective: The aim of this study is to identify risk factors for asthma prevalence and chronic respiratory illnesses in Buffalo's neighbourhoods after previous studies reported increased levels of asthma among residents on Buffalo's west side.

Design: Cross sectional surveys.

Setting: Buffalo neighbourhoods along a US-Canada border crossing point.

Association between traffic volume and health care use for asthma among residents at a U.S.-Canadian border crossing point.

Little information is available about health impacts of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) traffic-related pollution on residents near the major traffic corridors along the U.S.-Canadian border.

Geographic clustering of adult asthma hospitalization and residential exposure to pollution at a United States-Canada border crossing.

Objectives: We conducted a case-control study of adulthood asthma and point-source respirable particulate air pollution with asthma-diagnosed case patients (n = 3717) and gastroenteritis-diagnosed control patients (n = 4129) to determine effects of particulate air pollution on public health.

Methods: We used hospitalization data from Buffalo, NY, neighborhoods for a 5-year period (1996 through 2000), geographic information systems techniques, the Diggle method, and statistical analysis to compare the locations of case patients and control patients in terms of proximity to different known pollution sources in the study area.

Results: We found a clustering of asthma cases in close proximity to the Peace Bridge Complex and the freeways and a dose-response relationship indicating a decreased risk of asthma prevalence the farther an individual resides from the source of exposure.

Spatial relationships among asthma prevalence, health care utilization, and pollution sources in neighborhoods of Buffalo, New York.

In this retrospective study, the authors investigate the spatial distributions of asthma cases in relation to major traffic corridors and the Peace Bridge Complex in Buffalo, New York, and assess possible contributions of other U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.

Keratinocyte growth factor and autocrine repair in airway epithelium.

Background: Delayed or nonreepithelialization of the large conducting airway (ie, trachea and bronchus) is a clinically recognized but poorly understood result of airway trauma. This delay results in granulation tissue formation and scarring, which impairs mucocilliary transport and can critically compromise gas exchange. Keratinocyte growth factor (KGF) is a known epithelial cell mitogen that is derived from mesenchymal cells.

Traffic volumes and respiratory health care utilization among residents in close proximity to the Peace Bridge before and after September 11, 2001.

A recent study based on data over a 10-year period (1991-2000) showed a positive association between health care utilization and prevalence of asthma, and commercial traffic at a U.S.-Canada border crossing.

Home environmental factors associated with asthma prevalence in two Buffalo inner-city neighborhoods.

To identify factors that may contribute to asthma morbidity, 214 households were surveyed in two Buffalo inner-city neighborhoods. Asthma was reported by 41 percent of households. Race, gender, and age of head of household were significantly associated with prevalence of asthma in a house.

A school-based asthma intervention program in the Buffalo, New York, schools.

This project investigated the feasibility and effectiveness of a school asthma program in reducing asthma exacerbations among school children. In 1997-1998, two schools were selected for a case control pilot study. The intervention required that students with asthma, who needed medication daily at school, must present a written plan from the health care provider.

Patterns of inpatient and outpatient care for asthma in Erie and Niagara Counties, western New York State.

The prevalence of asthma, as well as the morbidity and mortality due to asthma, has increased in the United States, especially among poor minority subpopulations. The causes of these increases are complex and not well understood. Our findings from an analysis of emergency room (ER) visits and hospitalizations for Erie and Niagara Counties in western New York State for the period 1984-1991 provides important background to this problem.

The prevalence of asthma in children of elementary school age in western New York.

To determine the prevalence of caregiver-reported asthma in children 4 to 13 years old in metropolitan western New York State, surveys were conducted during 1997-1999 in the Buffalo, Niagara Falls, Iroquois, and Gowanda school systems. Questionnaires (3,889) were sent to the homes of elementary school children in nine schools in western New York. The caregivers were asked to complete a 13-item questionnaire for the child.

Does cartilage down-regulate growth factor expression in tracheal epithelium?

Background: Maintaining tracheal integrity and restoring normal physiologic function after injury is complex. Some of the critical events in this process are deposition of a provisional extracellular matrix, tissue remodeling, and angiogenesis. These events are coordinated with epithelial migration and proliferation to restore the mucosal barrier.

Modulation of laminin integrin receptors in the postnatal and adult rat lung.

Recent studies have shown that type II pneumocytes, at birth and day 3 postnatally, have a diffuse distribution and localize at alveolar 'corners' between 3 and 7 days. Since alpha 3 beta 1 and alpha 6 beta 1 are laminin-binding receptors that are well expressed by rat type II alveolar epithelial cells, we postulated that they may play a role in the localization of the cells in the alveolus. To begin the evaluation of this hypothesis, we studied the temporal and spatial expression of the alpha 3, alpha 6, and beta 1 integrin subunit protein and mRNA in whole rat lungs during postnatal development by immunofluorescence, confocal microscopy, and Northern blot analysis.

Adhesive characteristics of type II pneumocyte subpopulations from saline- and silica-treated rats.

Alveolar epithelial cells isolated from silica-treated rat lungs provide a system for the in vitro study of repair mechanisms. In studies of type II cell interactions with the extracellular matrix, we observed that type IIB pneumocytes from silica-treated rats adhered to tissue culture plastic more readily than do normal type II cells. This paper examines the adhesion characteristics of IIA and IIB cells and their modulation by divalent cations.

Isolation and characterization of basal cells from human upper respiratory epithelium.

Cellular pathways of normal and reparative differentiation of upper airway epithelium are not well understood. Of the three main cell types, basal and secretory cells are known to divide, while ciliated cells are considered terminally differentiated. Several investigations support the role of the basal cell as a progenitor cell type, but others suggest that the secretory cell can regenerate a complete mucocilliary epithelium.

An RGD containing peptide from HIV-1 Tat-(65-80) modulates protooncogene expression in human bronchoalveolar carcinoma cell line, A549.

Tat (transactivator of transcription) is essential for HIV-1 replication in vivo and in vitro. Tat-(65-80), an RGD containing domain, has been shown to regulate proliferative function of a variety of cell lines, including a human adenocarcinoma cell line, A549. The exact cellular and molecular mechanisms by which these effects are mediated, remain unknown.

Induction of interleukin-1 and interleukin-8 mRNAs and proteins by TGF beta 1 in rat lung alveolar epithelial cells.

The transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) has been shown to increase in lung injury and in fibrotic states of the lung. In the current study, we sought to investigate whether TGF beta 1 induced the expression of IL-1 alpha and IL-8 in rat alveolar epithelial cells. We evaluated TGF beta 1, IL-1 alpha, and IL-8 expression by immunofluorescence in silica-injured and saline-treated control rat lungs.

Monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 in chronic proliferative immune complex nephritis.

In rats with chronic serum sickness, proliferative immune complex glomerulonephritis progresses in three discrete stages, designated mild, moderate, and severe. One distinguishing immunopathologic feature, the progressive increase in the number of glomerular macrophages, is closely correlated with decreasing kidney function. We hypothesized that monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, a beta-subfamily chemokine with potent monocyte-specific chemotactic activity, might contribute to this macrophage accumulation.

Alcohol inhibits lipopolysaccharide-induced tumor necrosis factor alpha gene expression by peripheral blood mononuclear cells as measured by reverse transcriptase PCR in situ hybridization.

We recently showed that alcohol significantly suppressed lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) production by whole blood and total mononuclear cells from healthy subjects as measured by bioassay. In the current study, we further examined the effect of alcohol on LPS-induced TNF-alpha gene expression by semiquantitative solution PCR and in situ reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) hybridization methods. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells were cultured with LPS (10 micrograms/ml) for 4 to 8 h with or without different concentrations of ethanol (0.

Distribution of alveolar type II cells in neonatal and adult rat lung revealed by RT-PCR in situ.

Type II pneumocytes in newborn lungs are more uniformly distributed, whereas in adult lungs they are located at alveolar corners. We used morphometry and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction in situ hybridization of surfactant protein C mRNA to determine the patterns of type II cell distribution in random lung sections from Sprague-Dawley rats at various neonatal stages and adults. There was a progressive increase in the percentage of type II cells at alveolar corners from 30% at 1 day to 51, 62, 78, and 81% at 3, 5, and 7 days old and adult rats, respectively.

Differential modulation of integrin receptors and extracellular matrix laminin by transforming growth factor-beta 1 in rat alveolar epithelial cells.

The transforming growth factors-beta (TGFs-beta) family of genes plays important roles in cell growth and differentiation in many cell types. TGF beta modulates the synthesis and accumulation of extracellular matrix (ECM) components and the expression of cell surface receptors for ECM components. TGF beta is increased in alveolar lining fluid during inflammatory reactions of the lung and has been identified in alveolar epithelial cells of developing lungs and hyperplastic type II cells during repair.

Divalent cation-dependent regulation of rat alveolar epithelial cell adhesion and spreading.

Interactions between cells and extracellular matrix are in large part mediated by integrins in divalent cation-dependent processes. Integrins are important for cell differentiation, proliferation, and migration during development and repair of diverse tissue types. The roles played by integrin adhesion receptors in the lung are just beginning to be investigated.

A Mn(2+)-enhanced, RGD-dependent adhesion technique for isolation of adult rat type II alveolar epithelial cells for immediate functional studies.

This report describes a Mn(2+)-enhanced, RGD-dependent adhesion technique for isolation of adult rat type II cells for immediate functional studies. Lung cells were dissociated by 30 U/ml porcine pancreatic elastase and 50 micrograms/ml trypsin instilled in the airways. Macrophages were selectively removed by adhesion on purified normal goat IgG-coated petri dishes.