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Environmental exposure and toxicology

Support innovative and high impact research that advances policies to reduce environmental exposure to the toxic effects of tobacco smoke and its residue; assess and eliminate the environmental impact of cigarette waste; examine toxicology and exposure science of new and emerging tobacco products.

TRDRP will support innovative and high impact projects that use environmental research and health communication strategies to prevent exposure to all tobacco products, secondhand (SHS) and thirdhand (THS) smoke, chemical residue interactions, and tobacco waste product bioaccumulation in vulnerable communities. TRDRP will continue to support toxicology studies of new and emerging tobacco products alone or in combination with cannabis.

Examples of relevant research topics: 

  • Integrate approaches to prevent environmental exposure to all tobacco products, SHS and THS with implementation of tobacco cessation in multi-unit housing, all indoor public spaces or other settings.
  • Devise strategies to mitigate exposure to tobacco product(s) and Tobacco Product Waste (TPW).
  • Identify tobacco products, SHS, THS and TPW chemical exposure levels, chemical composition of dust and aerosol particle composition and chemical interactions using technologies and model systems, and identify biomarkers to distinguish tobacco product use, and cannabis product co-use.
  • Enable prediction of human health effects of tobacco products by identifying causal links of dose-response toxicity assessments on human biological pathways and conduct validation studies using primary human cell models.
  • Devise strategies to mitigate exposure to tobacco toxicants.
  • Conduct epidemiologically based exposure research to identify and characterize the tobacco control needs of vulnerable populations and communities.
  • Identify innovative methodologies to assess and reduce the environmental and economic impact of the production, sale and use of tobacco products and new product waste and bioaccumulation.
  • Evaluate the impact of environmental endpoints of TPW including metabolites and microplastics on the environment and ecosystems such as soil, aquatic systems, waste management systems and storm drains.
  • Determine the environmental burden of E-cigarettes product waste components such as batteries, and metallic components.

NOTE: TRDRP currently funds a statewide consortium on thirdhand smoke (THS) research which includes the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) Tobacco Biomarkers Laboratory. (trdrp.org/highlights-news-events/thirdhand-smoke-consortium.html). This laboratory is directed by Peyton Jacob, PhD and Neal Benowitz, MD in the Clinical Pharmacology Program, Department of Medicine at UCSF. Investigators in the Clinical Pharmacology Program conduct studies on the pharmacology and toxicology of tobacco use including development of new biomarkers and analytical methods. The UCSF Tobacco Biomarkers Laboratory collaborates with other investigators to analyze samples on a recharge basis and they welcome collaborations with TRDRP applicants. Tobacco product toxicants that can be detected and quantified include nicotine and metabolites, carcinogen biomarkers, thirdhand smoke components, tobacco specific nitrosamines, and various smoke toxicants. The following link describes the various assays and costs: https://cancer.ucsf.edu/research/cores/tobacco-biomarkers


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