Household air pollution (HAP) generated from the burning of solid fuels such as biomass or coal for cooking and heating is a leading environmental cause of death in the world and contributes greatly to the global burden of pulmonary disease. Research and policy are hampered by a lack of mechanistic understanding and of useful biomarkers (see Rylance et al.). The American Journal of Physiology - Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology is thus issuing a call for papers to increase our understanding of how HAP causes or contributes to lung and systemic injury, including risks associated with HAP exposure during pregnancy.
Responsive papers that address HAP or solid fuel smoke exposure could investigate:
- Biomarkers that reflect the biological response to HAP exposure providing surrogate markers in lieu of direct exposure monitoring
- Biomarkers of biological sequelae of both short- or long-term exposure to HAP. These might illuminate underlying mechanisms or dose-response effects from acute vs. chronic exposures.
- Biomarkers that inform risk of respiratory and other related health outcomes associated with HAP.
This is an exciting opportunity for translation of cell and molecular physiology into solutions for a global problem. We welcome papers across the spectrum of research in this area: biomarker concepts in development, biomarkers using animal models, or biomarkers in human subjects that might be used in field studies in low resource settings. Please submit papers to Dr. Sadis Matalon, Editor-in-Chief, American Journal of Physiology - Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology (http://ajplung.msubmit.net/). Deadline April 1st, 2014.