AzTrials
AzTrials

Exposure to Environmental Pollution, Non-occupationalSOZIALNCT02206750

The Interaction of Social Factors With Air Pollution

A study testing Clean Air and Ozone in people with Exposure to Environmental Pollution, Non-occupational, run by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at 1 site in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
Search all trials

Trial summary

Purpose: The purpose of this protocol is to understand how social factors such as psychosocial stress may modify how people respond to air pollution. Ultimately this will help us understand health disparities from poor air quality. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 to 33 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
What is being tested?
Clean Air and Ozone
Could I receive a placebo?
Yes, some participants may receive a placebo
How many people
40 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
Jul 2014to Jan 2017
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 to 33 years
  • All sexes
  • Healthy volunteers accepted
  • Adult

Who may be able to join

  • Healthy men and women between 18 and 33 years of age.
  • 4-point Perceived Stress Symptom score <2 or >6
  • Physical conditioning allowing intermittent, moderate exercise for two hours.
  • Ability to complete the exposure exercise regimen without reaching 80% of predicted maximal heart rate.
  • Predicted maximal heart rate will be calculated using the equation (described by Tanaka et al. [2001] J. Am. Coll. Cardiol.): [208bpm-((0.7) x (age in years))]
  • Normal baseline 12-lead resting EKG, or if the automated reading is not normal the EKG must be approved by a study cardiologist.
Show all 10Show fewer
  • Normal lung function Forced vital capacity (FVC) ≥ 80% of that predicted for gender, ethnicity, age and height (according to NHANESIII guidelines).
  • Forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) ≥ 80%of that predicted for gender, ethnicity, age and height.
  • FEV1/FVC ratio ≥ 80% of predicted values.
  • Oxygen saturation ≥ 96% on room air.

Who cannot join

  • . Individuals with a history of acute or chronic cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, diabetes, rheumatologic diseases, or immunodeficiency state.
  • 2. Individuals with a Framingham risk score (Hard Coronary Heart Disease; HCHD; 10-year risk) ≥10.
  • 3. Individuals with asthma or a history of asthma. 4. Individuals who are allergic to chemical vapors or gases. 5. Females who are pregnant, attempting to become pregnant, or breastfeeding. 6. Individuals that are unwilling or unable to stop taking vitamin C or E, or medications that may impact the results of ozone challenge such at least two weeks prior to the study and for the duration of the study. Medications not specifically mentioned here may be reviewed by the investigators prior to an individual's inclusion in the study.
  • 7. Individuals who have smoked tobacco during the last five years or those with a history of >5 pack years.
  • 8. Individuals living with a smoker who smokes inside the house. 9. Individuals with a body mass index (BMI) >35 or <18. Body mass index is calculated by dividing the weight in kilograms by the square of the height in meters.
  • 10. Individuals with occupational exposures to high levels of vapors, dust, gases, or fumes on an on-going basis.
Show all 19Show fewer
  • 11. Individuals with uncontrolled hypertension (≥150 systolic or ≥90 diastolic).
  • 12. Individuals that do not understand or speak English. 13. Individuals that are unable to perform the exercise required for the study. 14. Individuals that are taking beta blocker medications. 15. Individuals with a history of skin allergies to adhesives used in securing EKG electrodes.
  • 16. Individuals with unspecified diseases, conditions, or medications that might influence the responses to the exposures, as judged by the medical staff.
  • 17. Individuals that are unwilling or unable to stop taking over-the-counter pain medications such as aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin), naproxen (Aleve), or other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory ("NSAID") medications for 48 hours prior to the exposures and post-exposure visits.
  • 18. Individuals that are taking systemic steroids or beta-blocker medications. 19. Individuals with a hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) level > 6.4%.
  • Temporary Exclusion Criteria
  • Individuals with active seasonal allergies during the time of participation in the study.
  • Individuals suffering from acute respiratory illness within four weeks prior to any of the study exposure series.
  • Individuals that have been exposed to smoke and fumes within 24 hours of any study visit.
  • Individuals that have consumed alcohol within 24 hours of any study visit.
  • Individuals that have engaged in strenuous exercise within 24 hours of any study visit.
  • Individuals that have been exposed to ozone-based home air purifiers within 24 hours of any study visit.
  • Individuals that have been exposed to unvented household combustion sources (gas stoves, lit fireplaces, oil/kerosene heaters) within 48 hours of any study visit.

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • U.S. EPA Human Studies Facility

    Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 27514

Other trials in United States

About this study

Purpose:

The purpose of this protocol is to understand how social factors such as psychosocial stress may modify how people respond to air pollution. Ultimately this will help us understand health disparities from poor air quality.

Read more

Participants:

Up to 40 healthy adults,18-33 years old with different perception of stress will participate and complete this study.

Procedures (methods):

Subjects will be exposed to clean air and to ozone ( 300ppb) for 2 hours in a controlled environment chamber. Cardiac, vascular, pulmonary and cognitive function will be evaluated pre, immediately post and 18 hr post exposure.

The primary endpoint will be Heart Rate Variability . Secondary endpoints will include pulmonary function, analysis of blood clotting/coagulation factors, biomarkers of stress, cognitive function, radial artery pulse wave measurements and analysis of soluble factors present in plasma.

Read the detailed description

Over the past decades, air quality in the U.S. has improved significantly. Even so, millions of people in the U.S. still live in counties that do not meet air quality standards for one or more pollutants. Ozone is a major component of photochemical smog and is one of the most thoroughly studied gaseous pollutants. Controlled human exposure studies have been critical in demonstrating that it can cause airway inflammation 1-3, including increases in neutrophil infiltration into the lung and the production of pro-inflammatory mediators 4,5[, and ultimately decrements in lung function [reviewed in 6]. More recent studies have shown that ozone can also increase vascular inflammation, as well as alter autonomic nervous system control of heart rate and cardiac repolarization 7. Numerous epidemiological studies have also demonstrated an association between acute and chronic exposure to ambient levels of ozone and various health effects most notably asthma 6. These studies have also highlighted a need to incorporate social and nonchemical factors into risk assessments 8. Similarly, social factors such as psychological stress are now regarded as important contributors to asthma outcomes 9,10. This protocol is aimed at investigating how stress impacts health responses to air pollutants. Since psychosocial stress-related susceptibility has been proposed to explain social disparities, this will help us understand which populations and individuals are at increased risk from air pollution.

This protocol is designed to determine whether nonchemical stressors exacerbate ozone effects. In particular we will focus on elevated psychosocial stress as it has been shown to contribute to several adverse health outcomes, most notably, to cardiovascular disease. The physiological mechanism by which psychosocial stress leads to health effects is due, at least in part, to elevated circulating glucocorticoids, or stress hormones, which are regulated by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA). In the last 30 years the concept of allostasis has evolved. Allostasis is the process whereby an organism adapts to the demands of the environment. An allostatic load model applies this concept to chronic stress11. In this model the perception of threat over long time intervals (perceived stress) can cause over-activation of the HPA-axis resulting in changes in physiological systems as chemical imbalances in autonomic nervous system, central nervous system, neuroendocrine, and immune system activity. Factors such as genetics, behavior, life events and diet can impact this model. To our knowledge no clinical study has investigated the link between air pollution effects on cardiovascular disease and psychosocial stress. However, several studies have now shown an association between stress and respiratory outcomes to air pollution. Claugherty and colleagues (2007) found an association between traffic-related air pollution and asthma solely among children exposed to violence 12. Shankardass and colleagues demonstrated that children from stressful households are more susceptible to the effects of traffic-related pollution on the development of asthma 13. In that study, stress was evaluated using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) developed by Dr. Sheldon Cohen of Carnegie Mellon University. This is the most widely used psychological instrument for measuring the perception of stress and has been validated in multiple studies. We will use this scale to evaluate the degree to which subjects appraise situations in their life as stressful. Heart rate variability (HRV) is considered to be a reliable biomarker of stress. Chronic stress has been shown to be associated with decreases in HRV 14. Since acute ozone exposure can also cause changes in HRV, we have chosen HRV as our primary endpoint. We hypothesize that the imbalance between the sympathetic and the parasympathetic nervous system caused by chronic stress will result in altered responses to ozone exposure that will be reflected by HRV.

Being tested
Clean Air, Ozone
Keywords
Controlled Human exposure study, Air Pollution, Cardiovascular, Social factors, Cognitive function

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Clean AirOther

    Each subject will be exposed to clean air for 2 hours. Subjects will exercise on a bike or treadmill. Each exercise session will consist of a 15 minute exercise interval at a level of up to 25 L/min/m2BSA followed by a 15 minute rest period.

  • OzoneOther

    Also called O3

    Each subject will be exposed up to 0.3ppm ozone for 2 hours. Subjects will exercise on a bike or treadmill. Each exercise session will consist of a 15 minute exercise interval at a level of up to 25 L/min/m2BSA followed by a 15 minute rest period.

Study groups in NCT02206750
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Clean AirSham comparatorExposure to clean air will be conducted in an exposure chamber at the EPA Human Studies Facility on the UNC campus.
Receives: Other: Clean Air
OzoneExperimentalExposure to ozone will be conducted in an exposure chamber at the EPA Human Studies Facility on the UNC campus.
Receives: Other: Ozone

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Changes in heart rate variability

    10 minute electrocardiogram recording (measured by Holter ECG) in which the subject has been resting for 20 minutes prior. Collected on a Mortara H12+ 12-Lead ECG Recorder (Mortara Instrument, Inc., Milwaukee, WI). The digitally recorded ECGs are sampled at 180 Hz.

    Measured: Pre exposure to 24hours post exposure

Secondary outcomes (6)
  1. Forced expired volume in the first second (FEV1)

    Forced expired volume in the first second (FEV1) is determined by spirometry performed on a dry seal spirometer interfaced to a computer.

    Measured: Pre exposure to 24hours post exposure

  2. Index of clotting/coagulation factor

    Index of clotting/coagulation factors are the mean % changes in a basket of clotting/coagulation factors (d-dimer, PA-1, tPA, vWillebrand factor and plasminogen) in the blood following exposure to ozone vs. clean air.

    Measured: Pre exposure to 24hours post exposure

  3. Forced Vital Capacity

    Forced Vital Capacity(FVC) is determined by spirometry performed on a dry seal spirometer interfaced to a computer.

    Measured: Pre exposure to 24hours post exposure

  4. Index of inflammatory markers

    Index of inflammatory markers is the mean % changes in a basket of factors related to systemic inflammation (IL-6, IL-8, TNF-a, IL-b, CRP) in the blood following exposure to ozone vs. clean air.

    Measured: Pre exposure to 24hours post exposure

  5. Cortisol

    The mean % change of cortisol levels in the blood following exposure to ozone vs. clean air.

    Measured: Pre exposure to 24hours post exposure

  6. Cognitive function performance

    Index of cognitive function tests measured using six tests of the Cantab Research Suite (Reaction Time Test (RTI), Attention Switching Task (AST), Spatial Working Memory (SWM), Paired Associate Learning (PAL), Rapid Visual Information Processing (RVP), and Stop Signal Task (SST)) following exposure to ozone vs. clean air.

    Measured: Pre exposure to 24hours post exposure

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted1 Aug 2014 (estimated)
  2. Study startJul 2014
  3. Primary completionSep 2016
  4. Study completionJan 2017

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase N/A
Primary purpose
Basic science
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Crossover
Masking
Double blind
Who is masked
Participant, Investigator
Enrolment
40 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT02206750
Sponsor's protocol ID
# 13-1644
Acronym
SOZIAL
Status last verified
Jul 2017
First submitted
30 Jul 2014
Last updated
26 Jul 2017
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No

Publications

  • Devlin RB, McDonnell WF, Becker S, Madden MC, McGee MP, Perez R, Hatch G, House DE, Koren HS. Time-dependent changes of inflammatory mediators in the lungs of humans exposed to 0.4 ppm ozone for 2 hr: a comparison of mediators found in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid 1 and 18 hr after exposure. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol. 1996 May;138(1):176-85. doi: 10.1006/taap.1996.0111.

    PubMed 8658507
  • Devlin RB, McDonnell WF, Mann R, Becker S, House DE, Schreinemachers D, Koren HS. Exposure of humans to ambient levels of ozone for 6.6 hours causes cellular and biochemical changes in the lung. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol. 1991 Jan;4(1):72-81. doi: 10.1165/ajrcmb/4.1.72.

    PubMed 1846079
  • Schelegle ES, Siefkin AD, McDonald RJ. Time course of ozone-induced neutrophilia in normal humans. Am Rev Respir Dis. 1991 Jun;143(6):1353-8. doi: 10.1164/ajrccm/143.6.1353.

    PubMed 2048824
  • Bascom R, Naclerio RM, Fitzgerald TK, Kagey-Sobotka A, Proud D. Effect of ozone inhalation on the response to nasal challenge with antigen of allergic subjects. Am Rev Respir Dis. 1990 Sep;142(3):594-601. doi: 10.1164/ajrccm/142.3.594.

    PubMed 2202248
  • Peden DB, Setzer RW Jr, Devlin RB. Ozone exposure has both a priming effect on allergen-induced responses and an intrinsic inflammatory action in the nasal airways of perennially allergic asthmatics. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 1995 May;151(5):1336-45. doi: 10.1164/ajrccm.151.5.7735583.

    PubMed 7735583
  • Devlin RB, Duncan KE, Jardim M, Schmitt MT, Rappold AG, Diaz-Sanchez D. Controlled exposure of healthy young volunteers to ozone causes cardiovascular effects. Circulation. 2012 Jul 3;126(1):104-11. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.112.094359. Epub 2012 Jun 25.

    PubMed 22732313
  • Gray SC, Edwards SE, Schultz BD, Miranda ML. Assessing the impact of race, social factors and air pollution on birth outcomes: a population-based study. Environ Health. 2014 Jan 29;13(1):4. doi: 10.1186/1476-069X-13-4.

    PubMed 24476365
  • Wright RJ. Epidemiology of stress and asthma: from constricting communities and fragile families to epigenetics. Immunol Allergy Clin North Am. 2011 Feb;31(1):19-39. doi: 10.1016/j.iac.2010.09.011.

    PubMed 21094921
  • Wright RJ, Schreier HM. Seeking an integrated approach to assessing stress mechanisms related to asthma: is the allostatic load framework useful? Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2013 Jan 15;187(2):115-6. doi: 10.1164/rccm.201210-1816ED. No abstract available.

    PubMed 23322789
  • Juster RP, McEwen BS, Lupien SJ. Allostatic load biomarkers of chronic stress and impact on health and cognition. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2010 Sep;35(1):2-16. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2009.10.002. Epub 2009 Oct 12.

    PubMed 19822172
  • Clougherty JE, Levy JI, Kubzansky LD, Ryan PB, Suglia SF, Canner MJ, Wright RJ. Synergistic effects of traffic-related air pollution and exposure to violence on urban asthma etiology. Environ Health Perspect. 2007 Aug;115(8):1140-6. doi: 10.1289/ehp.9863.

    PubMed 17687439
  • Shankardass K, McConnell R, Jerrett M, Milam J, Richardson J, Berhane K. Parental stress increases the effect of traffic-related air pollution on childhood asthma incidence. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2009 Jul 28;106(30):12406-11. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0812910106. Epub 2009 Jul 20.

    PubMed 19620729
  • Schubert C, Lambertz M, Nelesen RA, Bardwell W, Choi JB, Dimsdale JE. Effects of stress on heart rate complexity--a comparison between short-term and chronic stress. Biol Psychol. 2009 Mar;80(3):325-32. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2008.11.005. Epub 2008 Dec 3.

    PubMed 19100813

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Clean Air and Ozone in people with Exposure to Environmental Pollution, Non-occupational, run by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 10 inclusion and 19 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 26 Jul 2017. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. Some participants in this study may receive a placebo. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Changes in heart rate variability (time frame: Pre exposure to 24hours post exposure). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT02206750, which also lists 13 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 26 Jul 2017.

Free account

Log in to keep searching

You’ve used your 3 free searches. AzTrials is free: log in or create a free account to keep searching clinical trials and save the ones you want to follow.

Create a free accountLog in