# Assessing the interplay between stress, health, behavior, and inflammatory gene expression response to wildfire smoke exposures using community engaged and remote sampling approaches

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON · 2022 · $311,000

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
 As wildfire occurrence and intensity has increased in recent years, understanding the human impact of
wildfire smoke (WFS) exposure has become paramount. The impact of WFS on a community can be examined
by investigating the proximal deleterious biological effects of WFS exposure, health and well-being and perceived
impact of evidence-based exposure reduction interventions at community scale. At the beginning of the 2021
WFS season, we commenced preliminary research to gauge the biological and social impact of WFS in the
Methow Valley, WA; a region in the Pacific Northwest with historically high WFS exposure burden, where by
early July 2021, had experienced several weeks of WFS exposure that was “nearly off the chart hazardous”[2].
We distributed a novel kit, homeRNA, for self-collection and stabilization of whole blood RNA that allows for the
assessment of inflammatory gene response to WFS to 62 participants across the American West, including 18
in the Methow Valley, WA, collecting over 400 stabilized blood samples to date: a subset of which will be
analyzed with a NanoString panel of ~800 inflammatory genes. Concomitantly, leveraging the donation and
distribution of 2,000 HEPA portable air cleaners (PACs) to community members across Methow Valley, WA, we
enrolled and surveyed nearly 1,000 participants to assess their perceived health and well-being during WFS
events, and the perceived protective effect of the HEPA PACs. This unprecedented opportunity allows us to
simultaneously probe into the inflammatory gene response effects of WFS exposure, and perceptions regarding
the health and well-being impacts of WFS exposure and mitigation strategies. Here we seek to assess the
biological effect of WFS in the inflammatory gene response by identifying key inflammatory response genes in
blood before, during, and after exposure using our homeRNA blood sampling kits. We also aim to assess
perceived WFS impacts on health, well-being, and behavior change across socio-economic, demographic,
occupational, and household groups, as well as the perceived impacts of HEPA PACs, an evidence-based
exposure reduction intervention increasingly used and recommended in WFS-affected communities. Together,
these results will inform the development of a subsequent R01 application that will combine homeRNA and
survey research to improve mechanistic understanding of the effects of WFS exposure and evidence-based
exposure reduction interventions (like HEPA PACs) on inflammatory gene expression, behavior and perceived
health and well-being. Our long-standing, genuine partnership with the Methow Valley community honed through
years of collaboration enables this research, and uniquely allows for real-time science communication and
research translation. As wildfires are expected to increase in frequency and magnitude, enhancing our scientific
knowledge about health impacts and their underlying mechanisms, as well the impact of interventions, is of
immedi...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10497621
- **Project number:** 1R21ES034338-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON
- **Principal Investigator:** Nicole Ann Errett
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $311,000
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-05-13 → 2024-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10497621

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10497621, Assessing the interplay between stress, health, behavior, and inflammatory gene expression response to wildfire smoke exposures using community engaged and remote sampling approaches (1R21ES034338-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-01 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10497621. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*