LSU chemist isolates air pollutants

• By JORDAN BLUM
• Advocate Capitol news bureau
• Published: Aug 18, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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Newly discovered air pollutants could cause health risks similar to smoking a pack of cigarettes a day, new LSU research contends.

Environmental chemistry professor Barry Dellinger presented his findings on the pollutants Sunday at the 236th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society in Philadelphia. 

The pollutants are known as “environmentally persistent free radicals,” called PFRs. They are microscopic particles released into the atmosphere from any flame-producing chemical reaction.

Dellinger, whose research focuses on the environmental effects of combustion, said the “PFRs” study results could eventually explain why so many nonsmokers get lung cancer and other pulmonary diseases.

 “At the worst, it still looks like it could be equal to a pack of cigarettes a day,” Dellinger said, “if you live in a polluted area.”

Nearly 15 percent of lung cancer cases are diagnosed in nonsmokers, according to the American Cancer Society.

But Dellinger said more research is needed before such cancer cases can be definitively linked to persistent free radicals.

What is most fascinating from a science perspective, though, is that health risks in the air do not necessarily come from chemicals, Dellinger contended. Rather, the dangers come from the persistent free radicals formed during the chemical combustion processes, he said.

“It’s an amazing result to find these things,” Dellinger said. “I was shocked, but it makes perfect sense.

“People study the toxicity of chemicals — that’s all anyone studies,” Dellinger said. “And I’m coming along saying it’s not really the chemicals.”

Dellinger is working with the LSU Health Sciences Center in New Orleans on acquiring a $20 million grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences  to further the research.

Dellinger said he is cautiously optimistic the funding will come through.

Persistent free radicals are formed during the combustion process anywhere from coal and fuel power plants to simply burning  a  tree.