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Proposed Project

Exposure to Aerosolized Brevetoxins During Red Tide Events—New—National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH). Gymnodinium breve is the marine dinoflagellate responsible for extensive blooms (called red tides) that form in the Gulf of Mexico. G. breve produces potent toxins, called brevetoxins, that have been responsible for killing millions of fish and other marine organisms. The biochemical activity of brevetoxins is not completely understood and there is very little information regarding human health effects from environmental exposures, such as inhaling brevetoxin that has been aerosolized and swept onto the coast by offshore winds. The National Center for Environmental Health (NCEH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is planning to recruit 100 people who work along the coast of Florida and who potentially will be occupationally exposed to aerosolized red tide toxins some time during the year following recruitment.

NCEH plans on administering a base line respiratory health questionnaire and conducting pre- and post-shift pulmonary function tests during a time when there is no red tide reported near the area. When a red tide develops, we plan to administer a symptom survey and conduct pulmonary function testing (PFT) on a group of study participants who are working in the area where the red tide is near shore, and on a control group of study participants who are not working in an area where the red tide is near shore (i.e., are not exposed to the red tide). We will then compare (1) symptom reports before and during the red tide and (2) the changes in baseline PFT values during the work shift (differences between pre- and post-shift PFT results without exposure to red tide) with the changes in PFT values during the work shift when individuals are exposed to red tide. In addition, we plan to assist in collecting biological specimens (inflammatory cells from nose and throat swabs) to assess whether they can be used to verify exposure and to demonstrate a biological effect (i.e., inflammatory response) from exposure to red tide. There are no costs to respondents. The total burden is estimated to be 201 hours.