Details of Award
NERC Reference : NE/T004401/1
The Home Biome Project (DUST). DUsty SecreTs: characterising, communicating and connecting the hidden world within our homes.
Grant Award
- Principal Investigator:
- Professor J Entwistle, Northumbria University, Fac of Engineering and Environment
- Co-Investigator:
- Professor DA Pearce, Northumbria University, Fac of Health and Life Sciences
- Grant held at:
- Northumbria University, Fac of Engineering and Environment
- Science Area:
- Atmospheric
- Earth
- Terrestrial
- Overall Classification:
- Unknown
- ENRIs:
- Environmental Risks and Hazards
- Pollution and Waste
- Science Topics:
- Analytical Science
- Microbiology
- Pollution
- Abstract:
- We typically spend over 80% of the day inside, yet our indoor environments are still poorly understood. Household air pollution results in an estimated 4.25 million premature deaths globally each year (World Health Organisation, 2014), representing a significant public health challenge. Indoor dust sources include outdoor particles brought inside on clothes, footwear, pets or by the wind, and from cooking, smoking, and wear and tear of soft furnishings. Chemicals from home sources such as cleaning products, pesticides and flame retardants can attach to house dust. There is evidence of interaction between the chemical components of our house dust and the biological components, and we want to explore these relationships further. When we breathe in, dusts can penetrate deep into our lungs, and potentially harmful components (metals, organic substances, microbes and other allergens) can transfer into our blood and to other parts of the body. The resulting health effects include increased incidences of strokes, Alzheimer's, lung disease, heart disease and cancer. A 'biome' is a community of organisms in a specific environment. This project will shine a spotlight on our home biome, investigating chemicals in house dust and home air quality, revealing similarities and differences between different regions and households around the world. We will also explore the interaction of our house dust with our indoor microbiome and the occurrence of antimicrobial resistant genes. The Home Biome project 'DUST' will be a collaboration between households and scientists from across the world. The project will establish an online Dust Atlas to present our anonymised findings and increase awareness of our indoor environments. Participants will be able to submit samples of their own house vacuum dust for analysis and receive individual household reports to compare with data in the on-line Dust Atlas. Participants currently involved in long-term studies of their health will also be invited to participate. Here the dust data may progress understanding of relationships between indoor environments and health. The DUST project has four main aims: (1) to establish on online Dust Atlas of components in our indoor dusts, and in doing so develop a resource that allows citizens and other project participants to understand their household dust data at local, regional, national and even global scales, (2) to investigate the relationship between antimicrobial resistance and the metal concentrations in our house dusts to see if common pollutants in our homes may be supporting/mediating increased microbial resistance, (3) to carry out indoor air quality monitoring of selected homes to look at how various indicators of air quality vary over timescales of days to weeks, and differences resulting from house design, cooking and heating fuel type and use frequency, ventilation methods and locations, and (4) given recent studies highlighting links between environmental pollutants in our house dusts and conditions such as obesity and asthma, to explore the potential of using citizen-collected household vacuum dusts to provide useful supplementary data as part of existing long-term health-focused family studies. The DUST website will communicate to public audiences, as well as scientists and policy-makers, through interactive web-based maps, charts, discussions and other links. As well as providing evidence for national and international regulatory agencies to inform risk management decisions, the Home Biome project (DUST) will enable citizens to change behaviours and reduce health risks by suggesting practical actions to improve household and community indoor environmental quality.
- NERC Reference:
- NE/T004401/1
- Grant Stage:
- Completed
- Scheme:
- Directed - International
- Grant Status:
- Closed
- Programme:
- GPSF
This grant award has a total value of £82,246
FDAB - Financial Details (Award breakdown by headings)
| DI - Other Costs | Indirect - Indirect Costs | DA - Investigators | DA - Estate Costs | DI - Staff | Exception - T&S | DI - T&S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| £15,319 | £25,722 | £11,109 | £1,670 | £18,344 | £8,138 | £1,944 |
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