Institute for Environmental Health Solutions
Respiratory Health Division
Ilona Jaspers, PhD
“I am excited to lead the respiratory health division of the IEHS as it will focus on vulnerable populations, their risk for respiratory impacts, and seek potential solutions to reduce health effects. We will examine the effects of ambient pollutants, such as ozone, as well tobacco products, including e-cigarettes on respiratory health. Through a variety of translational research approaches, our goal is to examine whether, and how, exposure to environmental pollutants alters respiratory immune responses, with the ultimate goal of identifying solutions that optimize the health of those vulnerable to respiratory illness.”
About Dr. Jaspers
Ilona Jaspers, PhD, is a professor with more than 20 years of experience at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who specializes in the effects of ambient air pollutants on respiratory immune dysfunction. Dr. Jaspers has established several human in vitro and clinical in vivo models to determine the adverse health effects induced by inhaled toxicants.
Dr. Jaspers also serves as the deputy director of the Center for Environmental Medicine, Asthma and Lung Biology and collaborates extensively with investigators from UNC-Chapel Hill and the U.S. Environmental Protection agency to conduct translational studies related to air pollution health effects. Dr. Jaspers also is the director of the Curriculum in Toxicology and Environmental Medicine and is committed to teaching and mentoring trainees at all levels of their training.
Updates about Dr. Jaspers’ work:
Ilona Jaspers, PhD, division head of the Institute for Environmental Health Solutions at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health, presented on e-cigarettes and vaping at a recent meeting of the Genetics and Environmental Mutagenesis Society of North Carolina. Specifically, she discussed her work on experimental models to study potential hazards of vaping and e-cigarettes, and she covered the rapid spread of vaping — especially among adolescents — as well as possible mechanisms behind the risks associated with vaping. Read more
