Kelley Patten, M.P.H., Ph.D.

Research Description

Kelley’s LaMP research focused on characterizing the effect of traffic-related air pollution (TRAP) on the developing and aging brain. Her work involved chronic exposure of transgenic and wildtype rats to ambient TRAP collected from a highway tunnel and delivered in real-time to animals housed in an adjacent vivarium. Neuropathologic and behavioral effects were monitored over time. Kelley’s research was significant in that it demonstrated that human-relevant exposures to TRAP increase the expression of phenotypes relevant to neurodevelopmental disorders and Alzheimer’s disease (AD), even in wildtype rats. These are the first preclinical data to validate the human epidemiological data and confirm that TRAP is an important environmental risk factor for brain disease. Her data also supported the hypothesis that TRAP effects on AD phenotypes are mediated, in part, by neuroinflammation. One of her first-author publications describing this work (Patten et al. 2020, Transl Psych) was selected at an NIEHS Extramural Paper of the month of July 2020; this same paper was highlighted in multiple media outlets, including: MSN, Yahoo! News, The Guardian, Environmental News Network, Technology Networks, The Medical News, Green Car Congress, Medical Xpress, ScienMag, Science Daily, Daily Democrat, and EurkAlert!.