Performance auditing of an in vitro air pollution exposure system

Databases derived From human health effects research play a vital role in setting environmental standards. An underlying assumption in using these databases for standard setting purposes is that they are of adequate quality. The performance auditing program described provides novel methods for determining data quality for one form of human health effects research, in vitro exposure to air pollutants. This article presents the development and implementation of a performance auditing program for an in vitro system used by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency researchers to expose human cells to air pollution. Audit procedures for determining the accuracy of critical operating parameters of the system are described. The results of initial audits of the system's ability to control and measure temperature, humidity, and pollutant gas concentration and distribution within the exposure chambers of the system are listed. The utility of the performance auditing program in assisting health effects researchers to determine the adequacy of databases obtained from the in vitro exposure system in meeting their research requirements is discussed.