Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Sciences David Lo, MD, PhD, of the UC Riverside School of Medicine has been appointed to the California Air Resources Board’s (CARB) Scientific Review Panel on Toxic Air Contaminants. The appointment is for a three-year term.

The panel meets quarterly and is charged with reviewing proposed toxic air contaminants, risk assessment guidelines, the review of toxic air contaminants that may be more harmful to infants and children, and consulting on CARB’s community air protection program.

“I am incredibly honored to be asked to serve on this panel and look forward to working with my colleagues to ensure the health and safety of the people of California,” Lo said.

The panel is made up of nine members who are “highly qualified and professionally active or engaged in the conduct of scientific research,” as noted in California Health and Safety Code section 39670(b). Members include experts in pathology, oncology, epidemiology, atmospheric science, academic administration, biostatistics, occupational medicine, toxicology, and biochemistry/molecular biology.

Lo was nominated for the board by University of California President Michael Drake, MD, and appointed by Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas. He replaces Joseph R. Landolph, PhD, of the University of Southern California, whose term ended.

Through his Bridging Regional Ecology, Aerosolized Toxins, and Health Effects Lab (BREATHE), Lo has done extensive research on the impact of environmental exposure to dusts and aerosols on the communities living near the Salton Sea, with an emphasis on the biological effects in models of lung inflammation and asthma.

Lo is also the director of the NIH-supported U54 Center for Health Disparities Research and a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences and a recipient of the Grand Challenges in Global Health award from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.