When Theory Becomes Reality: Lessons From the Pandemic

For scientists, medical professionals and the public, the last two years have brought into sharp focus the importance of my research field: the study of bioaerosols, genomics and bioinformatics.

With the sudden emergence of COVID-19, these academic disciplines were no longer theoretical, but had real-life consequences for the safety of people in workplaces, public spaces and at home.

My post-doctoral research into airborne viral transmission was particularly relevant as the sudden appearance of COVID-19 led to desperate searches for answers to some fundamental questions, including how the virus was transmitted, how long it could linger in the air, how wide its distribution pattern was, and what effective measures could be taken by individuals, institutions, businesses and governments to protect the population.

Soon specialists in aerosol and atmospheric science concluded that this deadly new virus could stay suspended in the air for hours, and that social distancing protocols were limited in their ability to prevent inhalation of these dispersed particles in indoor settings.

The public began to learn a truth that researchers of airborne pathogens have long known: that poor air quality was linked to millions of deaths and disability around the world even before the outbreak of COVID. For the first time, the academic specialties that I have intensely studied gained greater visibility — and new appreciation.

We all know that air is essential to life, but many have now learned the important lesson that air quality is fundamental to health, longevity and quality of life.

Aerosol scientists have demonstrated that many hazardous particles can linger for protracted periods in the air. This includes bacteria, viruses, fungi and man-made substances such as asbestos that may cause cancer.

In tracking the origins, paths and destinations of these kinds of particles, aerosol scientists draw upon the knowledge of a variety of disciplines. For example, physics helps explain the trajectories and vectors of airborne particles, allowing scientific observers to gain a comprehensive understanding of the extent and duration of risks.

In the early days of the pandemic, confusion triumphed over science. The director general of the World Health Organization insisted that COVID-19 could not be spread via airborne transmission. That was in March of 2020. Within months, populations across the globe were masking up and paying close attention to their indoor environments.

It was not until July of that year that WHO public health officials began to acknowledge that airborne transmission might be a possibility. By early 2021 key medical journals, including the Lancet and the Journal of the American Medical Association, began to publish articles describing and quantifying methods of airborne COVID transmission.

By April of this year, WHO was completely on board with what aerosol scientists had long known. A WHO spokesman told the media: “The emergence of SARS-CoV-2 Variants of Concern with increased transmissibility and greater binding affinity to the host entry receptor, ACE2, highlights the need to reiterate the risk of transmission of SARS-CoV-2, including airborne transmission at both short- and long-ranges, depending on the settings.”

The lessons of COVID underline the importance of air quality on a larger scale. Indoor air pollution contributes to the premature deaths of an estimated 4 million people worldwide each year.

Poor indoor air quality is usually the result of interior materials generating hazardous particles, rather than outdoor air seeping into buildings. Furniture can release formaldehyde, and cooking, heating units, plastics, carpets and household products can all produce dangerous organic compounds. Mold growing on surfaces and within walls can generate airborne fungus particles, and dust is the optimal transmission agent for the appropriately-named dust mite.

Although detecting and measuring these airborne risks involves sensitive instruments, sophisticated computations and new technologies, preventative measures are still remarkably basic.

For indoor air, that can mean something as simple as opening windows. Constant ventilation helps extrude particles from a room, and keeping surfaces dry can prevent the growth of mold. Paying close attention to the household products and interior design items you purchase such as paints, carpet and paneling can reduce the amount of organic compounds that will be generated inside a dwelling. And a heightened sense of personal responsibility, such as masking and limiting the size of gatherings in indoor settings, can help people and populations make it through the current pandemic — and the next.