Frank J. Kelly FRSB FRSC FMedSci is a British professor of community health and policy and Head of the Environmental Research Group (a global centre dedicated to air pollution research) at Imperial College London.[1][2] He is an authority on the medical effects of air pollution.[3][4][5]

Frank J Kelly
BornNorthern Ireland
Known forHealth effects of air pollution
Academic background
Alma materQueen's University Belfast
Academic work
DisciplinePhysiology
Institutions
WebsiteOfficial website Edit this at Wikidata

Academic career and research edit

Kelly obtained his first degree from Queen's University Belfast, before taking a Ph.D. in physiology there as well. He then joined Pennsylvania State University, as a postdoctoral fellow. After working in the United States, he returned to the UK as a lecturer at Southampton University. During the early part of his career, his research focused on free-radical biology and human disease, and lung damage in premature babies and cystic fibrosis patients.[6]

In 1992, Kelly moved to London and developed a new research interest in the effect of air pollution on lungs and respiratory health. He became a Senior Lecturer at St Thomas’ Hospital, where his research interests included the health effects of vitamin E,[7] before moving to King's College, London, where he was Professor of Environmental Health and Director of the Environmental Research Group.[6] Kelly and his group transferred to Imperial College in 2020.[8] His current work includes WellHome, a large study of how indoor air pollutants affect childhood asthma in urban environments.[9][10]

Kelly works with the World Health Organization on air pollution issues and is a member of the Health Effects Institute (HEI) Review Committee. He has also served as Chairman of the UK Department of Health Expert Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants (COMEAP), President of the European Society for Free Radical Research, and Chairman of the British Association for Lung Research.[1]

Kelly has published over 380 peer-reviewed papers.[11]

Awards edit

Kelly won the 2019 Royal Society of Chemistry Toxicology Award for "outstanding research into free radical and antioxidant toxicological mechanisms relevant to pulmonary toxicity".[12] Also that year, he shared the Elsevier Haagen-Smit Prize with Julia Fussell for a paper on the toxicity of particulate air pollution.[13] He was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences in 2018[14] and became an honorary fellow of the Institute of Air Quality Management in 2021.[15]

Media appearances edit

Kelly is a frequent media commentator on air quality issues, such as pollution in London,[5][16][17] pollution caused by road transport,[4][18] whether a shift to electric cars can tackle air quality,[19] the use of taxes to improve air quality,[20] indoor air pollution,[21] air quality in other parts of the world,[22][23] and the effectiveness of air pollution limits and guidelines.[24]

Selected publications edit

Books and reports edit

  • Punchard, Neville; Kelly, Frank J (1996). Free Radicals: A Practical Approach. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199635603. OCLC 34476247. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  • Kelly, Frank J; Meydani, Mohsen; Packer, Lester (2004). Vitamin E and Health. New York: New York Academy of Sciences. ISBN 9781573315272. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  • Jarvis, Debbie; Adamkiewicz, Gary; Heroux, Marie-Eve; Rapp, Regula; Kelly, Frank J. (2010). WHO Guidelines for Indoor Air Quality: Selected Pollutants: Nitrogen Dioxide. Geneva: World Health Organization. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  • Kelly, Frank; Anderson, H. Ross; Armstrong, Ben; Atkinson, Richard; Barratt, Ben; et al. (2011). The Impact of the Congestion Charging Scheme on Air Quality in London: Research Report 155 (PDF). Boston, Mass.: Health Effects Institute. Retrieved 21 January 2023.

Scientific papers edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Professor Frank Kelly". Imperial College London. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  2. ^ Scheuber, Andrew (12 March 2020). "New global centre of air pollution research as Frank Kelly group joins Imperial". Imperial College London. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  3. ^ Carrington, Damian (4 August 2017). "Electric cars are not the answer to air pollution, says top UK adviser". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  4. ^ a b Chrystal, Robin (18 November 2011). "Boris Johnson sticks by gluing pollution to roads". BBC News. Retrieved 2 December 2021.
  5. ^ a b Edwards, Tom (23 February 2023). "ULEZ: Ultra Low Emission Zone expansion and the price of pollution". BBC News. Retrieved 25 February 2023. World expert on air quality, Prof Frank Kelly from Imperial College London, says expanding ULEZ will improve the health of Londoners. "There is nowhere in London still that does meet the WHO air quality guidelines so that means everywhere you go the air you are breathing is having some impact on your health," he said.
  6. ^ a b "Fellow Profile: Professor Frank Kelly". Plus Alliance. Arizona State University, King’s College London, and UNSW Sydney. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  7. ^ Brigelius-Flohé, Regina; Kelly, Frank J; Salonen, Jukka; Neuzil, Jiri; Zingg, Jean-Marc; et al. (2002). "The European perspective on vitamin E: current knowledge and future research". Am J Clin Nutr. 76 (4): 703–16. doi:10.1093/ajcn/76.4.703. PMID 12324281. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  8. ^ Scheuber, Andrew (12 March 2020). "New global centre of air pollution research as Frank Kelly group joins Imperial". Imperial College London. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
  9. ^ "Exploring how air pollution in indoor spaces affects human health". UK Research and Innovation. 23 July 2021. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  10. ^ "WellHome - West London Healthy Home and Environment Study". Imperial College London. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  11. ^ "Professor Frank Kelly". Imperial College London. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  12. ^ "Professor Frank Kelly, Imperial College London, Receives 2019 Toxicology Award". NIHR Health Protection Research Unit. 12 November 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  13. ^ "Professor Frank Kelly and Dr Julia Fussell win Haagen-Smit prize". King's College London. 21 February 2020. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  14. ^ "Professor Frank Kelly FMedSci". The Academy of Medical Sciences. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
  15. ^ "Prof Frank Kelly elected as IAQM Honorary Fellow". Institute of Air Quality Management. 24 December 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  16. ^ Gruner, Peter (12 April 2012). "London's pollution 'worst in Europe'". Evening Standard. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  17. ^ Coghlan, Andy (13 November 2012). "Air pollution blights London life". New Scientist. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  18. ^ Wilford, Greg (5 August 2017). "Total car ban is the only way to beat air pollution in cities, expert warns". The Independent. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  19. ^ Kelly, Frank (4 August 2017). "London should lead in showing electric cars will not tackle air pollution". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 November 2022.
  20. ^ Webster, Ben (30 April 2014). "Call to tax 'deadly' diesel". The Times. p. 14.
  21. ^ Lees, Martina (1 December 2019). "Clear the Air: Your home could be more toxic than a traffic-choked main road". The Sunday Times. p. 20.
  22. ^ Vidal, John (16 January 2016). "Air pollution: a dark cloud of filth poisons the world's cities". The Observer. Retrieved 18 April 2022.
  23. ^ Bagenal, Flora (6 July 2008). "Smog at Beijing Games five times over safety limit". The Sunday Times. p. 13.
  24. ^ Bawden, Tom (21 April 2021). "Government considers tougher air pollution laws in wake of coroner's landmark asthma ruling". iNews. Retrieved 22 August 2021.

External links edit