Ilona Jaspers

Ilona Jaspers is a Professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with dual appointments in the School of Medicine departments of Pediatrics, Microbiology & Immunology, and Environmental Sciences & Engineering at the Gillings School of Global Public Health. She serves as Director of the Center for Environmental Medicine, Asthma and Lung Biology and the Curriculum in Toxicology, while also holding the position of Associate Director of Scientific Development at the UNC Children's Research Institute.

Her research program investigates how environmental exposures including air pollutants, cigarette smoke, and vaping products alter respiratory immune responses and increase susceptibility to viral infections. Utilizing human in vitro models of respiratory epithelium, clinical in vivo studies, and collaborations with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, her work spans pollutant mechanisms, host defense pathways, and translational applications for vulnerable populations. Key focus areas include diesel exhaust impacts on influenza, wildfire smoke health effects, and sex-specific responses to environmental oxidants.

Recent publication trends (2022-2025) demonstrate intensive investigation of climate change-respiratory health intersections, vaping-induced molecular damage, burn pit smoke toxicity, and innovative methodologies for environmental health research. Her work frequently examines modifiers of disease including nutrition, pre-existing conditions, and demographic variables through human clinical models and mechanistic studies.

Dr. Jaspers maintains active leadership in environmental health research through her directorship roles and collaborations with federal agencies. Her laboratory at the EPA Human Studies Facility (104 Mason Farm Road) develops experimental models examining how environmental pollutants alter mucosal immune responses using human organotypic cultures, animal models, and clinical studies.