Jun Wu

Professor, Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Joe C. Wen School of Population & Public Health, Susan and Henry Samueli College of Health Sciences, University of California, Irvine

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Biography

Jun Wu, Ph.D., is Professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at the Joe C. Wen School of Population & Public Health, Susan and Henry Samueli College of Health Sciences at the University of California, Irvine. She holds joint appointments in the Department of Global Health & Biobehavioral Sciences, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Institute of Transportation Studies, and Pharmacological Sciences Graduate Program. Wu received her Ph.D. in Environmental Health Sciences from the University of California, Los Angeles in 2004.

Wu's research focuses on population-based environmental exposure assessment, environmental epidemiology, and environmental health disparities. She has developed advanced spatiotemporal models to predict air pollution concentrations at high resolution and examined the health effects of various environmental exposures including air pollution, extreme heat, wildfire smoke, and built environment factors on pregnancy outcomes, children's health, and other health endpoints. Wu has been named a National Institute of Health Climate and Health Scholar (2024-2025), one of only thirteen scholars nationwide, and received the Distinguished Mid-Career Faculty Award for Research from UC-Irvine (2024-2025). She received the Internal Society of Exposure Science (ISES) Joan M. Daisey Outstanding Young Investigator Award in 2014 and the Health Effects Institute (HEI) Walter A. Rosenblith New Investigator Award in 2010.

Wu has served as principal investigator or multiple principal investigator on numerous federally- and state-funded research projects totaling over $20 million, including grants from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institute of Aging, and California Air Resources Board. She has published over 160 peer-reviewed papers and serves as Associate Editor of Informatics and Health and on the editorial board of Environment International. Wu serves as a member of the Health Effects Institute (HEI) Energy Research Committee. She served as co-chair of the 30th Annual Conference of the International Society of Exposure Science (ISES) in 2020 and was Academic Councilor for the society from 2014–2016. She served as Graduate Director of the Environmental Health Sciences Graduate Program at UC-Irvine in 2019–2024.

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Education

Ph.D. in Environmental Health Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, 2004
M.S. in Environmental Engineering, Penn State University, 2000
B.Eng. in Environmental Engineering, Tsinghua University, 1997

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Distinctions

Susan & Henry Samueli College of Health Sciences (COHS) Clinical Faculty Team Awards (with Dr. Rammy Assaf), 2026
Joe C. Wen School of Population and Public Health Excellence in Research Award, UC-Irvine, 2025
National Institute of Health (NIH) Climate and Health Scholar (one of only thirteen scholars nationwide), 2024-2025
Distinguished Mid-Career Faculty Award for Research, UC-Irvine, 2024-2025
The Research Associates, Athalie Clarke Achievement Award in Public Health, 2023
Delta Omega 2023 Honoree for Public Health Faculty, 2023
Kickass Women of Orange County by Orange Coast Magazine, 2022
Inaugural Co-Director, UCI Center of Environmental Health Disparity Research, 2021-2022
Internal Society of Exposure Science (ISES) Joan M. Daisey Outstanding Young Scientist Award, 2014
Celebration of Teaching School Honoree Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, 2012
Health Effects Institute (HEI) Walter A. Rosenblith New Investigator Award, 2010

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Areas of Expertise

Environmental Epidemiology
Exposure Assessment
Pregnancy Outcomes and Maternal-Child Health
Children's Environmental Health and Lead Exposure
Geospatial Exposure Modeling and Machine Learning
Air Pollution and Built Environment
Extreme Heat, Wildfires, and Health Impacts
Environmental Justice and Health Disparities
Community-Based Participatory Research

Recent Publications

Jiao A., Zhu S., Chen X., He Q., Benmarhnia T., Wu J., “Associations of PM2.5 and PAHs from wildland fires with pregnancy outcomes: evidence based on high-resolution exposure assessment” (opens in new tab), Environmental Research, vol. 298, 2026.
He Q., Li M., Hotz J., Xu Z., Franklin M., Berrocal V.J., Wu J., “Characterizing spatiotemporal trends in PM2.5 component exposures across the western United States using daily 1-km estimates from multi-source data and deep learning” (opens in new tab), Journal of Environmental Management, vol. 404, 2026.
Wu A.H., Wu J., Tseng C., Darst B.F., Park S.-Y., Stram D.O., Larson T., Fruin S., Setiawan V.W., Yu X., Wilkens L.R., Hu H., Haiman C., Ritz B., Crimmins E.M., Lim U., Cheng I., Marchand L.L., “Racial and ethnic differences in the impact of air pollution on the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias in the Multiethnic Cohort Study” (opens in new tab), Environment International, vol. 209, 2026.
Nzegwu A.W., Dickerson A.S., Miller K., Szpiro A., Hipwell A.E., Elliot A.J., Padula A.M., Dunlop A.L., Starling A.P., Ferrara A., Breton C.V., Loftus C.T., McEvoy C.T., Dabelea D., Koinis-Mitchell D., Liang D., Oken E., Barrett E.S., Volk H., Gern J.E., et al., “Gestational fine particulate matter exposure and perinatal outcomes in the ECHO cohort: Associations across pregnancy windows” (opens in new tab), Environmental Research, vol. 292, 2026.
Wang S.S., Wu J., Wu A.H., Cheng I., “Associations of Proximity to Superfund Sites and Air Pollution with Breast Cancer Subtypes: Clues from a Case-Case Study and Call for Longitudinal Studies” (opens in new tab), Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers Prevention A Publication of the American Association for Cancer Research Cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology, vol. 35, pp. 7-9, 2026.
Nagai-Singer M.A., Wu J., “The Role of Dietary Supplements in Environmental Challenges” (opens in new tab), Advances in Nutrition, vol. 17, 2026.
Wu A.H., Tseng C., Park S.-Y., Stram D.O., White K., Wu J., Vigen C., Setiawan V.W., Yu X., Gazal S., Haiman C., Wilkens L., Le Marchand L., Cheng I., Stohl W., “Late-Onset Rheumatoid Arthritis and Air Pollution in the Multiethnic Cohort” (opens in new tab), Arthritis and Rheumatology, 2026.
Wu AH, Wu J, Tseng C-C, Stram DO, Shariff-Marco S, Larson TV, Goldberg D, Fruin S, Jiao A, Inamdar PP, Ihenacho U, Marchand LL, Wilkens L, Haiman C, Ritz B, Cheng I, “Air pollution and breast cancer incidence in the Multiethnic Cohort Study” (opens in new tab), Journal of Clinical Oncology, vol. 43, pp. 273-284, 2025.
Jiao A, Vargas AL, Gluhova YD, Headon K, Rangel L, Abdallah S, Ramsey EC, Truong K, Chal AM, Suellen H, Wu J, “Wildfire risk perception and communication in disadvantaged communities: insights from Eastern Coachella Valley in Southern California” (opens in new tab), International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, vol. 117, pp. 105186, 2025.
Umer W, Sun S, Jiao A, Slezak J, Avila C, Chiu V, Sacks DA, Molitor J, Benmarhnia T, Chen JC, Getahun G, Wu J, “Association of Historical Redlining with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus: The Mediating Role of Body Mass Index and Area Deprivation Index” (opens in new tab), Diabetes Care, vol. 48, pp. 711-718, 2025.
Rubio JM, Kaylan B, Diaz A, Flores P, Cheav M, Bañuelas DC, Green A, Hjelmstad A, Jong-Levinger A, Schütz T, Carrasquillo M, LeBrón AMW, Wu J, “From the Ground Up: Community-based Participatory Research Reclaiming the Science of Lead” (opens in new tab), Environmental Justice, 2025.
Masri S, LeBrón A, Zhang A, Jones LB, Ogunseitan O, Wu J, “A Community-Based Assessment of Attitudes, Health Impacts and Protective Actions during the 24-Day Hangar Fire in Tustin, California” (opens in new tab), International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 22, no. 7, pp. 1003, 2025.
Li M, Fan Q, Sun Y, Jiao A, Avila C, Chiu V, Slezak J, Sacks DA, Abatzoglou J, Molitor J, Chen JC, Benmarhnia T, Getahun G, Wu J, “Plant species richness, green spaces, and preterm birth risk in urban areas” (opens in new tab), Environment International, vol. 202, pp. 109644, 2025.
Assaf RR, Shelton S, Morphew T, Bacon K, Clayton S, Wu J, “Climate-Related Distress among Adolescents in the Pediatric Emergency Department”, Environmental Research: Health, 2025.
Wu J, “New Insights from Satellite Data Show the Impact Trucks are Having on Communities in Southern California” (opens in new tab), University of California Institution of Transportation Studies, 2025.
Masri S., Nasla S., Payan D.D., Wu J., “Assessing Dietary Consumption of Toxicant-Laden Foods and Beverages by Age and Ethnicity in California: Implications for Proposition 65” (opens in new tab), Nutrients, vol. 17, 2025.
Jiao A, Headon K, Han T, Umer W, Santos J, Wu J, “Associations between short-term exposure to wildfire particulate matter and respiratory outcomes: A systematic review” (opens in new tab), The Science of The Total Environment, vol. 907, pp. 168134, 2024.
Sun Y, Bhuyan R, Jiao A, Avila C, Chiu V, Slezak J, Sacks DA, Molitor J, Benmarhnia T, Chen JC, Getahun G, Wu J, “Association between Particulate Air Pollution and Hypertensive Disorders in Pregnancy: Evidence from a Large Cohort in Southern California” (opens in new tab), PLOS Medicine, vol. 21, no. 4, 2024.
Zhu S, Wu K, Kinnon MM, Wu J, Samuelsen S, “Modeling polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) concentrations from wildfires in California” (opens in new tab), Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, vol. 352, pp. 110043, 2024.
Hopfer S, Jiao A, Li M, Vargas AL, Wu J, “Repeat wildfire and smoke experiences shared by four communities in Southern California: local impacts and community needs” (opens in new tab), Environmental Research. Health, vol. 2, 2024.

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Most Cited Publications

Delfino RJ, Brummell S, Wu J, Gillen D, Ostro B, Lipsett M, Winer A, Street DH, Zhang L, Tjoa T, Stern H, “The relationship of respiratory and cardiovascular hospital admissions to the southern California wildfires of 2003” (opens in new tab), Occupational and Environmental Medicine, vol. 66, pp. 189-197, 2009.
Wu J, Ren C, Delfino R, Chung J, Wilhelm M, Ritz B, “Association between local traffic-generated air pollution and preeclampsia and preterm delivery in the South Coast Air Basin of California” (opens in new tab), Environmental Health Perspectives, vol. 117, no. 11, pp. 1773-1779, 2009.
Kunzli N, Avol E, Wu J, Gauderman WJ, Rappaport E, Millstein J, Bennion J, McConnell R, Gilliland FD, Berhane K, Lurmann F, Winer A, Peters JM, “Health effects of the 2003 Southern California wildfires on children” (opens in new tab), American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, vol. 174, no. 11, pp. 1221-1228, 2006.
Houston D, Wu J, Ong P, Winer A, “Structural disparities of urban traffic in Southern California: Implications for vehicle-related air pollution exposure in minority and high-poverty neighborhoods” (opens in new tab), Journal of Urban Affairs, vol. 26, no. 5, pp. 565-592, 2004.
Wu J, Wilhelm M, Chung J, Ritz B, “Comparing exposure assessment methods for traffic-related air pollution in an adverse pregnancy outcome study” (opens in new tab), Environmental Research, vol. 111, pp. 685-692, 2011.
Beltran A, Wu J, Laurent O, “Associations of Meteorology with Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes: A Systematic Review of Preeclampsia, Preterm Birth and Birth Weight” (opens in new tab), International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 11, pp. 91-172, 2014.
Heck J, Wu J, Lombardi C, Qiu J, Meyers T, Wilhelm M, Cockburn M, Ritz B, “Childhood cancer and traffic-related air pollution exposure in pregnancy and early life” (opens in new tab), Environmental Health Perspectives, vol. 121, pp. 1385-1391, 2013.
Jia X, Yu Y, Xia W, Masri S, Sami M, Hu Z, Yu Z, Wu J, “Cardiovascular diseases in middle aged and older adults in China: the joint effects and mediation of different types of physical exercise and neighborhood greenness and walkability” (opens in new tab), Environmental Research, vol. 167, pp. 175-183, 2018.
Delfino RJ, Wu J, Tjoa T, Gullesserian S, Nickerson B, Gillen D, “Asthma morbidity and ambient air pollution: effect modification by residential traffic-related air pollution” (opens in new tab), Epidemiology, vol. 25, no. 1, pp. 48-57, 2014.
Laurent O, Hu J, Li L, Kleeman M, Bartell S, Escobedo L, Cockburn M, Wu J, “A statewide nested case-control study of preterm birth and air pollution by source and composition: California, 2001–2008” (opens in new tab), Environmental Health Perspectives, vol. 124, pp. 1479-1486, 2016.
Laurent O, Wu J, Li L, Milesi C, “Green spaces and pregnancy outcomes in Southern California” (opens in new tab), Health and Place, vol. 24, pp. 190-195, 2013.
“The relationship of respiratory and cardiovascular hospital admissions to the southern California wildfires of 2003”, .

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Contact Information

Website: https://drwulab.net/

Email: junwu@hs.uci.edu

Phone: (949) 824-0548

Address: 3082 Susan & Henry Samueli College of Health Sciences

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This profile was created with the help of AI.

Last updated on 5/23/2026.