The effect of urban air pollution on inflammation, oxidative stress, coagulation, and autonomic dysfunction in young adults
Journal
American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine
Journal Volume
176
Journal Issue
4
Pages
370-376
Date Issued
2007
Author(s)
Abstract
Rationale: The biological mechanisms linking air pollution to cardiovascular events still remain largerly unclear. Objectives: To investigate whether biological mechanisms linking air pollution to cardiovascular events occurred concurrently in human subjects exposed to urban air pollutants. Methods: We recruited a panel of 76 young, healthy students from a university in Taipei. Between April and June of 2004 or 2005, three measurements were made in each participant of high-sensitivity Creactive protein (hs-CRP), 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), plasminogen activator fibrinogen inhibitor-1 (PAI-1), tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA) in plasma, and heart rate variability (HRV). Gaseous air pollutants were measured at one air-monitoring station inside their campus, and particulate air pollutants were measured at one particulate matter supersite monitoring station 1 km from their campus.Weused linear mixed-effects models to associate biological endpoints with individual air pollutants averaged over 1- to 3-day periods before measurements were performed. Measurements and Main Results: We found that increases in hs-CRP, 8-OHdG, fibrinogen, and PAI-1, and decreases in HRV indices were associated with increases in levels of particles with aerodynamic diameters less than 10 μm and 2.5 μm, sulfate, nitrate, and ozone (O3) in single-pollutant models. The increase in 8-OHdG, fibrinogen, and PAI-1, and the reduction in HRV remained significantly associated with 3-day averaged sulfate and O3 levels in two-pollutant models. There were moderate correlations (r = -0.3) between blood markers of hs-CRP, fibrinogen, PAI-1, and HRV indices. Conclusions: Urban air pollution is associated with inflammation, oxidative stress, blood coagulation and autonomic dysfunction simultaneously in healthy young humans, with sulfate and O3 as two major traffic-related pollutants contributing to such effects.
Other Subjects
8 hydroxydeoxyguanosine; C reactive protein; carbon monoxide; fibrinogen; nitrate; nitrogen dioxide; plasminogen activator inhibitor 1; sulfate; sulfur dioxide; tissue plasminogen activator; adult; air monitoring; air pollution; article; autonomic dysfunction; blood clotting; cardiovascular disease; enzyme linked immunosorbent assay; fibrinolysis; heart rate variability; human; human experiment; humidity; inflammation; normal human; oxidative stress; particulate matter; pneumonia; priority journal; statistical analysis; student; Taiwan; traffic; university student; Adolescent; Adult; Air Pollutants; Air Pollution; Biological Markers; Blood Coagulation; C-Reactive Protein; Deoxyguanosine; Environmental Monitoring; Female; Fibrinogen; Heart Rate; Humans; Inflammation; Male; Oxidative Stress; Particle Size; Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1; Taiwan; Tissue Plasminogen Activator; Urban Health; Urban Population
Type
journal article