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Patients with asthma demonstrate airway inflammation after exposure to concentrated ambient particulate matter
Citation:
Alexis, N., Y. Huang, A. Rappold, H. Kehrl, R. Devlin, AND D. Peden. Patients with asthma demonstrate airway inflammation after exposure to concentrated ambient particulate matter. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF RESPIRATORY AND CRITICAL CARE MEDICINE. American Thoracic Society, New York, NY, 190(2):235-7, (2014).
Impact/Purpose:
..To the Editor"': Of the three major particulate matter (PM) size fractions (ultrafme, fine and coarse),coarse PM (PM2.5-10) has been the least examined in terms of its health effects on susceptible populations.
Description:
..To the Editor"': Of the three major particulate matter (PM) size fractions (ultrafme, fine and coarse),coarse PM (PM2.5- 10) has been the least examined in terms of its health effects on susceptible populations, this despite having characteristics that make it particularly likely to affect those with airway diseases like asthma. For example, PM2.5-10 preferentially deposits in the bronchial airways, a site proximal to asthma pathology, 1 and contains biological agents such as endotoxin and allergens and that are primary triggers associated with asthma exacerbation. 2 We have reported that endotoxin inhalation challenge in allergic asthmatics enhances airway inflammation, a key underlying pathophysiological feature of asthma, and modifies airway phagocyte function four to six hours following exposure.3 We have also shown that late phase allergen responsive asthmatics demonstrate enhanced bronchial airway deposition of inhaled particles and slowed clearance of those particles from the central airways four hours following particle inhalation, a time coinciding with enhanced inflammation from endotoxin inhalation.4 Hence,specific characteristics of PM2.5-10, together with the fact that asthmatics compared to non-asthmatics. have greater sensitivity to air pollutants in general,5 make it likely that asthmatics will demonstrate deleterious pulmonary responses following exposure to PM2.5-10. These responses however, remain largely speculative since they have only been described in healthy individuals. Indeed, we have previously shown that healthy individuals exposed to coarse size (PM2.5-10) concentrated ambient particles (CAPs) demonstrated only modest increases in pulmonary neutrophil levels with no increase in inflammatory mediators.6 The assumption that asthmatics will demonstrate a comparatively more robust inflammatory response than non-asthmatics must be verified by a proof of concept study.