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Monitoring Redox Stress in Human Airway Epithelial Cells Exposed to Woodsmoke at an Air-Liquid Interface
Citation:
Abzhanova, A., J. Berntsen, E. Pennington, L. Dailey, S. Masood, I. George, N. Warren, J. Martin, M. Hays, A. Ghio, J. Weinstein, Yong Ho Kim, E. Puckett, AND J. Samet. Monitoring Redox Stress in Human Airway Epithelial Cells Exposed to Woodsmoke at an Air-Liquid Interface. Particle and Fibre Toxicology. BioMed Central Ltd, London, Uk, 21:14, (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12989-024-00575-9
Impact/Purpose:
The toxicity of woodsmoke arising from sources such as wildfires, contains a complex mixture of gases, volatile organic compounds, and particulate matter. Our study is aimed at better understanding the effects of woodsmoke inhalation by employing an advanced in vitro exposure system that simulates human exposure of the airway epithelium to pollutants such as woodsmoke. The objective of the present study is to highlight the design, fabrication and validation of an integrated system that may be used to investigate the early oxidative effects of woodsmoke in vitro. We report the development and characterization of a novel exposure system that permits live cell imaging of human bronchial epithelial cells cultured at an air-liquid-interface (HBEC-ALI) as they are exposed directly to unfractionated woodsmoke generated in real-time.
Description:
Wildland fres contribute signifcantly to the ambient air pollution burden worldwide, causing a range of adverse health efects in exposed populations. The toxicity of woodsmoke, a complex mixture of gases, volatile organic compounds, and particulate matter, is commonly studied in vitro using isolated exposures of conventionally cultured lung cells to either resuspended particulate matter or organic solvent extracts of smoke, leading to incomplete toxicity evaluations. This study aimed to improve our understanding of the efects of woodsmoke inhalation by building an advanced in vitro exposure system that emulates human exposure of the airway epithelium. We report the development and characterization of an innovative system that permits live-cell monitoring of the intracellular redox status of diferentiated primary human bronchial epithelial cells cultured at an air–liquid interface (pHBEC-ALI) as they are exposed to unfractionated woodsmoke generated in a tube furnace in real time. pHBEC-ALI exposed to freshly generated woodsmoke showed oxidative changes that were dose-dependent and reversible, and not attributable to carbon monoxide exposure. These fndings show the utility of this novel system for studying the molecular initiating events underlying woodsmoke-induced toxicity in a physiologically relevant in vitro model, and its potential to provide biological plausibility for risk assessment and public health measures.
URLs/Downloads:
DOI: Monitoring Redox Stress in Human Airway Epithelial Cells Exposed to Woodsmoke at an Air-Liquid Interface