Centre for Sustainable Nanotechnology, School of Chemical and Life Sciences, Nanyang Polytechnic, 569830, Singapore; Department of Food Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, McGill University, 21111 Lakeshore, Ste Anne de Bellevue, Quebec, H9X3V9, Canada.
Centre for Sustainable Nanotechnology, School of Chemical and Life Sciences, Nanyang Polytechnic, 569830, Singapore.
Chemosphere. 2020 Mar;243:125401. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2019.125401. Epub 2019 Nov 18.
Severe haze episodes originating from biomass burning are common in Southeast Asia. However, there is a paucity of data on the personal exposure and characteristics of Particulate Matter (PM) present in ambient air during haze and non-haze periods. Aims of this study were to monitor 24 h ambulatory exposure to PM among school children in Singapore; characterize haze and non-haze PM for their physicochemical properties, cytotoxicity and inflammatory potential, using bronchial epithelial cell culture model (BEAS-2B). Forty-six children had ambulatory PM exposure monitored using portable Aethalometer and their hourly activity recorded. The mean (±SE) PM exposure on a typical school day was 3343 (±174.4) ng/m/min. Higher PM exposure was observed during haze periods and during commuting to and from the school. Characterization of PM collected showed a drastic increase in the proportion of ultrafine particle (UFP) in haze PM. These PM fraction showed higher level of sulphur, potassium and trace metals in comparison to those collected during non-haze periods. Dose dependent increases in abiotic reactive oxygen species generation, activation of NF-κB and cytotoxicity were observed for both haze and non-haze PM. Generally, haze PM induced significantly higher release of IL-6, IL-8 and TNFα by BEAS-2B cells in comparison to non-haze PM. In summary, this study provides experimental evidence for higher PM exposure during haze period which has the potential to elicit oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory cytokine release from airway epithelial cells.
生物质燃烧引发的严重雾霾在东南亚地区很常见。然而，关于雾霾和非雾霾时期环境空气中颗粒物（PM）的个人暴露水平和特性，相关数据却十分有限。本研究旨在监测新加坡在校儿童的 24 小时动态 PM 暴露情况；并利用支气管上皮细胞培养模型（BEAS-2B），对雾霾和非雾霾 PM 的理化特性、细胞毒性和炎症潜能进行特征分析。46 名儿童使用便携式 Aethalometer 监测其 24 小时的 PM 暴露情况，并记录其每小时的活动情况。典型上学日的 PM 暴露平均值（±SE）为 3343（±174.4）ng/m/min。在雾霾期间以及上下学通勤期间，PM 暴露量更高。对收集到的 PM 进行特征分析表明，雾霾 PM 中超细颗粒物（UFP）的比例急剧增加。与非雾霾时期相比，这些 PM 颗粒的硫、钾和痕量金属含量更高。对于雾霾和非雾霾 PM，均观察到生物惰性活性氧物质生成、NF-κB 激活和细胞毒性呈剂量依赖性增加。一般来说，与非雾霾 PM 相比，BEAS-2B 细胞释放的 IL-6、IL-8 和 TNFα 明显更高。总之，本研究为雾霾期 PM 暴露水平更高提供了实验证据，这可能会诱发气道上皮细胞的氧化应激和促炎细胞因子释放。
