Cellular effects of PM2.5 from Suzhou, China: relationship to chemical composition and endotoxin content

Xin, Lili; Wang, Jianshu; Sun, Jiaojiao; Zhang, Chen; Tong, Xing; Wan, Jianmei; Feng, Jialiang; Tian, Hailin; Zhang, Zengli

Cellular effects of PM2.5 from Suzhou, China: relationship to chemical composition and endotoxin content

2021

Exposure to PM₂.₅ can cause adverse health outcomes. In this study, we analyzed PM₂.₅ samples collected from suburban and urban sites, including a traffic tunnel in Suzhou, China, for their physicochemical properties, endotoxin contents, and effects on HepG2 and A549 cells in vitro. The greatest cellular responses, including oxidative stress, cytotoxicity, genotoxicity, inflammatory, and transcriptional activation of stress-responsive genes (i.e., HSPA1A, GADD45α), were observed in cells treated with traffic tunnel PM₂.₅. Cytokine expression was also measured and closely correlated with endotoxin content, while other toxic effects were largely related to PM₂.₅-bound metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These findings suggested that chemical and biological composition of PM₂.₅, including adsorbed trace metals, PAHs, and endotoxin, may contribute significantly to their toxicity. In addition to commonly used in vitro toxicity tests, HSPA1A and GADD45α promoter-driven luciferase reporter cells may provide a potential new tool for rapid screening and quantification of PM₂.₅ toxicity.

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