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Environmental Sciences Seminar Abstract How Quickly Does
Inhaled Particulate Air Pollution cause Health Understanding how quickly particulate air pollution (PM) causes health effects can provide important clues about the biological mechanisms involved in PM-related morbidity and mortality. Times series studies have shown that the lag time between elevated PM and increases in cardiopulmonary-related hospital admissions and death is very short- one day or less. If PM does cause serious respiratory and cardiovascular effects shortly after exposure, one would expect to see some physiological change during exposure. However, little is known about the immediate effects of PM during exposure in humans or animals. We have examined the effects of concentrated ambient PM on spontaneously hypertensive rats with surgically implanted blood pressure transmitters to determine whether PM causes immediate effects. The rats were also exposed to sulfuric acid aerosols because acid is one of the components of PM that could potentially activate irritant receptors and cause effects during exposure. The use of telemeters allowed us to examine the time course of cardiopulmonary effects during exposure to PM as well as during exposure to fine and ultra fine sulfuric acid aerosols. This study showed that inhalation of PM and acid aerosols by hypertensive rats does have immediate effects on cardiopulmonary function during exposure. The pattern of the response to inhaled PM is consistent with activation of irritant receptors in the respiratory tract. |
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