Cyclic Ozone Exposure Induces Gender-Dependent Neuropathology and Memory Decline in an Animal Model of Alzheimer's Disease.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a major cause of dementia in the elderly. Although early-onset (familial) AD is attributed to gene mutations, the cause for late-onset (sporadic) AD, which accounts for 95% of AD cases, is unknown. In this study, we show that exposure of 6-week-old amyloid beta precursor protein (APP)/presenilin (PS1) overexpressing mice, a well-established animal model of AD, and nontransgenic littermates to a cyclic O3 exposure protocol, which mimics environmental exposure episodes, accelerated learning/memory function loss in male APP/PS1 mice but not in female APP/PS1 mice or nontransgenic littermates.

Site-specific dynamics of CD11b+ and CD103+ dendritic cell accumulations following ozone exposure.

Pulmonary dendritic cells (DCs) are among the first responders to inhaled environmental stimuli such as ozone (O(3)), which has been shown to activate these cells. O(3) reacts with epithelial lining fluid (ELF) components in an anatomically site-specific manner dictated by O(3) concentration, airway flow patterns, and ELF substrate concentration. Accordingly, the anatomical distribution of ELF reaction products and airway injury are hypothesized to produce selective DC maturation differentially within the airways.

Desferrioxamine inhibits protein tyrosine nitration: mechanisms and implications.

Tissues are exposed to exogenous and endogenous nitrogen dioxide ((·)NO(2)), which is the terminal agent in protein tyrosine nitration. Besides iron chelation, the hydroxamic acid (HA) desferrioxamine (DFO) shows multiple functionalities including nitration inhibition. To investigate mechanisms whereby DFO affects 3-nitrotyrosine (3-NT) formation, we utilized gas-phase (·)NO(2) exposures, to limit introduction of other reactive species, and a lung surface model wherein red cell membranes (RCM) were immobilized under a defined aqueous film.

Transforming growth factor β suppresses glutamate-cysteine ligase gene expression and induces oxidative stress in a lung fibrosis model.

The concentration of glutathione (GSH), the most abundant intracellular free thiol and an important antioxidant, is decreased in the lung in both fibrotic diseases and experimental fibrosis models. The underlying mechanisms and biological significance of GSH depletion, however, remain unclear. Transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) is the most potent and ubiquitous profibrogenic cytokine and its expression is increased in almost all fibrotic diseases.

Increased transforming growth factor beta 1 expression mediates ozone-induced airway fibrosis in mice.

Ozone (O₃), a commonly encountered environmental pollutant, has been shown to induce pulmonary fibrosis in different animal models; the underlying mechanism, however, remains elusive. To investigate the molecular mechanism underlying O₃-induced pulmonary fibrosis, 6- to 8-week-old C57BL/6 male mice were exposed to a cyclic O₃ exposure protocol consisting of 2 days of filtered air and 5 days of O₃ exposure (0.5 ppm, 8 h/day) for 5 and 10 cycles with or without intraperitoneal injection of IN-1233, a specific inhibitor of the type 1 receptor of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β), the most potent profibrogenic cytokine.

Persistent rhinitis and epithelial remodeling induced by cyclic ozone exposure in the nasal airways of infant monkeys.

Children chronically exposed to high levels of ozone (O(3)), the principal oxidant pollutant in photochemical smog, are more vulnerable to respiratory illness and infections. The specific factors underlying this differential susceptibility are unknown but may be related to air pollutant-induced nasal alterations during postnatal development that impair the normal physiological functions (e.g.

Postnatal episodic ozone results in persistent attenuation of pulmonary and peripheral blood responses to LPS challenge.

Early life is a dynamic period of growth for the lung and immune system. We hypothesized that ambient ozone exposure during postnatal development can affect the innate immune response to other environmental challenges in a persistent fashion. To test this hypothesis, we exposed infant rhesus macaque monkeys to a regimen of 11 ozone cycles between 30 days and 6 mo of age; each cycle consisted of ozone for 5 days (0.

Pulmonary ozone exposure induces vascular dysfunction, mitochondrial damage, and atherogenesis.

More than 100 million people in the United States live in areas that exceed current ozone air quality standards. In addition to its known pulmonary effects, environmental ozone exposures have been associated with increased hospital admissions related to cardiovascular events, but to date, no studies have elucidated the potential molecular mechanisms that may account for exposure-related vascular impacts. Because of the known pulmonary redox and immune biology stemming from ozone exposure, we hypothesized that ozone inhalation would initiate oxidant stress, mitochondrial damage, and dysfunction within the vasculature.

Three-dimensional mapping of ozone-induced injury in the nasal airways of monkeys using magnetic resonance imaging and morphometric techniques.

Age-related changes in gross and microscopic structure of the nasal cavity may alter local tissue susceptibility as well as the dose of inhaled toxicant delivered to susceptible sites. This article describes a novel method for the use of magnetic resonance imaging, 3-dimensional airway modeling, and morphometric techniques to characterize the distribution and magnitude of ozone-induced nasal injury in infant monkeys. Using this method, we generated age-specific, 3-dimensional, epithelial maps of the nasal airways of infant Rhesus macaques.

Antioxidant-mediated augmentation of ozone-induced membrane oxidation.

The pulmonary epithelial lining fluid (ELF) contains substrates, e.g., ascorbic acid (AH2), uric acid (UA), glutathione (GSH), proteins, and unsaturated lipids, which undergo facile reaction with inhaled ozone (O3).

Interfacial phospholipids inhibit ozone-reactive absorption-mediated cytotoxicity in vitro.

The intrapulmonary distribution of inhaled ozone (O(3)) and induction of site-specific cell injury are related to complex interactions among airflow patterns, local gas-phase concentrations, and the rates of O(3) flux into, and reaction and diffusion within, the epithelial lining fluid (ELF). Recent studies demonstrated that interfacial phospholipid films appreciably inhibited NO(2) absorption. Because surface-active phospholipids are present on alveolar and airway interfaces, we investigated the effects of interfacial films on O(3)-reactive absorption and acute cell injury.

Influence of epithelial lining fluid lipids on NO(2)-induced membrane oxidation and nitration.

Within the pulmonary epithelial lining layer (ELF), antioxidants such as ascorbic acid (AH(2)) and glutathione (GSH) react with inhaled nitrogen dioxide ((*)NO(2)) to produce reactive oxygen species (ROS) that induce cellular oxidation. Because the ELF contains unsaturated fatty acids (UFA), which potentially react with (*)NO(2) and/or the antioxidant-derived ROS, we studied the influence of aqueous phase model UFA [egg phosphatidylcholine (EggPC) liposomes] on exposure-induced oxidation and nitration of membranes. Our lung surface model used gas phase (*)NO(2) exposures of immobilized red cell membranes (RCM) overlaid with defined aqueous phases.