A cohort study of the multipollutant effects of PM, NO, and O on C-reactive protein levels during pregnancy.

Background: PM NO, and O contribute to the development of adverse pregnancy complications. While studies have investigated the independent effects of these exposures, literature on their combined effects is limited. Our objective was to study the multipollutant effects of PM, NO, and O on maternal systemic C-reactive protein (CRP) levels.

Concordance between In Vitro and In Vivo Relative Toxic Potencies of Diesel Exhaust Particles from Different Biodiesel Blends.

Diesel exhaust particles (DEPs) contribute to air pollution exposure-related adverse health impacts. Here, we examined in vitro, and in vivo toxicities of DEPs from a Caterpillar C11 heavy-duty diesel engine emissions using ultra-low-sulfur diesel (ULSD) and biodiesel blends (20% /) of canola (B20C), soy (B20S), or tallow-waste fry oil (B20T) in ULSD. The in vitro effects of DEPs (DEP, DEP, DEP, and DEP) in exposed mouse monocyte/macrophage cells (J774A.

Prenatal exposure to perfluoroalkyl substances and inflammatory biomarker concentrations.

Unlabelled: Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are persistent environmental contaminants that induce immunotoxicity in experimental studies; however, epidemiological evidence-particularly during pregnancy-is scarce. We quantified associations between first trimester plasma perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), and perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS) concentrations and third trimester concentrations of inflammatory biomarkers and determined if these associations were modified by fetal sex.

Methods: We analyzed data from 1411 participants, recruited between 2008 and 2011, in the Maternal-Infant Research on Environmental Chemicals study.

Adverse outcome pathways and linkages to transcriptomic effects relevant to ionizing radiation injury.

Background: In the past three decades, a large body of data on the effects of exposure to ionizing radiation and the ensuing changes in gene expression has been generated. These data have allowed for an understanding of molecular-level events and shown a level of consistency in response despite the vast formats and experimental procedures being used across institutions. However, clarity on how this information may inform strategies for health risk assessment needs to be explored.

toxicity screening of amorphous silica nanoparticles using mitochondrial fraction exposure followed by MS-based proteomic analysis.

Silica nanoparticles (SiNPs) are used in consumer products, engineering and medical technologies. Attractive properties of SiNPs ( size/surface-modification) enhance usage and thus the likelihood of environmental/human exposures. The assessment of health risks associated with exposures to SiNPs requires information on their relative potencies and toxicity mechanisms.

Blood metals and vitamin D status in a pregnancy cohort: A bidirectional biomarker analysis.

Low 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD), a biomarker of vitamin D status, is associated with reduced immune function and adverse pregnancy outcomes, such as preterm birth. Observational studies indicate that long-term, high level exposure to metals such as cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) can impact a person's vitamin D status. However, the directionality of the association is uncertain, particularly for low-level exposures.

Acute cardiovascular effects of inhaled ambient particulate matter: Chemical composition-related oxidative stress, endothelin-1, blood pressure, and ST-segment changes in Wistar rats.

Short-term increases in particulate matter (PM) are associated with heightened morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular causes. Inhalation of PM is known to increase endothelin (ET)-1 levels. Yet, less is known about particle composition-related changes at the molecular level including the endothelinergic system and relationship with cardiovascular function changes.

Ambient air pollution and inflammatory effects in a Canadian pregnancy cohort.

Background: Epidemiologic studies have consistently reported associations between air pollution and pregnancy outcomes including preeclampsia and gestational diabetes. However, the biologic mechanisms underlying these relationships remain unclear as few studies have collected relevant biomarker data. We examined relationships between ambient PM and NO with markers of inflammation during pregnancy in a prospective cohort of Canadian women.

Toxic Metal Species and 'Endogenous' Metalloproteins at the Blood-Organ Interface: Analytical and Bioinorganic Aspects.

Globally, human exposure to environmental pollutants causes an estimated 9 million deaths per year and it could also be implicated in the etiology of diseases that do not appear to have a genetic origin. Accordingly, there is a need to gain information about the biomolecular mechanisms that causally link exposure to inorganic environmental pollutants with distinct adverse health effects. Although the analysis of blood plasma and red blood cell (RBC) cytosol can provide important biochemical information about these mechanisms, the inherent complexity of these biological matrices can make this a difficult task.

In vitro exposure of human lens epithelial cells to X-rays at varied dose-rates leads to protein-level changes relevant to cataractogenesis.

Background: Accumulated body of evidence shows that ionizing radiation increases the risk of cataracts. The mechanisms are not clear and the International Commission on Radiological Protection indicates a need for research into understanding the process, particularly at low doses and low dose rates of exposure.

Purpose: This study was designed to examine protein-level modifications in a human lens epithelial (HLE) cell-line following radiation exposures.

Effect of industrial point-source air pollutants on fractional exhaled nitric oxide in healthy volunteers.

Background: Few studies have examined the effects of industrial, fixed-site sources of air pollution on lung inflammation in nearby residents. We investigated the effects of short-term exposure to ambient air near a steel plant on the fractional exhaled concentration of nitric oxide (FeNO), a measure of airway inflammation, in healthy volunteers.

Methods: A cross-over study design was used.

Oxidative and Toxicological Evolution of Engineered Nanoparticles with Atmospherically Relevant Coatings.

The health impacts associated with engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) released into the atmosphere have not been adequately assessed. Such impacts could potentially arise from the toxicity associated with condensable atmospheric secondary organic material (SOM), or changes in the SOM composition induced by ENPs. Here, these possibilities are evaluated by investigating the oxidative and toxicological evolution of TiO and SiO nanoparticles which have been coated with SOM from the O or OH initiated oxidation of α-pinene.

Characterization of maternal plasma biomarkers associated with delivery of small and large for gestational age infants in the MIREC study cohort.

Objective: Neonatal morbidity and mortality can be influenced by maternal health status. Information on maternal and fetal biomarkers of adverse health outcomes is limited. This work aims at identifying maternal biomarkers associated with low and high birth weight for gestational age groups.

Cardiovascular and inflammatory mechanisms in healthy humans exposed to air pollution in the vicinity of a steel mill.

Background: There is a paucity of mechanistic information that is central to the understanding of the adverse health effects of source emission exposures. To identify source emission-related effects, blood and saliva samples from healthy volunteers who spent five days near a steel plant (Bayview site, with and without a mask that filtered many criteria pollutants) and at a well-removed College site were tested for oxidative stress, inflammation and endothelial dysfunction markers.

Methods: Biomarker analyses were done using multiplexed protein-array, HPLC-Fluorescence, EIA and ELISA methods.

Oxidative and nitrative stress-related changes in human lens epithelial cells following exposure to X-rays.

Purpose: There is limited understanding of the mechanistic effects of ionizing radiation (IR) exposure in cataract formation. In this study, we explored the effects of IR on reactive oxygen/nitrogen species (ROS and RNS) generation in human lens epithelial (HLE) cells as an early key event to long-term damage.

Materials And Methods: HLE cell-line was exposed to X-rays at varied doses (0-5 Gy) and dose-rates.

In vitro toxicoproteomic analysis of A549 human lung epithelial cells exposed to urban air particulate matter and its water-soluble and insoluble fractions.

Background: Toxicity of airborne particulate matter (PM) is difficult to assess because PM composition is complex and variable due to source contribution and atmospheric transformation. In this study, we used an in vitro toxicoproteomic approach to identify the toxicity mechanisms associated with different subfractions of Ottawa urban dust (EHC-93).

Methods: A549 human lung epithelial cells were exposed to 0, 60, 140 and 200 μg/cm doses of EHC-93 (total), its insoluble and soluble fractions for 24 h.

Exposure to air pollution near a steel plant is associated with reduced heart rate variability: a randomised crossover study.

Background: Epidemiological studies have shown that as ambient air pollution (AP) increases the risk of cardiovascular mortality also increases. The mechanisms of this effect may be linked to alterations in autonomic nervous system function. We wished to examine the effects of industrial AP on heart rate variability (HRV), a measure of subtle changes in heart rate and rhythm representing autonomic input to the heart.

Ser phosphorylation blocks human Tau cleavage by caspase-3: Biochemical implications to Alzheimer's Disease.

Proteolytic truncation of microtubule associated human (h) Tau protein by caspase-3 at the carboxy (C) terminus has been linked to the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's Disease (AD). This cleavage likely occurs between Asp↓Ser leading to the formation of 421-mer truncated Tau protein which has been found to be present as aggregate in high level after phosphorylation in mortal AD brain tissue compared to normal. At least 50 phosphorylation sites involving Ser, Thr and Tyr residues have been identified or proposed in hTau and a selected number of them have been implicated in hTau aggregation following latter's proteolytic truncation.

Responses of A549 human lung epithelial cells to cristobalite and α-quartz exposures assessed by toxicoproteomics and gene expression analysis.

In this study, we used cytotoxicity assays, proteomic and gene expression analyses to examine the difference in response of A549 cells to two silica particles that differ in physical properties, namely cristobalite (CR) and α-quartz (Min-U-Sil 5, MI). Cytotoxicity assays such as lactate dehydrogenase release, 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine incorporation and cellular ATP showed that both silica particles could cause cell death, decreased cell proliferation and metabolism in the A549 human lung epithelial cells. While cytotoxicity assays revealed little difference between CR and MI exposures, proteomic and gene expression analyses unveiled both similar and unique molecular changes in A549 cells.

Associations between urinary biomarkers of oxidative stress and air pollutants observed in a randomized crossover exposure to steel mill emissions.

The effects of industrial air pollution on human health have not been as thoroughly investigated as those of urban air pollution which originates mostly from automotive transport. To better assess the health impacts of point sources of industrial air pollution, a randomized crossover exposure study was conducted. Sixty one young and healthy volunteers were randomly assigned to spend five consecutive eight-hour days near a steel mill or at a location five kilometres away.

Proteomic changes in human lung epithelial cells (A549) in response to carbon black and titanium dioxide exposures.

Unlabelled: This study combined cytotoxicity assays with proteomic analysis to characterize the unique biological responses of the A549 human lung epithelial cell line to two physicochemically distinct respirable particles titanium dioxide (TiO) and carbon black (CB). Cellular LDH, ATP, BrdU incorporation and resazurin reduction indicated that CB was more potent than TiO. Proteomic analysis was done using 2D-GE and MALDI-TOF-TOF-MS.

Human lung epithelial cell A549 proteome data after treatment with titanium dioxide and carbon black.

Here, we have described the dataset relevant to the A549 cellular proteome changes after exposure to either titanium dioxide or carbon black particles as compared to the non-exposed controls, "Proteomic changes in human lung epithelial cells (A549) in response to carbon black and titanium dioxide exposures" (Vuong et al., 2016) [1]. Detailed methodologies on the separation of cellular proteins by 2D-GE and the subsequent mass spectrometry analyses using MALDI-TOF-TOF-MS are documented.

Infant birth weight and third trimester maternal plasma markers of vascular integrity: the MIREC study.

Background: There is paucity of information on mechanisms constituting adverse birth outcomes. We assessed here the relationship between vascular integrity and adverse birth effects.

Methods And Results: Third trimester maternal plasma (n = 144) from the Maternal-Infant Research on Environmental Chemicals Study (MIREC) was analysed for vascular, inflammatory and oxidative stress markers by HPLC-fluorescence, protein array and EIA method.