Ozone, a major photochemical pollutant, produces rapid damages in the pulmonary airway tract and in the central nervous system. This study focused on the neural mechanisms underlying the adaptive responses to an acute ozone exposure. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a factor associated with cellular recovery following brain injury. The aim of this study was to assess and localize the cellular expression of VEGF, since the central respiratory areas show a neuroplasticity in response to ozone. Adult rats were subjected to 0.5ppm ozone for 3h and then recovered for further 3h. The expression of VEGF was evaluated by immunocytochemistry in the central respiratory areas, i.e., the nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) and the ventrolateral medulla (VLM). The data show a VEGF overexpression at the end of ozone exposure, which persisted during the 3-h recovery. Interestingly, using confocal analysis the bulk of VEGF labeling was observed in astroglial cell bodies and branches, while neuronal labeling was hardly noticed. Moreover, VEGF colocalized with IL-6 and TNFalpha in astrocytes closely apposed to blood vessel walls. The vasculature area was markedly increased (+58%) during post-ozone recovery. The data show that an acute ozone exposure affects primarily glial cells in the central nervous system. The VEGF up-regulation which persists after ozone exposure may contribute to brain repair and consecutive functional adaptations.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neuro.2008.09.006 | DOI Listing |
JACC Adv
December 2024
Centre for Cardiovascular Science, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
Background: Air pollution is a significant environmental risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), but its impact on African populations is under-researched due to limited air quality data and health studies.
Objectives: The purpose of this study was to synthesize available research on the effects of air pollution on CVDs outcomes in African populations, identify knowledge gaps, and suggest areas for research and policy intervention.
Methods: A systematic search of PubMed was conducted using terms capturing criteria ambient air pollutants (for example particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, and sulfur dioxide) and CVDs and countries in Africa.
ERJ Open Res
January 2025
Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology B and Immunology, University of Murcia, Murcia, Spain.
Introduction: Exposure to environmental factors ( air pollution and second-hand tobacco smoke) have been associated with impaired lung function. However, the impact of environmental factors on lung health is usually evaluated separately and not with an exposomic framework. In this regard, breath analysis could be a noninvasive tool for biomonitoring of global human environmental exposure.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFACS Appl Mater Interfaces
January 2025
Department of Chemical Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, United States.
Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries, with their superior energy densities, are emerging as promising successors to conventional lithium-ion batteries. However, their widespread adoption is hindered by challenges such as the shuttle effect of polysulfides, which affects discharge capacity and cycling stability. This study explores the transformative potential of atomic layer deposition (ALD) of AlO on commercial PP/PE/PP separators (Celgard), combined with the use of UV ozone exposure to enhance ALD nucleation on the separator surface, to address these challenges.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBMC Med Inform Decis Mak
January 2025
Renaissance Computing Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
Background: Environmental exposures such as airborne pollutant exposures and socio-economic indicators are increasingly recognized as important to consider when conducting clinical research using electronic health record (EHR) data or other sources of clinical data such as survey data. While numerous public sources of geospatial and spatiotemporal data are available to support such research, the data are challenging to work with due to inconsistencies in file formats and spatiotemporal resolutions, computational challenges with large file sizes, and a lack of tools for patient- or subject-level data integration.
Results: We developed FHIR PIT (HL7® Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources Patient data Integration Tool) as an open-source, modular, data-integration software pipeline that consumes EHR data in FHIR® format and integrates the data at the level of the patient or subject with environmental exposures data of varying spatiotemporal resolutions and file formats.
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int
January 2025
Slovak Hydrometeorological Institute, Jeséniova 17, Bratislava, 833 15, Slovakia.
This study focused on testing the response of the assimilation apparatus of evergreen Pinaceae species to increasing levels of oxidative stress simulated in manipulative experiments. Needles were collected from mature individuals of Pinus mugo, Pinus cembra, Pinus sylvestris, Abies alba, and Picea abies at the foothill (FH) and alpine treeline ecotone (ATE) in the High Tatras (Western Carpathians). The injury index (INX), quantified by the modified electrolyte leakage (EL) method, indicated severe needle damage due to exposure to extremely high levels of O.
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