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Diesel exhaust exposure enhances the ozone-induced airway inflammation in healthy humans

Dept of Respiratory Medicine and Allergy, University Hospital, Umeå, Sweden.

CORRESPONDENCE: J. Bosson, Dept of Respiratory Medicine and Allergy, University Hospital, SE-901 85 Umeå, Sweden. Fax: 46 90141369. E-mail: jenny.bosson{at}gmail.com

Keywords: Air pollution, bronchoscopy, neutrophils, particulate matter, sequential exposure

Received: June 27, 2007
Accepted February 15, 2008

Exposure to particulate matter and ozone cause adverse airway reactions. Individual pollutant effects are often addressed separately, despite coexisting in ambient air. The present investigation was performed to study the effects of sequential exposures to diesel exhaust (DE) and ozone on airway inflammation in human subjects.

Healthy subjects underwent bronchoscopy with bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and bronchial wash (BW) sampling on two occasions. Once following a DE exposure (with 300 µg·m^–3 particles with a 50% cut-off aerodynamic diameter of 10 µm) with subsequent exposure to O₃ (0.2 ppm) 5 h later. The other bronchoscopy was performed after a filtered air exposure followed by an ozone exposure, using an identical protocol. Bronchoscopy was performed 24 h after the start of the initial exposure.

Significant increases in neutrophil and macrophage numbers were found in BW after DE followed by ozone exposure versus air followed by ozone exposure. DE pre-exposure also raised eosinophil protein X levels in BAL compared with air.

The present study indicates additive effects of diesel exhaust on the ozone-induced airway inflammation. Together with similar results from a recent study with sequential diesel exhaust and ozone exposures, the present data stress a need to consider the interaction and cumulative effects of different air pollutants.