Lung cell toxicity of co-exposure to airborne particulate matter and extremely low-frequency magnetic field

Abstract

1. Although the toxic effects of urban airborne particulate matter (PM) have been known on lung cells, there is less attention to co-exposure to PM and extremely low frequency magnetic (ELF-MF) in occupational settings. The present study investigated the influences of PM and ELF-MF co-exposure on toxicity in human lung cells (A549).

2. In this case, total PM (TPM) was evaluated according to NIOSH-0500. The TPM SiO₂ and metal contents were determined based on NIOSH-7602 and 7302, respectively. Besides, 900 mG ELF-MF exposure was simulated based on field measurements. The toxicity mechanisms were assessed by examining malondialdehyde, glutathione ratio, gene expression, and DNA strand breaks. Also, the toxicity indicators of the TPM samples were MDA generation, glutathione depletion, and DNA damage, and their impacts were analysed at doses below the LD₅₀ (4 µg).

3. In addition, gene expression of OGG1 and MTH1 was upregulated after TPM exposure at the lowest dose (2 µg). But ITPA was upregulated in the presence of ELF-MF. The co-exposure to TPM and ELF-MF decreased oxidative stress and DNA damage levels compared to a single exposure to TPM.

4. Although the ELF-MF reduced toxicity in response to TPM, this reduction was not lower than the unexposed cells.

Keywords:

• ELF-MF
• total particulate matter
• A549 cell line
• gene expression
• toxicity
• occupational exposure

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the support of the Iran National Science Foundation (INSF) and Neuroscience Research Center (NRC), Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Science, Tehran, Iran.

Ethical approval

All procedures were approved by the Committee on Research Ethics at Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences (IR.SBMU.PHNS.REC.1397.022).

Consent for publication

The authors declare consent for publication.

Author contributions

Panjali Z. drafted the manuscript and performed laboratory analysis and experiments. Abdolmaleki P. and Zendehdel R. advised the project. Hajipour-Verdom B. contributed to data analysis and experiments. Zendehdel R. and Hahad O. drafted the manuscript and critically revised the manuscript for important intellectual content. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, R.Z. upon reasonable request.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Additional information

Funding

The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: Iran National Science Foundation (INSF, Project No. 98016673).