Air pollution linked to increased rheumatoid arthritis severity

Posted on November 4, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Air pollution is associated with increased rheumatoid arthritis (RA) disease severity, according to a study published in the October issue of Rheumatology.

Giovanni Adami, M.D., Ph.D., from the University of Verona in Italy, and colleagues collected longitudinal data of patients affected by RA and the daily concentrations of air pollutants in the Verona area to examine the correlation between RA flares and air pollution in a case-crossover study. Exposure to pollutants was compared in the 30- and 60-day periods preceding an arthritic flare relative to the 30- and 60-day exposure preceding a low-disease activity visit.

Data were included for 888 RA patients with 3,396 follow-up visits. The researchers identified an exposure-response relationship between air pollutant concentration and the risk for having abnormal C-reactive protein (CRP) levels. The risk for having CRP levels ≥5 mg/L were increased for patients exposed to higher concentrations of air pollutants. In the 60-day period preceding a flare, concentrations of carbon monoxide, nitric oxide, nitrogen dioxide, oxides of nitrogen, particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 µm or less, and ozone were higher.

“The excessive risk was seen even at very low levels of exposure, even below the proposed threshold for the protection of human health,” the authors write. “Our study has important and direct consequences. In order to reduce the burden of RA, public and environmental health policy makers should aim to diminish gaseous and particulate matter emissions to a larger extent than currently recommended.”

Air pollution linked to increased rheumatoid arthritis severity
Posted in Air Quality, Health Effects of Air Pollution, Medical Studies | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Air pollution deaths: Emissions from G20 consumers killed two million people in 2010

Posted on November 3, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

More than half of premature deaths from air pollution worldwide in 2010 were the result of economic consumption in just 11 G20 countries

Nearly two million premature deaths from air pollution in 2010 were caused by the production of goods for consumers in G20 nations.

That’s according to a model by Keisuke Nansai at the National Institute for Environmental Studies in Tsukuba, Japan, whose group sought to identify the impact of each nation’s economic consumption on air pollution and the health problems they cause.

In 2010, the latest year for which all figures were available, consumption of goods in the 19 nations of the G20 (the European Union is the other member) resulted in almost two million air pollution-related premature deaths worldwide, with 78,600 of these in infants. The team has called for more collaboration between G20 countries to curb air pollution-related deaths caused as a direct result of the purchasing of goods.

To calculate these figures, the team mapped ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) – microscopic particles that are small enough to enter the lungs and blood where they can cause disease – and estimated the health impacts in 199 countries.

These fine particles arise from the manufacture, transport and disposal of goods. They include black carbon, or soot, which is emitted when diesel, coal and other biomass fuels are burned, together with secondary particles that form in the atmosphere as a result of other emissions.

Globalised trade means that consumption in one country can lead to PM2.5 pollution in another, so the team used trade data from 19 of the G20 nations to create “footprints” that represented the health impact of one country’s consumption in another.

China had the largest number of premature deaths caused by PM2.5 particles, followed by India, the US, Russia and Indonesia. With the exception of the US, most of these deaths were within their own borders. However, the consumption of goods in the US and 10 other G20 nations resulted in more than 50 per cent of the PM2.5-related premature deaths in other countries.

G20 countries need to take more responsibility for their entire footprint, says Nansai, rather than focusing solely on the emissions created from transporting goods across borders.

Francesca Dominici at Harvard University says that the “great majority of the responsibility is on the government and big industry”.

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions should also eventually decrease PM2.5 levels, says Dominici: “Air pollution and greenhouse gases share the same emission sources, and both affect the most vulnerable.”

Several higher-income countries, including the UK and the US, have pledged to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by the middle of the century, although these promises have been criticised by leaders of lower-income countries for not being accompanied by clear plans. China and Russia have pledged to reach net zero by 2060. Indian prime minister Narendra Modi said at the COP26 summit this week that the country will hit net-zero emissions by 2070.

“Honouring climate change agreements will save millions of lives now and also in the future,” says Dominici.

Nansai says that individual consumers can also make a difference. “We believe that consumers should pay attention to whether companies disclose their efforts to deal with air pollution throughout the life cycle of their products, and include this as a criterion for their consumption choices,” he says.

The researchers are currently analysing data from 2015 to update their findings, but are unable to say how the picture may have changed in more recent years. The covid-19 pandemic has decreased air pollution temporarily, but it is already returning to pre-pandemic levels, says Nansai.

“The air quality in developed countries will continue to improve as a result of climate change measures such as renewable energy. However, if nothing changes in developing countries, the number of premature deaths in these countries due to consumption will not change significantly,” says Nansai. “In fact, it will probably rise due to population growth and an increasing number of elderly people vulnerable to disease.”

Journal reference: Nature Communications, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-26348-y

Air pollution deaths: Emissions from G20 consumers killed two million people in 2010 | New Scientist
Posted in Air Quality | Leave a comment

Air Pollution Caused By Global Food Production Is Killing More Than 890,000 People A Year, Study Finds

Posted on November 2, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

The food we eat is one of the leading sources of the toxic ambient fine particulate matter PM2.5, leading to over 890,000 premature death per year, according to a new study examining air pollution released through the global food supply chain.  

The study by the University of Minnesota, looked into emissions across five stages of food production: pre-production (land-use change, fertilizer production) production (on-farm energy use, manure management, grazing, fertilizer use agricultural waste burning) post-production (food industry, retail), distribution, and waste. 

Most PM2.5 emissions are generated by the energy and transport sectors, by burning fossil fuels which release pollutants in the air. However, the agriculture sector has its own share of such pollutants: the research found the global food system is a significant contributor to total anthropogenic emissions of primary PM2.5 (58%), ammonia (72%), nitrogen oxides (13%), sulfur dioxide (9%), and all other organic compounds released which do not include methane (19%).

Exposure to air pollution is the world’s leading environmental (health) risk factor for mortality. According to the WHO, air pollution kills an estimate of 7 million people worldwide every year, where 4.2 million of death are linked to exposure to PM2.5. Reducing air pollution can improve public health and well-being while reducing greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change.

“Food systems pose a wicked problem. We pointed out the paradigm of “eating enough and eating right”: it is of utmost importance to meet the food demands of a growing population, but we also need to meet it with the least environmental damage,” said Srinidhi Balasubramanian, lead author of the study while carrying her Postdoctoral Research at the University of Minnesota now Assistant Professor in the Environmental Science and Engineering Department at the Indian Institute of Technology di Bombay.

By reviewing more than 4746 peer-reviewed English language publications from the past decade, the researchers found land-use change, livestock and crop production, and agricultural waste burning produces the highest amount of PM2.5 and directly affect human health. Agricultural production emissions deriving from energy use in farms and fertilizers use were dominant in North America and Europe. In Asia, Africa, and South America, land-use change from forest to feedstock and crop production, manure management, and agricultural waste burning were the primary contributors to PM2.5 emissions, particularly in Brasil, Angola, Indonesia and Thailand.

Research indicated that the number of premature deaths yearly might be even higher than the 890,000 calculated, as air pollution regulations in several countries often do not include the  emissions accounting within the agricultural sector: “We identify gaps in emissions data and air quality predictions as a major limitation in our understanding of the air quality impacts of the global food system.” Emissions from agriculture-driven land-use change and livestock in Africa, as an example, are poorly constrained in comparison to the United States and Europe,” continued Balasubramanian. 

Little is reported as well on ammonia emissions, which is heavily featured within fertilizers, and has a key role in the formation of ambient PM2.5.

Accelerating climate action in all different production stages of the agricultural sector will be vital to decrease air pollution, but without measuring emissions, countries might be unable to identify effective mitigation strategies that could reduce pollution.

Countries their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), the non-binding plans set by national governments defining  their intensions with regards to climate change-related actions, offer some examples of how a focus on air pollution can increase climate change mitigation ambition and ultimately tackle food supply chain emissions.

Most companies in the agriculture sector suggest technological solutions can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, proposing climate-smart and sustainable intensification of agriculture to curb emissions.

“Focusing on technological improvements cannot address the core problem and will only delay and deepen the engulfed climate, environmental, health, food and nutrition security crises,” says Lasse Bruun, CEO of  50by40, a global coalition of more than 70 organisations dedicated to cutting the global production and consumption of animal products by 50% by 2040.

Technological developments were found to be only a complementary mitigation practice (link to 10%) whereas reducing intensive farming practices, such as limiting fertilizers use, remains the most effective way for the food supply chain to meet global emission reduction targets.

Livestock farming and industry, which contribute to increasing PM2.5 emissions through land-use, will also need a deep transformation: “A just livestock transition can accelerate equitable food distribution, improve public health and the environment, and result in beneficial socio-economic benefits,” continued Bruun.

Increased commitments from stakeholders along the whole food supply chain will be key to tackle emissions: lowering nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide emissions within food retail, distribution and transportation could be mitigated by shifting away from fossil fuels towards cleaner and energy-efficient technologies. 

Currently, over one third of food worldwide is lost or wasted along the supply chain. New food waste management practices as well as a reduction of food production could help decrease ammonia emissions released by the decomposition of organic waste at landfill sites, which enters the air we breathe.

Air Pollution Caused By Global Food Production Is Killing More Than 890,000 People A Year, Study Finds

Posted in Air Quality, Health Effects of Air Pollution, Medical Studies | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Fresno CA residents asked to reduce pollution, clear air

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Fresno-area officials are asking San Joaquin Valley residents to tamp their output of daily pollution to help improve air quality.

The particulate matter in the air climbed Friday and reached the red level — the fourth-highest ranking out of five — overnight in parts of the Valley, according to real-time readings from the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District.

Community-based sensors from Purple Air showed air pollution Saturday that the company said could have effects on people exposed for an extended time, especially those who have other respiratory conditions. Those readings tended to be worse the farther south the sensors were in Fresno.

Residents can help improve air quality by refraining from burning and reducing their trips in gas-powered cars, according to Samir Sheikh, the district executive director and air pollution control officer.

“We’re now moving from what has been another bad wildfire season where we all unfortunately had to experience very concentrated wildfire smoke for extended durations,” he said. “We are entering into the winter season that is historically the high … particulate matter season for the San Joaquin Valley.”

Sheikh said wood burning should be left to only those who have no other source of heat during the coldest months.

Early in October, the wildfires burning in the state made Valley air smoky and too dangerous for extended exposure, according to the district.

Fresno and the Valley saw some wet weather last week and then a significant storm Monday, which were helpful for cleaning the air and moving pollution out of the area, according to meteorologist Jim Blagnall with the National Weather Service in Hanford.

Since then a high pressure system has left the air stagnant, which creates conditions that put a sort of lid on the Valley and traps bad air, he said. Day-to-day pollution, dust and other matter continues to be pushed into the air.

The kind of weather that could help will likely miss Fresno to the north on Monday, but another low pressure system seems to be on the way about Thursday or Friday, he said.

Real-time air quality by ZIP code is also available at myRAAN.com.

Valley residents can participate in the Burn Cleaner incentive program and receive as much as $3,000 to upgrade older, higher-polluting wood stoves and open-hearth fireplaces to natural gas devices. To participate in that program visit valleyair.org/burncleaner.

Fresno CA residents asked to reduce pollution, clear air | The Fresno Bee

Posted in Air Quality, USA, USA & Canada | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

UTEP study: El Paso hospitalizations increased after heavy dust days

Posted on October 29, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

High winds carrying dust across the Borderland is a common occurrence in the Chihuahua Desert. But what some might pass off as a temporary inconvenience could have long-term health consequences, a recent study found. 

A journal article published in “atmosphere” found a correlation between dust events and increased hospital admissions in El Paso. The number of patients admitted to hospitals increased from the day of a dust event to up to one week later. Increased hospital admissions after dust events were documented for conditions including coronary artery disease and Valley fever.

Estrella Herrera-Molina, who recently completed a PhD in Environmental Sciences and Engineering at UTEP, is the article’s lead author. Thomas Gill and Gabriel Ibarra-Mejia of UTEP and Soyoung Jeon of New Mexico State University are coauthors. 

The authors encourage individuals, public agencies and employers, especially of outdoor workers, to heed air pollution and dust warnings to mitigate health risks. Dust events are on the rise in the Southwest, a trend that experts expect to continue as the climate changes. 

Public health research is personal for Herrera-Molina

Born in Parral, Chihuahua, Herrera-Molina’s family moved to Juárez when she was a child. She immediately noticed the powerful dust storms that would envelop the city, where many roads are unpaved.

After undergrad at the Autonomous University of Chihuahua, Herrera-Molina completed her master’s degree at UTEP. While dust storms are commonplace in the desert, Herrera-Molina saw a gap in scientific understanding of their impact when it came time to begin her PhD research. 

“There are many studies of the impacts of air pollution from anthropogenic (human) sources,” Herrera-Molina said. “But there are few studies on the impacts of the natural air pollution.” 

Herrera-Molina wondered if health problems among her family members could be linked to the region’s high levels of air pollution.

In the El Paso-Juárez area, dust is one of the main sources of PM10, fine particulate matter that enters the lungs and bloodstream according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). PM10 levels in the region are frequently above levels recommended by the EPA.

Hospitalizations for a range of conditions follow dust storms

The researchers collected data from 2010 to 2014, finding that El Paso residents were exposed to dust events an average of 15 times a year. Each event lasted about two hours.

The researchers obtained hospitalization data from the Texas Department of State Health Services and used a regression model to determine the association between the dust and wind data and hospital admissions. They found a statistically significant increase in hospitalizations for numerous conditions from the day of the dust event to a week later.

Valley fever, a respiratory infection caused by a fungus found in dust, topped the list. While there were few hospitalizations overall for Valley fever, the rate increased significantly after dust events. While the state of Texas does not track the condition, case rates are on the rise in Arizona, New Mexico and California.

Symptoms of Valley fever usually appear at least one week after exposure, but the authors speculate that exposure to increased wind could cause fast development of symptoms, or exacerbate an infection that previously had not been detected.

Dust events also were linked to hospital admissions for coronary atherosclerosis, or coronary artery disease. Other studies have found that even just a few hours of exposure to PM can cause trigger cardiovascular problems. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warn that exposure to air pollution increases the risk of heart attacks and coronary artery disease.

“The immune system tries to engulf the particle,” Herrera-Molina said. “If there is already plaque in your veins and then these particles come into your veins it exacerbates the problem.”

Other correlations in the data were more surprising, like the increase in hospital admissions for births following dust events. Other scientific studies have found links between air pollution and premature births and low birth weight.

“It’s important to inform (expecting) moms not to be exposed to these dust events because it could affect your baby,” said Herrera-Molina. “One, two, three weeks before your delivery date, it can affect your due date.”

A 2011 study by UTEP researchers found that dust and wind events in El Paso were associated with increased odds of hospitalization for asthma and bronchitis among all ages. Rates were even higher for children, especially girls. The study found that adults on Medicaid or without health insurance had higher risks of hospitalization for asthma and acute bronchitis after dust events.

Protect yourself from dust and air pollution

The National Weather Service El Paso issues alerts for high wind and dust conditions. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) publishes a daily Air Quality Forecast.

Herrera-Molina said the next steps of research are to understand how age, gender, health insurance status and other factors impact risk. 

She said researching dust events has informed her own habits.

“I changed the windows and the doors at my house. Because I realized I could get a lot of dust inside the house,” she said. “My kid has asthma, my husband has circulatory problems. I don’t want them to get sick.”

UTEP study: El Paso hospitalizations increased after heavy dust days

Posted in Air Quality, USA, USA & Canada | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Air pollution levels and rise of childhood asthma cases linked

Posted on October 28, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

A new report by Asthma UK and the British Lung Foundation has found that more than a quarter of a million children are born in highly polluted areas, all with pollution levels that exceed the World Health Organisations recommendations set out in 2005.

Nearly a third of all hospitals in England are in areas which exceed the recommended pollution levels, including Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham and Birmingham City Hospital where air pollution levels are the highest outside of London.

Birmingham has the highest birth rates in the UK with a vastly growing population of over 2.6 million, making it the second largest city in the UK.

Research has produced evidence which suggest there is a strong correlation between air pollution and organ damage, particularly in children who are more vulnerable to developing asthma due to their faster breathing rate.

According to the NHS 1 in 11 children are living with asthma in the UK, also making up nearly a third of all paediatric hospital admissions.

“It is a national shame that a quarter of a million babies are born breathing toxic air every year” Sarah Woolnough- Chief Executive of Asthma UK and the British Lung Foundation

Currently, it costs the NHS around £1bn to care for asthma sufferers, providing treatments such as prevention Inhalers and relieve inhalers.

It is estimated that there are 36,000 premature deaths a year caused by toxic air.

The charity is asking for the UK Government to address air pollution sooner rather than later and put it at the forefront of the fight against climate change.

The new research comes ahead of next week’s UN Climate Change conference which will be held in Glasgow.

Chief Executive of Asthma UK and the British Lung Foundation, Sarah Woolnough, said: ‘It is a national shame that a quarter of a million babies are born breathing toxic air every year. How can it be acceptable that the first breath a baby takes could be so dirty it could seriously affect their long-term health? Every child deserves the best start in life and our government needs to act now to cut air pollution levels and do their duty to protect future generations from this invisible threat’.

‘The UK Government must blaze a trail, not just at COP26 but beyond, to bring in bold new clean air laws and set ambitious targets to clean up the air by 2030. If people are encouraged to swap their car for cleaner modes of transport and Government invests in more cycle routes, more frequent bus routes and if local councils expand clean air zones, there is hope that we can tackle air pollution, and all enjoy cleaner air’.

Air pollution levels and rise of childhood asthma cases linked | National Health Executive
Posted in Air Quality | Leave a comment

Baby born in area with ‘dangerously polluted air’ every two minutes in UK, study finds

Posted on October 27, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Every two minutes in the UK a baby is born in an area with “dangerously polluted air”, a study has found.

More than 250,000 babies are being born in toxic air hotspots every day, according to analysis by the Asthma UK and British Lung Foundation.

The charities have called upon the Government to end the “national shame” of air pollution and put improving air quality at the heart of its ‘levelling-up’ agenda.

More than a quarter of a million children were born in areas where levels of toxic pollutant PM2.5 exceeded World Health Organisation recommendations in 2019, a report revealed.

The top 20 most heavily polluted local authority areas in England are all based in London, according to research.

Newham Council topped the charts as having the worst levels of air pollution followed by the City of London and Waltham Forest councils.

This was followed by Westminster, Islington, Barking and Dagenham, Kensington and Chelsea, Hackney and Tower Hamlets.

David Smith, 50, from Wandsworth, south west London, is among those who say they have been affected by poor air quality in the capital.

Mr Smith and his partner kept a diary to track her medical history. He said they soon saw a correlation between Esme’s breathing difficulties and the high levels of pollution where they live.

He said: “If we took her out at a really busy time when there was traffic idling on the street, and lots of buses and lorries on the road, Esme’s breathing difficulties would always become much worse.”

After several episodes of severe respiratory distress, the doctors agreed to treat Esme as a toddler with reliever and preventer inhalers which Mr Smith administered.

He added: “Esme’s worst episode was when she was about five months old, and she became horribly quiet as every breath was difficult. I got her straight to hospital, where she was treated with a nebuliser. Fortunately, she wasn’t admitted but it was frightening watching her having to struggle for each breath.”

Mr Smith said his daughter’s breathing deteriorates when she is near heavy traffic, causing him to think “air pollution is her greatest trigger”.

He added: “The pandemic has taught us the importance of looking after our lungs, but it hasn’t resulted in cleaner air for everyone. There has been a push for more cycling and walking routes, but all this has done is to clear traffic from quieter streets and to push it onto main roads.

“This just penalises poorer children and those from ethnic minorities as they are far more likely to live in inner city areas or on busy main roads.”

Lauren Pruen, 37, had to move out of the capital because of air quality.

Up until two years ago she lived in Crouch End with her two children Sacha, five, Jacob, three, and husband Shaun.

While living in north London, Mrs Pruen’s eldest son Sacha was hospitalised 10 times with breathing difficulties.

The family were informed Sacha, then 18 months old, may need to be admitted to intensive care but his condition later stabilised.

Mrs Pruen described it as “the most terrifying experience of my life”.

Her son continued to have breathing problems until the family decided to make the move to Winchester in 2019 where they have now seen a marked inprovement in his health.

Mrs Pruen said: “Crouch End where we lived might look like a leafy village but there were big main roads everywhere full of diesel buses and articulated lorries.

“The pollution was so bad from the busy street outside that the cream curtains we had hanging in the window kept turning grey, no matter how many times I cleaned them.

“Knowing that Sacha could be struggling to breathe and hospitalised made me incredibly anxious all the time. I couldn’t relax and was terrified for his long-term health.”

She added: “I knew the bad quality of air in London was making them so much worse. We just had to move out.”

Nearly one third (29 per cent) of hospitals in England are located in polluted areas which exceed the WHO’s guidelines.

Asthma UK and the British Lung Foundation have called on the Government to bring in bolder clean air laws with targets which will be met by 2030.

Sarah Woolnough, Chief Executive of Asthma UK and the British Lung Foundation, said: “How can it be acceptable that the first breath a baby takes could be so dirty it could seriously affect their long-term health?

“Every child deserves the best start in life and our Government needs to act now to cut air pollution levels.”

Newham Council said it had “made substantial progress on our ambitious five-year Air Quality Action Plan which seeks to reduce pollution in and around schools, and extend school audits, improve walking and cycling infrastructure and support regular car free days and temporary road closures in high footfall areas”.

A spokesperson added: “We have invested in one of the largest networks of air quality monitors in the country, which now captures 90 per cent of all air data, and we have invested in 25 additional low-cost sensors to improve our work.”

The City of London and Waltham Forest councils have been contacted for a comment.

Baby born in area with ‘dangerously polluted air’ every two minutes in UK, study finds

Posted in Air Quality, Europe, London, Research on Air Pollution in the UK, UK | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Research reveals air pollution reduces sperm counts through brain inflammation

Posted on October 26, 2021 by Respro® UK Ltd

Researchers have long known that air pollution can increase the risk of disorders such as obesity, diabetes, and fertility, but they did not know the exact mechanism for how it can lead to these health conditions.

Now, University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM) researchers have shown how air pollution reduces sperm count in mice by causing inflammation in the brain.

Scientists already know that the brain has a direct line to the reproductive organs affecting fertility and sperm count under stressful conditions. For example, emotional stress can lead to skipped menstrual periods in women. However, this latest study, published on Sept. 8 in Environmental Health Perspectives, connects the dots on how breathing polluted air can lower fertility.

“Our findings showed that the damage due to air pollution—at least to the sperm count—could be remedied by removing a single inflammation marker in the brains of mice, suggesting that we may be able to develop therapies that could prevent or reverse the damaging effects of air pollution on fertility,” said lead study author Zhekang Ying, PhD, Assistant Professor of Medicine at UMSOM.

Charles Hong, MD, PhD, the Melvin Sharoky, MD Professor in Medicine and Director of Cardiology Research at UMSOM said, “These findings have wider implications than just fertility, as there are many conditions, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease that can result from brain inflammation due to air pollution.”

About 92 percent of the world population lives in areas where the level of fine particles in the air smaller than 2.5 micrometers in diameter exceed the minimum safety standards set by the World Health Organization. These particles can come from sources such as car exhaust, factory emissions, wildfires, and woodburning stoves.

In past studies, some results have shown that mice exposed to air pollution did not always have inflammation of the testes —the male sex organs that make sperm — meaning that some other mechanism was potentially responsible for reduced sperm counts. Knowing the direct link between the brain and the sex organs, the researchers tested whether air pollution increased inflammation in the brain.

For this new study, researchers tested healthy mice and mice bred to lack a marker of inflammation in the brain, called Inhibitor Kappa B Kinase 2, or IKK2 for short, specifically located in the brain’s neurons. They exposed both healthy and IKK2 mutant mice to filtered air or air pollution and then tested their sperm counts. The mice bred without the IKK2 inflammation marker in their neurons did not have reductions in their sperm counts when exposed to the polluted air, unlike the healthy mice.

Researchers then removed IKK2 from specific neurons to determine more precisely how air pollution was leading to lower sperm counts. They found that one specific kind of neuron typically associated with sleep cycle and obesity was responsible for the reduced sperm count due to air pollution. These neurons typically are found in the hypothalamus, a part of the brain which controls hunger, thirst, and sex drive. The hypothalamus also works with the brain’s pituitary gland, which makes hormones that communicate directly with reproductive organs.

“Looking back, it makes perfect sense that the neurons in the hypothalamus are the culprits perpetuating this inflammation response that results in low sperm count, as we know that the hypothalamus is a major pathway link between the brain and the reproductive system,” said Dr. Ying.

E. Albert Reece, MD, PhD, MBA, Executive Vice President for Medical Affairs, UM Baltimore, and the John Z. and Akiko K. Bowers Distinguished Professor and Dean at UMSOM commented, ” Environmental pollution is a problem of equity in that some persons who are poor or of color tend to face more severe health-related conditions due to greater exposure. It is important to explore the mechanisms by which pollution affects the body, so we can devise ways to prevent or treat these conditions to eliminate these health disparities.”

Research reveals air pollution reduces sperm counts through brain inflammation | Mirage News
Posted in Air Quality, Health Effects of Air Pollution, Medical Studies | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment