1 hour ago
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1135474
EXCERPTS: Air pollution from cruise ships could be damaging the health of people living in port cities by increasing inflammation and susceptibility to viruses such as the common cold and COVID-19. New research from the University of Southampton published in Environment International studied the air within Southampton’s port.
The air contained ultrafine particulate matter (PM), particles of dust no bigger than one thousandth the width of a human hair, enriched with trace elements from the burning of shipping fuel. Lab tests found these particles increase inflammatory signals and weaken cells’ defence against viral infections, like COVID-19 or the common cold.
“In this research we’ve identified a clear air pollution ‘signature’ coming from cruise ships burning fuel in ports,” says Matthew Loxham, Professor of Respiratory Biology and Toxicology and senior author of the study.
“The ultrafine particles contained in these ships’ emissions can penetrate deeper into the lungs than larger sizes of particulate matter, and may be able to enter the bloodstream, but particles of this size are essentially unregulated, and generally not monitored. We found that exposure of cells to these particles, and vanadium – the most enriched element in the particles – was both pro-inflammatory and facilitated the replication of viruses.”
[...] In lab tests using lung lining cells, researchers found there was an increase in the expression of genes relating to an inflammatory response and a decrease in expression of antiviral response genes when exposed to the summer season’s cruise terminal ultrafine PM.
Additional tests revealed that vanadium may play a role in this. Prof Loxham explains: “To study this further, we infected bronchial epithelial cells from the lungs of healthy donors with human rhinovirus (the virus which causes the common cold and a leading cause of hospitalisations following asthma attacks) and also used a model of COVID-19 coronavirus infection.
“When exposed to vanadium, the number of copies of both viruses increased, indicating vanadium’s role in diminishing the ability of cells to prevent viral replication. This has potential implications for the severity and spread of infection.” (MORE - missing details, no ads)
EXCERPTS: Air pollution from cruise ships could be damaging the health of people living in port cities by increasing inflammation and susceptibility to viruses such as the common cold and COVID-19. New research from the University of Southampton published in Environment International studied the air within Southampton’s port.
The air contained ultrafine particulate matter (PM), particles of dust no bigger than one thousandth the width of a human hair, enriched with trace elements from the burning of shipping fuel. Lab tests found these particles increase inflammatory signals and weaken cells’ defence against viral infections, like COVID-19 or the common cold.
“In this research we’ve identified a clear air pollution ‘signature’ coming from cruise ships burning fuel in ports,” says Matthew Loxham, Professor of Respiratory Biology and Toxicology and senior author of the study.
“The ultrafine particles contained in these ships’ emissions can penetrate deeper into the lungs than larger sizes of particulate matter, and may be able to enter the bloodstream, but particles of this size are essentially unregulated, and generally not monitored. We found that exposure of cells to these particles, and vanadium – the most enriched element in the particles – was both pro-inflammatory and facilitated the replication of viruses.”
[...] In lab tests using lung lining cells, researchers found there was an increase in the expression of genes relating to an inflammatory response and a decrease in expression of antiviral response genes when exposed to the summer season’s cruise terminal ultrafine PM.
Additional tests revealed that vanadium may play a role in this. Prof Loxham explains: “To study this further, we infected bronchial epithelial cells from the lungs of healthy donors with human rhinovirus (the virus which causes the common cold and a leading cause of hospitalisations following asthma attacks) and also used a model of COVID-19 coronavirus infection.
“When exposed to vanadium, the number of copies of both viruses increased, indicating vanadium’s role in diminishing the ability of cells to prevent viral replication. This has potential implications for the severity and spread of infection.” (MORE - missing details, no ads)