Chemical constituents of fine particulate air pollution and pulmonary function in healthy adults: the Healthy Volunteer Natural Relocation study

Abstract

The study examined the associations of 32 chemical constituents of particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter ≤2.5 μm (PM₂.₅) with pulmonary function in a panel of 21 college students. Study subjects relocated from a suburban area to an urban area with changing ambient air pollution levels and contents in Beijing, China, and provided daily morning/evening peak expiratory flow (PEF) and forced expiratory volume in 1s (FEV₂₁) measurements over 6 months in three study periods. There were significant reductions in evening PEF and morning/evening FEV₂₁ associated with various air pollutants and PM₂.₅ constituents. Four PM₂.₅ constituents (copper, cadmium, arsenic and stannum) were found to be most consistently associated with the reductions in these pulmonary function measures. These findings provide clues for the respiratory effects of specific particulate chemical constituents in the context of urban air pollution.

Keywords: Air pollution; Al; As; BIT; BMI; Ba; Beijing Institute of Technology; CI; CO; Ca; Cd; Chemical constituent; Cl(−); Co; Cr; Cu; EC; F(−); FEV(1); Fe; HVNR study; Healthy Volunteer Natural Relocation study; IQR; K; Mg; Mn; Mo; NO; NO(2); NO(3)(−); NO(X); Na; Ni; OC; PEF; PM; PM(10); PM(2.5); PM(2.5–10); POC; POM; Particulate matter; Pb; Peak expiratory flow; Pulmonary function; SD; SO(4)(2−); SOC; Sb; Se; Sn; Sr; Ti; V; Zn; aluminum; antimony; arsenic; barium; body mass index; cadmium; calcium; carbon monoxide; chloride; chromium; cobalt; confidence interval; copper; elemental carbon; fluoride; forced expiratory volume in 1s; interquartile range; iron; lead; magnesium; manganese; molybdenum; nickel; nitrate; nitric oxide; nitrogen dioxide; nitrogen oxides; organic carbon; particulate matter; particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter between 2.5 and 10μm; particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter ≤10μm; particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter ≤2.5μm; particulate organic matter; peak expiratory flow; potassium; primary organic carbon; secondary organic carbon; selenium; sodium; standard deviation; stannum; strontium; sulfate; titanium; vanadium; zinc.