Low-level exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons is associated with reduced lung function among Swedish young adults

Ayman Alhamdow; Anna Zettergren; Inger Kull; Jenny Hallberg; Niklas Andersson; Sandra Ekström; Marika Berglund; Craig E Wheelock; Yona J Essig; Annette M Krais; Antonios Georgelis; Christian H Lindh; Erik Melén; Anna Bergström

doi:10.1016/j.envres.2021.111169

Low-level exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons is associated with reduced lung function among Swedish young adults

Environ Res. 2021 Jun:197:111169. doi: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.111169. Epub 2021 Apr 20.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, SE, 17177, Stockholm, Sweden.
² Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, SE, 17177, Stockholm, Sweden; Sachs' Children's and Youth Hospital, Södersjukhuset, SE, 11883, Stockholm, Sweden; Department of Clinical Science and Education, Södersjukhuset, Karolinska Institutet, SE, 11883, Stockholm, Sweden.
³ Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, SE, 17177, Stockholm, Sweden; Sachs' Children's and Youth Hospital, Södersjukhuset, SE, 11883, Stockholm, Sweden.
⁴ Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, SE, 17177, Stockholm, Sweden; Centre for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Region Stockholm, SE, 11365, Stockholm, Sweden.
⁵ Division of Physiological Chemistry 2, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institute, SE-171 77, Department of Respiratory Medicine and Allergy, Karolinska University Hospital, SE, 17165, Stockholm, Sweden.
⁶ Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, SE, 22363, Lund, Sweden.
⁷ Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, SE, 17177, Stockholm, Sweden; Centre for Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Region Stockholm, SE, 11365, Stockholm, Sweden. Electronic address: anna.bergstrom@ki.se.

PMID: 33857464
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.111169

Abstract

Background: Exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) has been linked to adverse pulmonary effects. However, the impact of low-level environmental PAH exposure on lung function in early adulthood remains uncertain.

Objectives: To evaluate the associations between urinary PAH metabolites and lung function parameters in young adults.

Methods: Urinary metabolites of pyrene, phenanthrene, and fluorene were analysed in 1000 young adults from Sweden (age 22-25 years) using LC-MS/MS. Lung function and eosinophilic airway inflammation were measured by spirometry and exhaled nitric oxide fraction (FeNO), respectively. Linear regression analysis was used to evaluate associations between PAH metabolites and the outcomes.

Results: Median urinary concentrations of 1-OH-pyrene, ∑OH-phenanthrene, and ∑OH-fluorene were 0.066, 0.36, 0.22 μg/L, respectively. We found inverse associations of ∑OH-phenanthrene and ∑OH-fluorene with FEV1 and FVC, as well as between 1-OH-pyrene and FEV1/FVC ratio (adjusted P < 0.05; all participants). An increase of 1% in ∑OH-fluorene was associated with a decrease of 73 mL in FEV1 and 59 mL in FVC. In addition, ∑OH-phenanthrene concentrations were, in a dose-response manner, inversely associated with FEV1 (B from -109 to -48 compared with the lowest quartile of ∑OH-phenanthrene; p trend 0.004) and FVC (B from -159 to -102 compared with lowest quartile; p-trend <0.001). Similar dose-response associations were also observed between ∑OH-fluorene and FEV1 and FVC, as well as between 1-OH-pyrene and FEV1/FVC (p-trend <0.05). There was no association between PAH exposure and FeNO, nor was there an interaction with smoking, sex, or asthma.

Conclusion: Low-level PAH exposure was, in a dose-response manner, associated with reduced lung function in young adults. Our findings have public health implications due to i) the widespread occurrence of PAHs in the environment and ii) the clinical relevance of lung function in predicting all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality.

Keywords: Air pollution; Asthma; Environmental exposure; Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; Urinary metabolites.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Chromatography, Liquid
Humans
Lung / chemistry
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons* / analysis
Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons* / toxicity
Sweden
Tandem Mass Spectrometry
Young Adult

Substances

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons