The prospective effects of long-term exposure to ambient PM2.5 and constituents on mortality in rural East China

Yun Chen; Renjie Chen; Yue Chen; Xiaolian Dong; Jianfu Zhu; Cong Liu; Aaron van Donkelaar; Randall V Martin; Huichu Li; Haidong Kan; Qingwu Jiang; Chaowei Fu

doi:10.1016/j.chemosphere.2021.130740

The prospective effects of long-term exposure to ambient PM_2.5 and constituents on mortality in rural East China

Chemosphere. 2021 Oct:280:130740. doi: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2021.130740. Epub 2021 May 4.

Authors

Yun Chen¹, Renjie Chen¹, Yue Chen², Xiaolian Dong³, Jianfu Zhu³, Cong Liu¹, Aaron van Donkelaar⁴, Randall V Martin⁴, Huichu Li⁵, Haidong Kan⁶, Qingwu Jiang¹, Chaowei Fu⁷

Affiliations

¹ School of Public Health, Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, NHC Key Laboratory of Health Technology Assessment, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China.
² School of Epidemiology and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, K1G 5Z3, Canada.
³ Deqing County Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Deqing, 313299, China.
⁴ Department of Physics and Atmospheric Science, Dalhousie University, B3H 4R2, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada; Department of Energy, Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA.
⁵ Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
⁶ School of Public Health, Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, NHC Key Laboratory of Health Technology Assessment, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China. Electronic address: kanh@fudan.edu.cn.
⁷ School of Public Health, Key Laboratory of Public Health Safety, NHC Key Laboratory of Health Technology Assessment, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China. Electronic address: fcw@fudan.edu.cn.

PMID: 34162086
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2021.130740

Abstract

Few cohort studies explored the associations of long-term exposure to ambient fine particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of 2.5 μm or less (PM_2.5) and its chemical constituents with mortality risk in rural China. We conducted a 12-year prospective study of 28,793 adults in rural Deqing, China from 2006 to 2018. Annual mean PM_2.5 and its constituents, including black carbon (BC), organic carbon (OC), ammonium (NH₄⁺), nitrate (NO₃^-), sulfate (SO₄^2-), and soil dust were measured at participants' addresses at enrollment from a satellite-based exposure predicting model. Cox proportional hazard model was used to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CIs) of long-term exposure to PM_2.5 for mortality. A total of 1960 deaths were identified during the follow-up. We found PM_2.5, BC, OC, NH₄⁺, NO₃^-, and SO₄^2- were significantly associated with an increased risk of non-accidental mortality. The HR for non-accidental mortality was 1.17 (95%CI: 1.07, 1.28) for each 10 μg/m³ increase in PM_2.5. As for constituents, the strongest association was found for BC (HR = 1.21, 95%CI: 1.11, 1.33), followed by NO₃^-, NH₄⁺, SO₄^2-, and OC (HR = 1.14-1.17 per interquartile range). A non-linear relationship was found between PM_2.5 and non-accidental mortality. Similar associations were found for cardio-cerebrovascular and cancer mortality. Associations were stronger among men and ever smokers. Conclusively, we found long-term exposure to ambient PM_2.5 and its chemical constituents (especially BC and NO₃^-) increased mortality risk. Our results suggested the importance of adopting effective targeted emission control to improve air quality for health protection in rural East China.

Keywords: Chemical constituents; Cohort study; Long-term exposure; Mortality; PM(2.5); Rural population.

MeSH terms

Adult
Air Pollutants* / analysis
Air Pollutants* / toxicity
Air Pollution* / analysis
China / epidemiology
Environmental Exposure / analysis
Humans
Male
Particulate Matter / analysis
Particulate Matter / toxicity
Prospective Studies

Substances

Air Pollutants
Particulate Matter