Innovative research on inhaled ozone, iron metabolism and lung infections
Air pollution is a frequent cause of respiratory disease and mortality. Since the levels and chemistry of air pollution continue to change due to climate change, researchers at The Ohio State University College of Medicine have been working to increase knowledge on how the air pollutant ozone increases lung inflammation and affects iron levels in the body.
Kymberly Gowdy, MS, PhD, an associate professor in the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at the Ohio State College of Medicine, and a team of researchers from her division and the Department of Microbial Infection and Immunity, have examined how inhaling ozone elicits an immune response in the lungs and increases susceptibility to respiratory infections, both viral and bacterial.
In their study, “Ozone-induced lung injury increases susceptibility to lower respiratory infections through dysregulation of iron homeostasis,” they measured the respiratory effects of ozone on rodent models through a technique that collects samples of epithelial lining fluid.
“We found increased levels of iron in the lung after exposure to ozone,” Dr. Gowdy says. “Given that iron has an essential role in infection, these data may indicate why we are more susceptible to infection following poor air quality.”
And it may explain how excess iron in the lungs can result in oxidative stress in the airways and increase pathogen growth, leading to more damage to the lung tissues.
In another study from the Gowdy lab, “Ozone induces rapid lipid oxidation associated with ferroptosis and lung injury,” the team worked with researchers at Duke University Medical Center, Vanderbilt University, and the University of North Carolina to examine how exposure to ozone increases airspace iron concentration, which leads to cell death in the lungs.
“We found that ozone exposure increases the expression of genes associated with ferroptosis, a regulated form of cell death triggered by an imbalance of iron metabolism,” Dr. Gowdy says. “If we don’t intervene to reduce factors increasing lung injury, the air we breathe will only lead to an increase in health threats.”
These findings confirm that everyday climate change is continuing to harm everyone’s health. As ozone levels continue to rise, this research holds the chance to further protect those with respiratory disorders, such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and to save vulnerable populations from both pulmonary and cardiovascular disorders and premature death.
