Sequential air–liquid exposure of human respiratory cells to chemical and biological pollutants

Abstract

Although indoor air has wide ranging effects on human health, the effects of environmental, chemical, and biological pollutants on the respiratory system are not fully understood. In order to clarify the health effects of airborne pollutant exposure, it would appear that toxicological evidence is needed to complement epidemiological observations to support by providing biological plausibility. The aim of this study is to manage air–liquid successive exposures to different pollutants such as a chemical pollutant (formaldehyde – FA), and a biological contaminant ( Aspergillus fumigatus – Asp) using our in vitro model. Human alveolar cells (A549) were exposed at the air–liquid interface in an exposure module, firstly to an environmental level of FA (50 μg/m 3) (or air) for 30 min, and 14 h later to Asp (7 × 10 8 spores/m 3) (or air) for 30 min. After 10 h post-incubation, cellular viability was assessed. Inflammation biomarkers (IL-8, MCP-1) were assayed by ELISA and by RT-PCR. Whatever the conditions, no cytotoxic effect was observed. FA followed by air exposure did not induce modification of production and expression of cytokines, confirming results with a unique FA exposure. Air followed by Asp exposure tended to induce IL-8 expression whereas IL-8 production tended to increase after FA and Asp exposure compared to FA and air exposure. The reaction of cells to sequential exposure to FA and Asp was moderate. These results show the feasibility of our model for sequential exposures to different types of environmental pollutants, allowing using it for preliminary assessment of cellular activity modification induced by airborne contaminants.