Associations of Short-Term Exposure to Fine Particulate Matter with Neural Damage Biomarkers: A Panel Study of Healthy Retired Adults.

Exposure to fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) is associated with various adverse health effects, such as respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. This study aimed to evaluate the association of PM 2.5 with neural damage biomarkers. A total of 34 healthy retirees were recruited from Xinxiang Medical University from December 2018 to April 2019. Concentrations of PM 2.5 constituents including 24 metals and nonmetallic elements and 6 ions, and 5 biomarkers of neural damage including brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), neurofilament light chain (NfL), neuron-specific enolase (NSE), protein gene product 9.5 (PGP9.5), and S100 calcium-binding protein B (S100B) in serum were measured. A linear mixed-effect model was employed to estimate the association of PM 2.5 and its constituents with neural damage biomarkers. Modification effects of glutathione S-transferase theta 1 gene ( GSTT1 ) polymorphism, sex, education, and physical activity on PM 2.5 exposure with neural damage were explored. PM 2.5 and its key constituents were significantly associated with neural damage biomarkers. A 10 μg/m 3 increase in PM 2.5 concentration was associated with 2.09% (95% CI, 39.3-76.5%), 100% (95% CI, 1.73-198%), and 122% (95% CI, 20.7-222%) increments in BDNF, NfL, and PGP9.5, respectively. Several constituents such as Cu, Zn, Ni, Mn, Sn, V, Rb, Pb, Al, Be, Cs, Co, Th, U, Cl - , and F - were significantly associated with NfL. The estimated association of PM 2.5 with NSE in GSTT1 -sufficient volunteers was significantly higher than that in GSTT1 -null volunteers. Therefore, short-term PM 2.5 exposure was associated with neural damage, and GSTT1 expression levels modified the PM 2.5 -induced adverse neural effects.