1. Academic Validation
  2. Atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM2.5) induces pulmonary fibrosis by regulating different cell fates via autophagy

Atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM2.5) induces pulmonary fibrosis by regulating different cell fates via autophagy

  • Sci Total Environ. 2024 Mar 2:171396. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.171396.
Bingyan Liu 1 Yangchen Han 1 Yiyuan Ye 1 Xiaoran Wei 2 Gang Li 3 Wei Jiang 4
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Environment Research Institute, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, China.
  • 2 Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Qingdao University, Qingdao 266071, China.
  • 3 State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China.
  • 4 Environment Research Institute, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, China. Electronic address: jiangw@sdu.edu.cn.
Abstract

The presence of respiratory diseases demonstrates a positive correlation with atmospheric fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure. The respiratory system is the main target organ affected by PM2.5, and exposure to PM2.5 elevates the likelihood of developing pulmonary fibrosis (PF). In this study, lung epithelial cell (BEAS-2B) and fibroblast (NIH-3T3) were used as in vitro exposure models to explore the mechanisms of PF. PM2.5 exposure caused mitochondrial damage in BEAS-2B cells and increased a fibrotic phenotype in NIH-3T3 cells. Epithelial cells and fibroblasts have different fates after PM2.5 exposure due to their different sensitivities to trigger Autophagy. Exposure to PM2.5 inhibits Mitophagy in BEAS-2B cells, which hinders the removal of damaged mitochondria and triggers cell death. In this process, the nuclear retention of the mitophagy-related protein Parkin prevents it from being recruited to mitochondria, resulting in Mitophagy inhibition. In contrast, fibroblasts exhibit increased levels of Autophagy, which may isolate PM2.5 and cause abnormal fibroblast proliferation and migration. Fibrotic phenotypes such as collagen deposition and increased α-actin also appear in fibroblasts. Our results identify PM2.5 as a trigger of PF and delineate the molecular mechanism of Autophagy in PM2.5 induced PF, which provides new insights into the pulmonary injury.

Keywords

Autophagy; Mitophagy; PM(2.5); Parkin; Pulmonary fibrosis.

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