Taiwanese researchers might have identified mechanisms that link air pollution with fine particulate matter smaller than 2.5 micrometers (PM2.5) to lung cancer and increased susceptibility to COVID-19, a study published in the EMBO Molecular Medicine journal on March 23 found.
Exposure to PM2.5 pollution increases the risk of lung cancer, but the molecular processes involved that trigger cancer cell growth are little understood, said Yang Pan-chyr (楊泮池), a research fellow at Academia Sinica’s Institute of Biomedical Sciences who coauthored the study.
Utilizing cell cultures and mice, Yang and his team found that exposure to PM2.5 pollution for 24 hours activated the epidermal growth factor receptor pathway in lung cancer cells, while exposure for 90 days consistently led to the growth of tumors, he said on Thursday last week.
Photo courtesy of a member of the public
Additionally, exposure to PM2.5 pollution increased the production of transmembrane protease and serine 2 enzymes, and the expression of the IL-18 gene, factors known to worsen lung tissue inflammation during infections, Yang said.
This means COVID-19 might lead to more severe symptoms in people who have been exposed to PM2.5 pollution for long periods, he said, adding that long-term exposure might increase the risk of lung cancer, metastatic lung cancer and lung cancer involving drug-resistant cancer cells.
Solving the puzzle of PM2.5 and lung cancer could facilitate the development of better anti-inflammatory drugs and therapies, he said.
PM2.5 pollution clearly has a negative effect on health, as it is linked to a host of cardiovascular diseases, stroke, chronic bronchitis and lung cancer, he said.
The number of non-smokers developing lung cancer is on the rise globally, with two-thirds of Taiwanese lung cancer patients being non-smokers, he said, citing Ministry of Health and Welfare data from 2020.
The government should boost efforts to lower PM2.5 pollution, he said, adding that the benefits of economic growth should be weighed against the damage caused by airborne pollution.
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