Exposure to traffic-generated air pollutants mediates alterations in brain microvascular integrity in wildtype mice on a high-fat diet.

Exposure to traffic-generated air pollutants mediates alterations in brain microvascular integrity in wildtype mice on a high-fat diet. Environ Res. 2017 Oct 23;160:449-461 Authors: Suwannasual U, Lucero J, McDonald JD, Lund AK Abstract Air pollution-exposure is associated with detrimental outcomes in the central nervous system (CNS) such as cerebrovascular disorders, including stroke, and neurodegenerative diseases. While the mechanisms of these CNS-related outcomes involved have not been fully elucidated, exposure to traffic-generated air pollutants has been associated with altered blood brain barrier (BBB) integrity and permeability. The current study investigated whether inhalation exposure to mixed vehicle emissions (MVE) alters cerebral microvascular integrity in healthy 3 mo old C57BL/6 mice, as well as whether exposure-mediated effects were exacerbated by a high-fat (HF) vs. low-fat (LF) diet. Mice on each diet were randomly assigned to be exposed to either filtered air (FA) or MVE [100PM/m(3) vehicle emissions mixture: 30µg PM/m(3) gasoline engine + 70µg PM/m(3) diesel engine emissions; median size ~ 60nm; particle mass size distribution median of ~ 1µm (range: < 0.5-20µm)] for 6h/d, 7d/wk, for 30d. Using sodium fluorescein as a tracer, we observed a significant increase in BBB permeability in both HF + MVE exposed and HF + FA animals, compared to LF + FA controls. Exposure to HF + MVE also led to a significant increa...
Source: Environmental Research - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Tags: Environ Res Source Type: research