Toxicity of Airborne Particulate Matters and Their Bound Elements on Human Lung Fibroblast Cells Based on In Vitro Evidence: A Systematic Review

Abbasi F.; De-la-Torre G.E.; Farrokhi S.; Bahtouee M.; Motamed-Jahromi M.; Esmaili A.; Dobaradaran S. · Water, Air, and Soil Pollution (2026) · DOI: 10.1007/s11270-025-08855-6

Resumen

Airborne particulate matters (PMs) can involve the lung cells including fibroblasts that play a key role in the permeability, secretion of extracellular matrix (ECM) and progression of some lung diseases. However, to date there is no integrated review on PM-associated toxicity for these cells. Hence, a systematic review was designed to investigate the toxicity of airborne PMs and PMs-bound organic and inorganic compounds on fibroblast cells. Published studies showed that PMs could penetrate the cytoplasm or nucleus of cells remarkably due be the higher surface to volume of fibroblasts. Therefore, the released reactive oxygen species (ROS) could damage the cell body, and protective system as well as the inflammatory response. Besides the variation of ECM secretion, PMs disrupted the expression of enzymes and intracellular metabolic processes. PMs were capable of disrupting cell homeostasis and changed the metabolic by-products profile interestingly. Furthermore, genetic aberrations and disruption of tumor markers were significantly induced due to the exposure of cells to PMs. Based on the reported data, a positive correlation was closely observed between the intensity of outcomes and PMs concentration or time exposure. Furthermore, higher toxicity levels were reported for organic and finer PMs compared to inorganic and coarse particles. For all endpoints, the synergistic effects associated with PMs-bound organic compounds such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and inorganic compounds were confirmed. Although the inhibitory effects in upstream and downstream regulation encoded genes were investigated, further studies for detailed exact mechanisms and other suppressor factors on fibroblast function are essential. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2025.

Instituciones: Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola