Respiratory and Cardiovascular Effects of Metals in Ambient Particulate Matter: A Critical Review - Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology - page 195

The in vivo and in vitro studies reviewed provide indications that the probable
mechanisms involved in the respiratory and cardiac effects from high metal expo-
sures include: an infl ammatory response mediated by formation of ROS, up-
regulation of genes coding for infl ammatory cytokines, altered expression of genes
involved in cell signaling pathways and maintenance of metals homeostasis.
The fact that doses of metals many orders of magnitude greater than those exist-
ing in ambient air were required to produce measurable adverse effects in animals
makes it doubtful that metals play any major role in respiratory and cardiovascular
effects produced from human exposure to ambient PM. We suggest that future
research priorities should focus on testing at more environmentally relevant expo-
sure levels and that any new toxicological studies be written to include dosages in
units that can be easily compared to human exposure levels.
Acknowledgment The authors would like to thank Dr. Glynis Lough (Battelle), Dr. Debra Kaden
(ENVIRON), Dr. Adriana Oller (NiPERA), and members of the Mickey Leland National Urban
Air Toxics Research Center (NUATRC) Scientifi c Advisory Panel for their comprehensive review
of this manuscript.
Declaration of Interest The authors' affi liations are shown on the cover page. The authors have
sole responsibility for the writing and content of the paper. This literature review was supported by
a contract from the Mickey Leland National Urban Air Toxics Research Center (NUATRC), and
partial funding for this project was provided by the Nickel Producers Environmental Research
Association (NiPERA). The views expressed and conclusions drawn are those of the authors.
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