摘要:

The potential effect of short-term exposure to air pollution on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) methylation remains to be explored. This study adopted an experimental exposure protocol nested with an intervention study on L-arginine (L-Arg) supplementation. Participants walked along a traffic road for 2h in the last day of a 14-day intervention to investigate the effects of short-term personal exposure to air pollution on platelet mtDNA methylation and the possible modifying effects of L-Arg supplementation. Results showed that short-term personal exposure to air pollutants was associated with hypomethylation in platelet mtDNA. Specifically, 2-h fine particulate matter (PM2.5) exposure during the outdoor walk was significantly associated with hypomethylation in mt12sRNA and ATP6; 24-h black carbon (BC) exposure from the start of the walk till next morning and 2-h NO2 exposure was significantly associated with hypomethylation in ATP8; and 24-h PM2.5 exposure, 2-h and 24-h BC exposure were significantly associated with hypomethylation in D-loop. Supplementation with L-Arg could mitigate the air pollution effects on methylation in ATP8 and D-loop. These findings suggest that platelet mtDNA methylation may be sensitive effect biomarker for short-term exposure to air pollution and may help deepen the understanding of the epigenetic mechanisms of adverse cardiovascular effects of air pollution.

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