Generation of Intracellular Reactive Oxygen Species from Size-Segregated Ambient Particulate Matter (PM) in Different Environments in Hong Kong

An increasing body of scientific evidence has documented signicant associations of cardiovascular, respiratory diseases and mortality with exposure to ambient particulate matter (PM) air pollution. Recent advances in PM research have suggested that the adverse health effects may be initiated by excessive generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) through the interaction between inhaled PM and cells. However, the contributing metrics of PM physical and chemical properties that are responsible to their toxicity are still largely unknown. The proposed study aims to investigate the intracellular ROS generation from ambient PM with different sizes and identify the most toxic PM species in different environments in Hong Kong. Successful implementation of the proposed study will largely advance the understanding of the mechanisms and specic agents of PM toxicity which are essential for more targeted PM toxicity mitigation programs and cost-effective air quality management to protect public health.