Pulmonary Effects of Inhaled Diesel Exhaust in Young and Old Mice: A Pilot Project

This report explores the possible physiological basis for epidemiologic results suggesting that people over the age of 55 are more sensitive than younger people to the effects of exposure to particulate matter. Dr. Debra Laskin and colleagues hypothesized that this sensitivity resulted from the lung cells of the elderly producing less of the cytokine tumor necrosis factor-α (a cell protein involved in systemic inflammation), as compared with the lung cells of the young after exposure to air pollution. Before embarking on a full mechanistic study, the investigators made a preliminary assessment of TNF-α levels and markers of inflammation in alveolar macrophages of young and old mice exposed to diesel exhaust by inhalation.