Rager Identifies Insights into Wildfire-Associated Health Risks and Cross-Tissue Communication Mechanisms
Wildfires are increasingly posing a global threat to public health, with their intensity and frequency on the rise. Despite this growing danger, the precise biological mechanisms underlying wildfire-associated toxicity have remained largely elusive.
A groundbreaking study, led by Julia Rager, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, has introduced a novel perspective on this issue by exploring the potential involvement of extracellular vesicles (EVs) in cross-tissue communication.
The study utilized female CD-1 mice exposed to smoke condensate samples from various biomass burn scenarios, including flaming and smoldering peat and red oak, simulating wildfire conditions. Tissue samples were collected at 4 and 24 hours post-exposure, and EVs were isolated from plasma, characterized, and profiled for microRNA (miRNA) expression.
The research unveiled remarkable findings:
- Significant alterations in markers of cardiopulmonary tissue injury and inflammation in response to exposures, with the most pronounced changes occurring during flaming biomass conditions.
- Alterations in plasma EV miRNAs associated with cardiovascular disease, including miR-150, miR- 183, miR-223-3p, miR-30b, and miR-378a.
- Identification of lung and heart mRNAs with differential expression enriched in hypoxia and cell stress-related pathways.
The most substantial transcriptional response in the heart during exposure to flaming red oak, with many of the affected mRNAs predicted to be regulated by plasma EV miRNAs, some of which are known to influence hypoxia-induced cardiovascular injury.
This study raises the possibility that wildfire exposures induce cardiopulmonary responses through intercellular and systems-level communication between tissues, with circulating plasma EVs playing a pivotal role.
This groundbreaking research opens new avenues for understanding and addressing the health risks associated with wildfires.
View the full study here
Contact the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health communications team at sphcomm@unc.edu.
