Anthropogenic Carbon Nanotubes Found in the Airways of Parisian Children
Jelena Kolosnjaj-Tabi,
Jocelyne Just,
Keith B. Hartman,
Yacine Laoudi,
Sabah Boudjemaa,
Damien Alloyeau,
Henri Szwarc,
Lon J. Wilson,
Fathi Moussa
Affiliations
Jelena Kolosnjaj-Tabi
LETIAM, Lip(Sys)2, IUT d'Orsay, Paris-Saclay University, Plateau de Moulon, 91400 Orsay, France
Jocelyne Just
Paediatric Pulmonology and Allergy Center, Trousseau-La Roche Guyon Hospital group, Assistance Publique — Hôpitaux de Paris, Pierre et Marie Curie-Paris 6 University, Paris, France
Keith B. Hartman
Department of Chemistry, Richard E. Smalley Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, P.O. Box 1892, Rice University-MS 60, Houston, TX 77251-1892, USA
Yacine Laoudi
Paediatric Pulmonology and Allergy Center, Trousseau-La Roche Guyon Hospital group, Assistance Publique — Hôpitaux de Paris, Pierre et Marie Curie-Paris 6 University, Paris, France
Sabah Boudjemaa
Department of Anatomo-pathology, Trousseau-La Roche Guyon Hospital group, Assistance Publique — Hôpitaux de Paris, Pierre et Marie Curie-Paris 6 University, Paris, France
Damien Alloyeau
Laboratoire Matériaux et Phénomènes Quantiques, UMR 7162, CNRS - Université Paris Diderot, Paris, France
Henri Szwarc
LETIAM, Lip(Sys)2, IUT d'Orsay, Paris-Saclay University, Plateau de Moulon, 91400 Orsay, France
Lon J. Wilson
Department of Chemistry, Richard E. Smalley Institute for Nanoscale Science and Technology, P.O. Box 1892, Rice University-MS 60, Houston, TX 77251-1892, USA
Fathi Moussa
LETIAM, Lip(Sys)2, IUT d'Orsay, Paris-Saclay University, Plateau de Moulon, 91400 Orsay, France
Compelling evidence shows that fine particulate matters (PMs) from air pollution penetrate lower airways and are associated with adverse health effects even within concentrations below those recommended by the WHO. A paper reported a dose-dependent link between carbon content in alveolar macrophages (assessed only by optical microscopy) and the decline in lung function. However, to the best of our knowledge, PM had never been accurately characterized inside human lung cells and the most responsible components of the particulate mix are still unknown. On another hand carbon nanotubes (CNTs) from natural and anthropogenic sources might be an important component of PM in both indoor and outdoor air. We used high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy to characterize PM present in broncho-alveolar lavage-fluids (n = 64) and inside lung cells (n = 5 patients) of asthmatic children. We show that inhaled PM mostly consist of CNTs. These CNTs are present in all examined samples and they are similar to those we found in dusts and vehicle exhausts collected in Paris, as well as to those previously characterized in ambient air in the USA, in spider webs in India, and in ice core. These results strongly suggest that humans are routinely exposed to CNTs.
