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Naqvi HR, Mutreja G, Hashim M, Singh A, Nawazuzzoha M, Naqvi DF, Siddiqui MA, Shakeel A, Chaudhary AA, Naqvi AR. Global assessment of tropospheric and ground air pollutants and its correlation with COVID-19. Atmos Pollut Res 2021; 12:101172. [PMID: 34421319 PMCID: PMC8372483 DOI: 10.1016/j.apr.2021.101172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2021] [Revised: 08/13/2021] [Accepted: 08/15/2021] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
The declaration of COVID-19 pandemic by the WHO initiated a series of lockdowns globally that varied in stringency and duration; however, the spatiotemporal effects of these lockdowns on air quality remain understudied. This study evaluates the global impact of lockdowns on air pollutants using tropospheric and ground-level indicators over a five-month period. Moreover, the relationship between air pollution and COVID-19 cases and mortalities was examined. Changes in the global tropospheric (NO2, aerosols, and O3) and ground-level (PM2.5, PM10, NO2, and O3) pollutants were observed, and the maximum air quality improvement was observed immediately after lockdown. Except for a few countries, a decline in air pollutants correlated with a reduction in Land Surface Temperature (LST). Notably, regions with higher tropospheric NO2 and aerosol concentrations were also COVID-19 hotspots. Our analysis showed moderate positive correlation for NO2 with COVID-19 cases (R2 = 0.33; r = 0.57, P = 0.006) and mortalities (R2 = 0.40; r = 0.63, P = 0.015), while O3 showed a weak-moderate positive correlation with COVID-19 cases (R2 = 0.22; r = 0.47, P = 0.003) and mortalities (R2 = 0.12; r = 0.35, P = 0.012). However, PM2.5, and PM10 showed no significant correlation with either COVID-19 cases or mortality. This study reveals that humans living under adverse air pollution conditions are at higher risk of COVID-19 infection and mortality.
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Affiliation(s)
- H R Naqvi
- Department of Geography, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India
| | - G Mutreja
- Environmental Systems Research Institute, R & D Center, New Delhi, India
| | - M Hashim
- Department of Geography, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India
| | - A Singh
- Department of Geography, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India
| | - M Nawazuzzoha
- Department of Geography, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India
| | - D F Naqvi
- ZiMetrics Technologies Pvt. Ltd., Pune, India
| | - M A Siddiqui
- Department of Geography, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India
| | - A Shakeel
- Department of Geography, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India
| | - A A Chaudhary
- Department of Biology, College of Science, Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, Riyadh, 13317-7544, Saudi Arabia
| | - A R Naqvi
- Department of Periodontics, College of Dentistry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
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Galicia JC, Naqvi AR, Ko CC, Nares S, Khan AA. MiRNA-181a regulates Toll-like receptor agonist-induced inflammatory response in human fibroblasts. Genes Immun 2014; 15:333-7. [PMID: 24848932 PMCID: PMC4111836 DOI: 10.1038/gene.2014.24] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2014] [Revised: 04/11/2014] [Accepted: 04/14/2014] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNA) regulate the synthesis of cytokines in response to Toll-like receptor (TLR) activation. Our recent microarray study comparing normal and inflamed human dental pulps showed that miRNA-181 (miR-181) family is differentially expressed in the presence of inflammation. Prior studies have reported that the dental pulp, which is composed primarily of TLR4/2+ fibroblasts, expresses elevated levels of cytokines including Interleukin-8 (IL-8) when inflamed. In this study, we employed an in-vitro model to determine the role of the miRNA 181 family in the TLR agonist-induced response in human fibroblasts. TLR4/2+ primary human dental pulp fibroblasts were stimulated with lipopolysaccharide from Porphyromonas gingivalis (Pg LPS), a known oral pathogen, and IL-8 and miR-181 expression measured. An inversely proportional relationship between IL-8 and miR-181a was observed. In-silico analysis identified a miR-181a binding site on the 3′UTR of IL-8 which was confirmed by dual-luciferase assays. MiR-181a directly binds to the 3′UTR of IL-8, an important inflammatory component of the immune response, and modulates its levels. This is the very first report demonstrating miR-181a regulation of IL-8.
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Affiliation(s)
- J C Galicia
- Department of Endodontics, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - A R Naqvi
- Department of Periodontics, College of Dentistry, University of Illinois, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - C-C Ko
- Department of Orthodontics, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - S Nares
- Department of Periodontics, College of Dentistry, University of Illinois, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - A A Khan
- 1] Department of Endodontics, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA [2] Regional Center for Neurosensory Disorders, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
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