ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Genet.
Sec. Toxicogenomics
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fgene.2025.1672729
Non-polar Components in PM2.5 Increase Matrix Remodeling of CRS by Up-regulating CEMIP in Nasal Fibroblasts
Provisionally accepted
Jiayao Zhou1,2,3
Ying Zhu1,2,3Huilin Hu4Ru Tang1,2,3Shiyao Zhang1,2,3Yuelong Gu1,2,3Mao Song1,2,3Shilei Pu1,2,3,5
Hai Lin1,2,3
Yue Zhao4
Zhipeng Li1,2,3
Weitian Zhang1,2,3*- 1Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Shanghai Sixth People's Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
- 2Otolaryngological Institute, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
- 3Shanghai Key Laboratory of Sleep Disordered Breathing, Shanghai, China
- 4School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
- 5Department of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, Shanghai Children's Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
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Background: Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) is harmful to respiratory health and can lead to chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS). But how its components lead to CRS by affecting the function of nasal fibroblasts remains unclear. Methods: In this study, polar organic components (P-OC) and non-polar organic components (N-OC) isolated from PM2.5 were used to intervene human nasal fibroblasts (hNFs), respectively. CCK8 assay and LDH assay were used to detect cell viability, and scratch assay was used to detect cell migration ability. Gene expression changes were detected by RNA-sequencing and molecular biology. Results: P-OC inhibited the viability and migration of hNFs, while N-OC significantly promoted the migration of hNFs. The expression of CEMIP, MMP1 and IL-1β was up-regulated after N-OC treatment. CEMIP gene silencing inhibited hNFs migration and the expression of MMP1 and IL-1β. The effect of PAHs exposure on cells was more obvious than n-alkanes. Conclusion: N-OC in PM2.5, especially PAHs, can aggravate CRS by activating hNFs through CEMIP. This study provides new ideas for exploring the pathogenic mechanism of air pollution on upper respiratory diseases. Key words: fine particulate matter; organic components; chronic rhinosinusitis; fibroblast; cell migration inducing hyaluronidase 1.
Keywords: Fine Particulate Matter, Organic components, Chronic rhinosinusitis, fibroblast, cellmigration inducing hyaluronidase 1
Received: 24 Jul 2025; Accepted: 03 Oct 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Zhou, Zhu, Hu, Tang, Zhang, Gu, Song, Pu, Lin, Zhao, Li and Zhang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Weitian Zhang, wtzhang@sjtu.edu.cn
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