TY - JOUR
T1 - Particulate matter and SARS-CoV-2
T2 - A possible model of COVID-19 transmission
AU - Tung, Nguyen Thanh
AU - Cheng, Po Ching
AU - Chi, Kai Hsien
AU - Hsiao, Ta Chi
AU - Jones, Timothy
AU - BéruBé, Kelly
AU - Ho, Kin Fai
AU - Chuang, Hsiao Chi
N1 - Funding Information:
This study was funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology of Taiwan ( 109-2314-B-038-093-MY3 ).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2021/1/1
Y1 - 2021/1/1
N2 - Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), an acute respiratory disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has rapidly developed into a pandemic throughout the world. This disease is a highly infectious novel coronavirus and can affect people of all ages. Previous reports observed that particulate matter (PM) provided a platform for intermixing with viruses (i.e., influenza). However, the role of PM in SARS-CoV-2 transmission remains unclear. In this paper, we propose that PM plays a direct role as a “carrier” of SARS-CoV-2. SARS-CoV-2 is reported to have a high affinity for the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor. Indirectly, exposure to PM increases ACE2 expression in the lungs which facilitates SARS-CoV-2 viral adhesion. Thus, the high risk of SARS-CoV-2 in heavily polluted regions can be explained by upregulation of ACE2 caused by PM. PM could be both a direct and indirect transmission model for SARS-CoV-2 infection.
AB - Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), an acute respiratory disease caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has rapidly developed into a pandemic throughout the world. This disease is a highly infectious novel coronavirus and can affect people of all ages. Previous reports observed that particulate matter (PM) provided a platform for intermixing with viruses (i.e., influenza). However, the role of PM in SARS-CoV-2 transmission remains unclear. In this paper, we propose that PM plays a direct role as a “carrier” of SARS-CoV-2. SARS-CoV-2 is reported to have a high affinity for the angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor. Indirectly, exposure to PM increases ACE2 expression in the lungs which facilitates SARS-CoV-2 viral adhesion. Thus, the high risk of SARS-CoV-2 in heavily polluted regions can be explained by upregulation of ACE2 caused by PM. PM could be both a direct and indirect transmission model for SARS-CoV-2 infection.
KW - Air pollution
KW - Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2
KW - Covid-19
KW - SARS-CoV-2
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U2 - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141532
DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141532
M3 - Letter
C2 - 32858292
AN - SCOPUS:85089813091
SN - 0048-9697
VL - 750
JO - Science of the Total Environment
JF - Science of the Total Environment
M1 - 141532
ER -