title: Acrolein Inhalation Alters Myocardial Synchrony and Performance at and Below Exposure Concentrations that Cause Ventilatory Responses.
abstract: Acrolein is an irritating aldehyde generated during combustion of organic compounds. Altered autonomic activity has been documented following acrolein inhalation, possibly impacting myocardial synchrony and function. Given the ubiquitous nature of acrolein in the environment, we sought to better define the immediate and delayed functional cardiac effects of acrolein inhalation in vivo. We hypothesized that acrolein inhalation would increase markers of cardiac mechanical dysfunction, i.e., myocardial dyssynchrony and performance index in mice. Male C57Bl/6J mice were exposed to filtered air (FA) or acrolein (0.3 or 3.0 ppm) for 3 h in whole-body plethysmography chambers (n = 6). Echocardiographic analyses were performed 1 day before exposure and at 1 and 24 h post-exposure. Speckle tracking echocardiography revealed that circumferential strain delay (i.e., dyssynchrony) was increased at 1 and 24 h following exposure to 3.0 ppm, but not 0.3 ppm, when compared to pre-exposure and/or FA exposure. Pulsed wave Doppler of transmitral blood flow revealed that acrolein exposure at 0.3 ppm, but not 3.0 ppm, increased the Tei index of myocardial performance (i.e., decreased global heart performance) at 1 and 24 h post-exposure compared to pre-exposure and/or FA exposure. We conclude that short-term inhalation of acrolein can acutely modify cardiac function in vivo and that echocardiographic evaluation of myocardial synchrony and performance following exposure to other inhaled pollutants could provide broader insight into the health effects of air pollution.
authors.affiliation: Environmental Public Health Division, United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), 109 TW Alexander Drive, Mail Code: B105-02, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27711, USA.
authors.forename: Leslie C
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Thompson
authors.affiliation: Environmental Public Health Division, United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), 109 TW Alexander Drive, Mail Code: B105-02, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27711, USA.
authors.forename: Allen D
authors.initials: AD
authors.lastname: Ledbetter
authors.affiliation: Environmental Public Health Division, United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), 109 TW Alexander Drive, Mail Code: B105-02, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27711, USA.
authors.forename: Najwa
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Haykal-Coates
authors.affiliation: Environmental Public Health Division, United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), 109 TW Alexander Drive, Mail Code: B105-02, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27711, USA.
authors.forename: Wayne E
authors.initials: WE
authors.lastname: Cascio
authors.affiliation: Environmental Public Health Division, United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), 109 TW Alexander Drive, Mail Code: B105-02, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27711, USA.
authors.forename: Mehdi S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Hazari
authors.affiliation: Environmental Public Health Division, United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), 109 TW Alexander Drive, Mail Code: B105-02, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27711, USA. farraj.aimen@epa.gov.
authors.forename: Aimen K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Farraj
mesh_terms: D000171:Acrolein / Q000633:toxicity*; D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*; D000818:Animals; D066126:Cardiotoxicity; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D018618:Echocardiography, Doppler, Color; D018619:Echocardiography, Doppler, Pulsed; D019570:Inhalation Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D008168:Lung / Q000187:drug effects / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009200:Myocardial Contraction / Q000187:drug effects*; D010993:Plethysmography, Whole Body; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000503:physiopathology; D012123:Pulmonary Ventilation / Q000187:drug effects; D018570:Risk Assessment; D013997:Time Factors; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D000171:Acrolein
keywords: Acrolein; Echocardiography; Myocardial dyssynchrony; Myocardial strain; Tei index