From a dirty breath to atherosclerosis: Ozone pollution and neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs)

Exposure to ambient ozone in healthy individuals (shown in the magnified alveolus, including the transfer of ozone via the alveolar-capillary membrane and the contact with circulating neutrophils) associates with an elevation in the pro-atherogenic immunothrombotic pathway of NETosis. Precise mechanisms, and the role of concomitant pollutants remain unknown. Abbreviations: particulate matter (PM), ultrafine particles (UFP), sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), carbon monoxide (CO), neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), and red blood cells (RBC).