Abstract
Background: Ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) has a marked temporospatial variation in chemical composition, but how the composition of PM2.5 influences its toxicity remains elusive. Results: To explore the individual roles of different PM2.5 components in the pathogenesis due to PM2.5 exposure, we prepared water-soluble (WS-DEP) and -insoluble (WIS-DEP) fractions of diesel exhaust particles (DEP) and assessed their effects on pulmonary and systemic inflammation, hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance, systemic glucose homeostasis, and gut microbiota using chronic intratracheal instillation mouse models. Compared to control, instillation of DEP or WIS-DEP, but not WS-DEP, significantly increased pulmonary inflammatory scores and expression of inflammatory markers, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid cell number, and circulating pro-inflammatory cytokines. Consistently, DEP or WIS-DEP-instilled but not WS-DEP-instilled mice versus control had significant hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance and systemic glucose intolerance. In contrast, instillation of WS-DEP versus instillation of WIS-DEP had more similar effects on gut microbiota to that of instillations of DEP. Conclusion: The pulmonary and systemic inflammation, hepatic steatosis and insulin resistance, and systemic glucose intolerance following chronic DEP instillation are all attributable to the water-insoluble fraction of DEP, providing a mechanistic interpretation for the apparent independency of PM2.5 exposure-induced glucose intolerance on PM2.5 composition.