Fine particulate matter (PM2.5) has an adverse effect on reproductive function, in particular causing reduced male reproductive function, but relatively few studies have directly targeted its effects on female reproduction. To investigate the effects of PM2.5 exposure on female reproduction, we exposed female mice to PM2.5 by intratracheal instillation for 28 days, and evaluated apoptosis of ovarian granulosa cells and oocytes and the quality embryos after insemination. Our results showed increased numbers of apoptotic granulosa cells and oocytes after exposure to elevated concentrations of PM2.5, which had adverse effects on female fertility via compromising embryo development and quality. We conclude that PM2.5 induced apoptosis of ovarian granulosa cells and oocytes leading to disrupted embryo development and female fertility in mice.

Fetal hypoxic-ischemic brain injury (HIBI) is a severe condition for which no effective therapy exists. In this study mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) from human umbilical cord blood (UCB) of full-term newborns were isolated and intracerebrally transplanted into rat neonates after HIBI induction. Nerve function was assessed by the modified neurological severity scores (mNSS) to establish if MSCs could alleviate nerve injury. Immunostaining showed the transplanted MSCs migrated to the hippocampus. Rats receiving MSCs treatment showed significant improvement in the mNSS when compared with controls. Also, histochemical study showed alleviation of brain tissue injury after MSCs treatment. Differentiation of MSCs to astrocytes, but not neurons, was observed. The results indicate a beneficial effect of intracerebral transplantation of MSCs on the functional recovery of rat neonates with HIBI.

Maternal exposure to ambient air pollution has been associated with an increased risk of congenital heart defects in offspring; however, the results are inconsistent. We investigated whether there is an association between prenatal exposure to particulate matter with diameter ≤10μm (PM₁₀) during early pregnancy and fetal cardiovascular malformations. The gravidae from a hospital-based case–control study in Fuzhou, China, during 2007–2013 were assigned 10-d or 1-mo averages of daily PM₁₀ using an air monitor–based inverse distance weighting method during early pregnancy. A total of 662 live-birth or selectively terminated cases and 3,972 live-birth controls were enrolled. The exposure was considered as a categorical variable. A multivariable logistic regression model was constructed to quantify the adjusted odds ratios (aORs) of the exposure to PM₁₀ and the risks of fetal cardiovascular malformations. PM₁₀ levels were positively associated with the risks of atrial septal defect (aORs ranging from 1.29 to 2.17), patent ductus arteriosus [aORs = 1.54, 1.63; 95% confidence intervals (CIs): 1.17, 2.23; 1.06, 3.24], overall fetal cardiovascular malformations (aOR = 1.28; 95% CI: 1.03, 1.61), ventricular septal defect (aOR = 1.19; 95% CI: 1.00, 1.43), and tetralogy of Fallot (aOR = 1.44; 95% CI: 1.01, 2.19) in the various observed periods scaled by 10 d or 1 mo in the first and second gestation months. The strongest associations were observed for exposure to PM₁₀ in the second quartile, whereas the associations were attenuated when higher concentrations of PM₁₀ in the third and fourth quartiles of the exposure were evaluated. No correlations of PM₁₀ levels with these cardiovascular malformations in the other time periods of gestation were observed. Our findings suggest some positive associations between maternal exposure to ambient PM₁₀ during the first two months of pregnancy and fetal cardiovascular malformations. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP289.