Urban Particulate Matter Impairment of Airway Surface Liquid-Mediated Coronavirus Inactivation

Air pollution particulate matter (PM) is associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection and severity, although mechanistic studies are lacking. We tested whether airway surface liquid (ASL) from primary human airway epithelial cells is antiviral against SARS-CoV-2 and human alphacoronavirus 229E (CoV-229E) (responsible for common colds), and whether PM (urban, indoor air pollution [IAP], volcanic ash) affected ASL antiviral activity. ASL inactivated SARS-CoV-2 and CoV-229E. Independently, urban PM also decreased SARS-CoV-2 and CoV-229E infection, and IAP PM decreased CoV-229E infection. However, in combination, urban PM impaired ASI's antiviral activity against both viruses, and the same effect occurred for IAP PM and ash against SARS-CoV-2, suggesting that PM may enhance SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Automated summary

The study found that airway surface liquid can inactivate SARS-CoV-2 and human alphacoronavirus 229E. Urban PM and indoor air pollution have an impact on the infection of these two viruses, but PM may weaken the antiviral activity of airway surface liquid.