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Exposure to Intermittent Noise Exacerbates the Cardiovascular Response of Wistar–Kyoto Rats to Ozone Inhalation and Arrhythmogenic Challenge

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Abstract

Noise has become a prevalent public health problem across the world. Although there is a significant amount of data demonstrating the harmful effects of noise on the body, very little is known about how it impacts subsequent responses to other environmental stressors like air pollution, which tend to colocalize in urban centers. Therefore, this study was conducted to determine the effect of intermittent noise on cardiovascular function and subsequent responses to ozone (O3). Male Wistar–Kyoto rats implanted with radiotelemeters to non-invasively measure heart rate (HR) and blood pressure (BP), and assess heart rate variability (HRV) and baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) were kept in the quiet or exposed to intermittent white noise (85–90 dB) for one week and then exposed to either O3 (0.8 ppm) or filtered air. Left ventricular function and arrhythmia sensitivity were measured 24 h after exposure. Intermittent noise caused an initial increase in HR and BP, which decreased significantly later in the regimen and coincided with an increase in HRV and BRS. Noise caused HR and BP to be significantly elevated early during O3 and lower at the end when compared to animals kept in the quiet while the increased HRV and BRS persisted during the 24 h after. Lastly, noise increased arrhythmogenesis and may predispose the heart to mechanical function changes after O3. This is the first study to demonstrate that intermittent noise worsens the cardiovascular response to inhaled O3. These effects may occur due to autonomic changes and dysregulation of homeostatic controls, which persist one day after exposure to noise. Hence, co-exposure to noise should be taken into account when assessing the health effects of urban air pollution.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Drs. M. Ian Gilmour, Barbara Buckley and Erin Hines for the review of this manuscript.

Funding

The study was funded by the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cardiopulmonary and Immunotoxicology Branch, Public Health and Integrated Toxicology Division, Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 109 Alexander Drive, B105, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27711, USA

    Mehdi S. Hazari, Leslie Thompson, Wendy Oshiro & Aimen K. Farraj

  2. Department of Environmental Science and Engineering, Gillings School of Public Health, University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA

    Kaitlyn Phillips

  3. Curriculum in Toxicology and Environmental Medicine, University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA

    Kimberly M. Stratford

  4. Inhalation Toxicology Facilities Branch, Public Health and Integrated Toxicology Division, Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27711, USA

    Malek Khan & George Hudson

  5. Neurological and Endocrine Toxicology Branch, Public Health and Integrated Toxicology Division, Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC, 27711, USA

    David W. Herr

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  1. Mehdi S. Hazari
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Correspondence to Mehdi S. Hazari.

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The study protocol received approval from Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, as well as quality assurance clearance. All animals were treated humanely and with regard to alleviation of suffering

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Hazari, M.S., Phillips, K., Stratford, K.M. et al. Exposure to Intermittent Noise Exacerbates the Cardiovascular Response of Wistar–Kyoto Rats to Ozone Inhalation and Arrhythmogenic Challenge. Cardiovasc Toxicol 21, 336–348 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12012-020-09623-0

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