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Updated: Sep 11, 2025

Measuring Carbon Content in Airway Macrophages Exposed to Carbon-Containing Particulate Matters
Published on: July 12, 2024
Independent and Interactive Effects of Air Pollutants, Meteorological Factors, and Green Space on Tuberculosis
Qi Ye1, Jing Chen2, Ya Ting Ji1
1School of Public Health (Shenzhen), Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Pathogenic Microbes and Biosafety, Shenzhen Campus of Sun Yat-Sen University, Shenzhen 518107, Guangdong, China.
Objective:
To assess the independent and combined effects of air pollutants, meteorological factors, and greenspace exposure on new tuberculosis (TB) cases.
Methods:
TB case data from Shanghai (2013-2018) were obtained from the Shanghai Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Environmental data on air pollutants, meteorological variables, and greenspace exposure were obtained from the National Tibetan Plateau Data Center. We employed a distributed-lag nonlinear model to assess the effects of these environmental factors on TB cases.
Results:
Increased TB risk was linked to PM 2.5, PM 10, and rainfall, whereas NO 2, SO 2, and air pressure were associated with a reduced risk. Specifically, the strongest cumulative effects occurred at various lags: PM 2.5 ( RR = 1.166, 95% CI: 1.026-1.325) at 0-19 weeks; PM 10 ( RR = 1.167, 95% CI: 1.028-1.324) at 0-18 weeks; NO 2 ( RR = 0.968, 95% CI: 0.938-0.999) at 0-1 weeks; SO 2 ( RR = 0.945, 95% CI: 0.894-0.999) at 0-2 weeks; air pressure ( RR = 0.604, 95% CI: 0.447-0.816) at 0-8 weeks; and rainfall ( RR = 1.404, 95% CI: 1.076-1.833) at 0-22 weeks. Green space exposure did not significantly impact TB cases. Additionally, low temperatures amplified the effect of PM 2.5 on TB.
Conclusion:
Exposure to PM 2.5, PM 10, and rainfall increased the risk of TB, highlighting the need to address air pollutants for the prevention of TB in Shanghai.
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