Bio: Dr. Qian Bian received her Ph.D. of Toxicology from the School of Public Health at Nanjing Medical University. She got her post-doc training in Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB) at A*STAR in Singapore. She was also the trainee of the RASS X program organized by IUTOX awarded with a fellowship. Since 2013, she served as the director of the Institute of Toxicology and Risk Assessment at the Jiangsu Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention. She has long been engaged in mechanistic toxicology research of environmental pollutants especial air pollutants, safety evaluations of health-related products and risk assessments. Additionally, she serves as a council member and Deputy Secretary-General of the Chinese Society of Toxicology (CST).

Abstract: Microplastics (MPs) can be released into the air through various pathways and represent a novel atmospheric pollutant. Given their potential health risks, occupational exposure to airborne MPs warrants significant concern, particularly among workers in the plastic processing industry. The study investigated the exposure characteristics of airborne MPs in traditional plastic manufacturing settings and evaluated the associated health hazards for occupational workers. To elucidate the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying MP-induced toxicity, we established animal models of lung injury using polystyrene microplastics (PS-MPs). Our findings reveal that PS-MPs trigger lung injury through pathways involving non-coding RNAs related epithelial cell senescence, extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation, and m6A RNA methylation modifications.

References:

1.Sun XX , Xiao T, Qin JJ , Song Y , Lu KK , Ding RH , Shi WQ , Bian Q (Corresponding author). Mechanism of circRNA_SMG6 mediating lung macrophage ECM degradation via miR-570-3p in microplastics-induced emphysema. Environment International. 2024,187:108701.

2.Luo HJ,  Xiao T, Sun XX, Song Y, Shi WQ, Lu KK, Chen DY, Sun C, Bian Q (Corresponding author). The regulation of circRNA_kif26b on alveolar epithelial cell senescence via miR-346-3p is involved in microplastics-induced lung injuries. Sci Total Environ, 2023, 19:163512.

Fan Z, Xiao T, Luo H, Chen D, Lu K, Shi W, Sun C, Bian Q (Corresponding author). A study on the roles of long non-coding RNA and circular RNA in the pulmonary injuries induced by polystyrene microplastics, Environment International, 2022, 163:107223.