Air quality and health implications of exposure to ultrafine particle pollution
8 affiliations
- 1Atmospheric Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry , Hahn-Meitner-Weg 1, 55128 Mainz ,
- 2Climate and Atmosphere Research Centre, The Cyprus Institute , P.O. Box 27457, 1645 Nicosia ,
- 3Aerosol Chemistry Department, Max Planck Institute for Chemistry , Mainz ,
- 4Computation-based Science and Technology Research Centre, The Cyprus Institute , Nicosia ,
- 5Department of Geology and Geophysics, King Saud University , Riyadh ,
- 6Institute for Atmospheric and Earth System Research, University of Helsinki , Helsinki ,
- 7Department of Cardiology, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz , Mainz ,
- 8German Center for Cardiovascular Research, Partner Site Rhine-Mainz , Mainz ,
Abstract
AIMS: Ultrafine particles (UFPs) smaller than 100 nm are ubiquitous in polluted air. Although they carry little mass, UFPs have a large exposure surface area, can bypass respiratory defences, translocate into the brain and bloodstream, and impact the heart and other organs. Here, we assess the role of UFPs in air quality and the health burden they impose. METHODS AND RESULTS: We integrated Earth observations with machine learning to estimate long-term UFP exposure at 1 km resolution, demonstrating that they pose a major air quality concern in urban environments, with annual mean concentrations typically ranging between 10 000 and 30 000 particles/cm-3. Model calculations suggest that black and organic carbon are primary components of pollution UFPs. Based on a meta-analysis of epidemiological cohort studies in Europe and North America, we derived a pooled hazard ratio for mortality and combined it with our UFP data. We estimate a mortality density of 35.7 (15.8-65.5) per 100 000 people annually in Europe, and 27.4 (12.9-47.4) per 100 000 in North America, the latter being close to the global mean. We find that UFP exposure and mortality densities are particularly high in South and Eastern Europe. Since observational data for other regions are limited, global calculations primarily depend on modelling. We indicatively estimate that 1.99 (0.81-3.89) million excess deaths per year are attributable to UFP exposure. This could account for approximately 5% of total mortality from non-communicable diseases, to a large degree (about half) due to cardiovascular conditions. Globally, about 91% of UFP-related excess mortality occurs in urban and suburban environments, and much of that (78%) in densely populated urban areas. CONCLUSION: Health-improving interventions should target combustion sources in cities, particularly those related to energy consumption, industry, and traffic. An annual air quality limit of 5000 cm-3 could reduce global excess mortality by about 45%.
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BibTeX
@article{lelieveld2026quality,
title = {{Air quality and health implications of exposure to ultrafine particle pollution}},
author = {Jos Lelieveld and Pantelis Georgiades and M Kohl and Yafang Cheng and T. Christoudias and Jean Sciare and Mihalis A. Nicolaou and Constantine Dovrolis and Mohammed S. Fnais and Markku Kulmala and Andreas Daiber and Omar Hahad and Marin Kuntić and Thomas F. Münzel and Andrea Pozzer},
journal = {Cardiovascular Research},
year = {2026},
month = jul,
doi = {10.1093/cvr/cvag136},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/cvr/cvag136},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Air quality and health implications of exposure to ultrafine particle pollution
AU - Jos Lelieveld
AU - Pantelis Georgiades
AU - M Kohl
AU - Yafang Cheng
AU - T. Christoudias
AU - Jean Sciare
AU - Mihalis A. Nicolaou
AU - Constantine Dovrolis
AU - Mohammed S. Fnais
AU - Markku Kulmala
AU - Andreas Daiber
AU - Omar Hahad
AU - Marin Kuntić
AU - Thomas F. Münzel
AU - Andrea Pozzer
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/07/08
JO - Cardiovascular Research
DO - 10.1093/cvr/cvag136
UR - https://doi.org/10.1093/cvr/cvag136
AB - AIMS: Ultrafine particles (UFPs) smaller than 100 nm are ubiquitous in polluted air. Although they carry little mass, UFPs have a large exposure surface area, can bypass respiratory defences, translocate into the brain and bloodstream, and impact the heart and other organs. Here, we assess the role of UFPs in air quality and the health burden they impose. METHODS AND RESULTS: We integrated Earth observations with machine learning to estimate long-term UFP exposure at 1 km resolution, demonstrating that they pose a major air quality concern in urban environments, with annual mean concentrations typically ranging between 10 000 and 30 000 particles/cm-3. Model calculations suggest that black and organic carbon are primary components of pollution UFPs. Based on a meta-analysis of epidemiological cohort studies in Europe and North America, we derived a pooled hazard ratio for mortality and combined it with our UFP data. We estimate a mortality density of 35.7 (15.8-65.5) per 100 000 people annually in Europe, and 27.4 (12.9-47.4) per 100 000 in North America, the latter being close to the global mean. We find that UFP exposure and mortality densities are particularly high in South and Eastern Europe. Since observational data for other regions are limited, global calculations primarily depend on modelling. We indicatively estimate that 1.99 (0.81-3.89) million excess deaths per year are attributable to UFP exposure. This could account for approximately 5% of total mortality from non-communicable diseases, to a large degree (about half) due to cardiovascular conditions. Globally, about 91% of UFP-related excess mortality occurs in urban and suburban environments, and much of that (78%) in densely populated urban areas. CONCLUSION: Health-improving interventions should target combustion sources in cities, particularly those related to energy consumption, industry, and traffic. An annual air quality limit of 5000 cm-3 could reduce global excess mortality by about 45%.
SN - 0008-6363
SN - 1755-3245
ER -