Vehicle exhausts 'may damage heart'
Updated on 18 February 2008
An "oil spill" chemical from traffic pollution could be damaging to the hearts of people living in cities, new research suggests.
Scientists in the US used a small aquarium fish to test the effects of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) produced by vehicle exhausts.
They found that the chemicals caused the hearts of zebrafish embryos to beat weakly and with an abnormal rhythm.
Since the heart function of embryo zebrafish closely mirrors that of humans, scientists fear traffic pollution may expose people to similar risks.
Dr John Incardona, from the West Coast Centre for Oceans and Human Health in Seattle, who led the study, said: "It turns out that fish hearts even in the embryo function are more like human hearts than even mice or rats, the usual test animals in human health.
"The available data suggest that these PAHs are present in burning oil in levels high enough to result in pharmacologically active levels in the human blood stream.
"A physician who knowingly gave an aerosolised particle toxin to a patient with coronary artery disease or congestive heart failure would probably be sued for malpractice. But the air in our cities is doing just that to millions every day unknowingly."
PAHs are a family of complex chemicals based around benzene, a known cancer agent.
Petroleum and its refined products contain PAHs, and oil spills are one of the ways the chemicals get into the environment. However, they are also generated by burning fossil fuels, and are emitted by the engines of cars and lorries.
The health effects of PAHs were recognised more than 200 years ago in England when it was discovered that workers heavily exposed to chimney soot were unusually prone to skin cancer.
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