Institute of Experimental Medicine CAS

In the Czech capital city, the areas most affected by smog are the Sokolská and Ječná streets and other places in the surroundings of these Prague main roads. Národní třída is also one of the locations most affected by excessive traffic. That is why scientists from the IEM CAS chose the Czech Academy of Sciences headquarters to find out what concentrations of aerosol particles are in front of the building and in its interior environment.

 

The European Commission has provided the "Transport Ultrafine and Brain Effects project“ with five million euros in funding from the Horizon 2020 programme in 2019, and the project runs until 2023. The international research is coordinated by the University of Eastern Finland and involves fifteen European scientific institutions, including the IEM CAS.

 

"We want to detect harmful components of air pollution from traffic and identify suitable biomarkers for early detection of brain diseases. Research combines the latest in vitro models and epidemiological studies," explains Ing. Jan Topinka, CSc., DSc. from the IEM CAS, coordinating the Czech part of the project.

Thus, scientists can determine the effects of ultrafine particles from combustion engine emissions on lung and brain function. In the former case, this may be due to acute and chronic respiratory diseases such as bronchitis, asthma or an increased risk of lung cancer. The brain has been linked to the development of neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Alzheimer's dementia.

 

More information you can find in the current issue of the Academic Bulletin (available only in Czech).