Activation of epithelial and inflammatory pathways in adolescent elite athletes exposed to intense exercise and air pollution

RATIONALE: Participation in high-intensity exercise in early life might act as stressor to the airway barrier. OBJECTIVES: To investigate the effect of intense exercise and associated exposure to air pollution on the airway barrier in adolescent elite athletes compared with healthy controls and to study exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB) in this population. METHODS: Early-career elite athletes attending ‘Flemish-Elite-Sports-Schools’ (12–18 years) of 4 different sport disciplines (n=90) and control subjects (n=25) were recruited. Presence of EIB was tested by the eucapnic voluntary hyperventilation (EVH) test. Markers at mRNA and protein level; RNA-sequencing; carbon load in airway macrophages were studied on induced sputum samples. RESULTS: 444 genes were differentially expressed in sputum from athletes compared with controls, which were related to inflammation and epithelial cell damage and sputum samples of athletes contained significantly more carbon loaded airway macrophages compared with controls (24%, 95% CI 20% to 36%, p<0.0004). Athletes had significantly higher substance P (13.3 pg/mL, 95% CI 2.0 to 19.2) and calprotectin (1237 ng/mL, 95% CI 531 to 2490) levels as well as IL-6, IL-8 and TNF-α mRNA levels compared with controls (p<0.05). The incidence of EIB in athletes was 9%. The maximal fall in forced expiratory volume in 1 s (%) after EVH test in athletes was significantly associated with prior PM(10) and PM(2.5) exposure. CONCLUSION: Early-career elite athletes showed increased markers of air pollution exposure, epithelial damage and airway inflammation compared with controls. Acute exposure to increased air pollution PM(10) levels was linked to increased airway hyper-reactivity. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT03587675.