Particle toxicology – Anda Gliga's research group

The group’s research centers on mechanisms of particle toxicity arising from modern societal and occupational sources. Current research themes include particles generated from welding processes, renewable diesel combustion, fire emissions from emerging “green” materials and particles generated during recycling of building materials. We integrate in vitro cell models, omics-based methods, bioinformatics, in vitro–in vivo extrapolation and molecular epidemiology approaches.

Part of the:

Publications

Selected publications

Funding

Grants

  • Fire emissions from new materials – toxicity and risks for firefighters
    Swedish Research Council for Health Working Life and Welfare
    1 January 2026 - 1 January 2028
  • Swedish Research Council for Health Working Life and Welfare
    1 January 2025 - 31 December 2028
    Research problem and purpose: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the most common cause of death in Sweden. Work-related exposures have been associated with inflammation and increased risk of CVD. However, our understanding of the effects of single exposures remains limited, and the complex relationships between multiple simultaneous occupational and other exposures are not available today. This kind of information is crucial for a targeted preventive approach including establishing occupational exposure limits, and thus decreasing inflammation and risk of CVD. The Inflamm@Work project will explore:Exposure-response relationships between four occupational exposures (dust, shift work, job stress, noise) and inflammation.How combinations of occupational, environmental, and lifestyle factors (working life exposome) may cause inflammation.Associations between inflammation and the risk of CVD.Further, we will establish an internationally unique research infrastructure for studying work life, biological mechanisms, and chronic diseases.Data and methods: The study comprises 4,400 workers who participated in 11 studies on the health effects of dust, shift work, job stress, or noise during 1992–2023. For these workers, we will combine i) measurements of the participants´ work environments, ii) questionnaire data on lifestyle factors, iii) registry data on work history and medical history, iv) quantitative job exposure matrices and assessment of air pollution and traffic noise, and v) analysis of biomarkers of inflammation and CVD in serum. We will analyse exposure-response relations for each of the four occupational exposures and inflammation, and for the combined effects of occupational, environmental, and lifestyle factors (exposome approach). Finally, we investigate inflammation and risk of CVD. An identical sister project with 6,044 participants is granted in Denmark and the overall statistical power will be high.Societal relevance and utilization: This innovative approach will provide new knowledge about health effects of the working life exposome, and open new avenues for preventing CVD and other chronic diseases. The results of Inflamm@Work have the potential to allow government agencies and employers to mitigate important risks.Plan for project realisation: We will identify and select samples, retrieve registry data, harmonise data, and analyse biomarkers (year 1). We will perform statistical analysis (years 2-3) and disseminate the results (year 3).
  • Swedish Research Council for Environment Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning
    1 January 2022 - 31 December 2026
    The development of novel renewable fuels is paramount for reducing carbon emissions and mitigating climate change. Biofuels, such as biodiesel and lignin-based fuels could play an important role for this endeavour, particularly in Sweden. However, particles generated from combustion of such fuels could have a negative impact on human health, similar to traditionally used fuel. Knowledge on these aspects is scarce. The aim of this project is to evaluate lung toxicity of particles generated from combustion of novel biofuels such as ‘new generation’ biodiesel and lignin-based fuels that are originating from raw forest material. To this end the project will use advanced 3D in vitro models of the human lungs and experimental setups that resemble human exposure, i.e. acute and chronic exposure (3 months) at low, realistic doses. Traditional toxicological endpoints (e.g. inflammation, DNA damage) will be combined with RNA-sequencing in order to gain deep insight into potential mechanisms of toxicity and generate new hypotheses. We will also use 3D models representative of vulnerable populations such as individuals with asthma. The 3D models will be co-cultured with immune cells to evaluate the influence of the immune component for toxicity. Diesel exhaust particles will be used as reference particles for benchmarking. Overall, this project will provide relevant information on the toxicity of novel fuels that is of critical value for risk assessment and sustainable development.
  • Swedish Research Council for Health Working Life and Welfare
    1 January 2018 - 31 December 2020
  • Swedish Research Council for Health Working Life and Welfare
    1 December 2017 - 30 November 2021