The role of air pollutants in initiating liver disease

Recent episodes of severe air pollution in eastern Asia have been reported in the scientific literature and news media. Therefore, there is growing concern about the systemic effects of air pollution on human health. Along with the other well-known harmful effects of air pollution, recently, several animal models have provided strong evidence that air pollutants can induce liver toxicity and act to accelerate liver inflammation and steatosis. This review briefly describes examples where exposure to air pollutants was involved in liver toxicity, focusing on how particulate matter (PM) or carbon black (CB) may be translocated from lung to liver and what liver diseases are closely associated with these air pollutants.