Gene-environment interaction in long-term effects of moderate-toxic organophosphorus pesticides on lung function decline in Chinese urban population.

Health damage caused by organophosphorus pesticides (OPPs) exposure is becoming a public health concern, yet the potential risks of respiratory health remain unclear. This study based on an urban community resident cohort aimed to explore the associations between OPPs and lung function, as well as potential interaction of genetic factors and exposure routes of OPPs. After adjustment for potential covariates, serum OPPs were negatively associated with forced vital capacity (FVC) and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1), with dichlorvos and ethion were additionally related to the annual rate of change in FVC. These associations were more pronounced in males than in females. Mixture OPP exposure was negatively associated with lung function, with ethion showing the highest weight in the weighted quantile sum regression models. Besides, participants with high OPP levels and high polygenic risk score (PRS) exhibited the greatest decline in lung function compared to those with low OPP levels and low PRS. Source analyses indicated that ambient fine particulate matter (PM2.5) was the most important contributor to OPP exposure. These findings emphasized the adverse respiratory effects from OPP exposure especially with the higher genetic risk, and measures for PM2.5 control may be benefit for reducing OPP exposure.