Health outcome · marker
Oxidative stress
Also: reactive oxygen species, ROS, oxidative potential
An imbalance between reactive oxygen species and the body's antioxidant defences, damaging cells and tissues. It is the common biological mechanism through which particulate matter, ozone and many volatile compounds cause inflammation and disease.
Why it matters indoors
Most indoor air pollutants do not act through a unique poison; they act by generating reactive oxygen species in the lining of the airways, skin or blood vessels. Particles carry transition metals and organic compounds that generate radicals; ozone is itself an oxidant; aldehydes deplete the antioxidant glutathione. The resulting oxidative stress triggers inflammation, which links exposure to asthma, cardiovascular disease, skin ageing and, over decades, cancer.
Why it matters for measurement
Oxidative potential — a particle sample’s capacity to generate radicals — is increasingly used alongside mass concentration, because two rooms with the same PM₂.₅ can differ several-fold in oxidative potential depending on the particle source.
Identifiers
- MeSH
- D018384
In the literature
- Ahn et al. Particulate matter induces oxidative stress and ferroptosis in human lung epithelial cells… (2024). Toxics. doi:10.3390/toxics12020161 CKB 0551
- Niacinamide protects skin cells from oxidative stress induced by particulate matter… (2019). Biomolecules & therapeutics. doi:10.4062/biomolther.2019.061 CKB 0616
- Wang Increased inflammation and oxidative stress caused by accumulated metal particle exposure among metro station staff (2025). PLoS One. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0337592 CKB 1184
Studies in the Coridum Knowledge Base in which this term is used. The definition follows standard usage in WHO, ISO and textbook sources; it is not quoted from these papers.
CKB = document number in the Coridum Knowledge Base, our curated library of peer-reviewed studies. Follow the DOI for the original paper.