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REVIEW article

Front. Public Health
Sec. Occupational Health and Safety
Volume 12 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1435840

A comprehensive retrospect on the current perspectives and future prospects of Pneumoconiosis

Provisionally accepted
Xiaomin Hou Xiaomin Hou 1,2Zhengqian Wei Zhengqian Wei 3Xuelu Jiang Xuelu Jiang 4Chengjie Wei Chengjie Wei 4Lin Dong Lin Dong 4Yanhua Li Yanhua Li 5Ruifeng Liang Ruifeng Liang 6Jisheng Nie Jisheng Nie 6,7Yiwei Shi Yiwei Shi 10,8,9Xiaojiang Qin Xiaojiang Qin 10,6,8*
  • 1 Department of Pharmacology, School of Basic Medicine, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shaanxi, China
  • 2 Other, Taiyuan, China
  • 3 Second Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, China
  • 4 Shanxi Academy of Medical Sciences, Taiyuan, China
  • 5 School of Foreign Languages, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, China
  • 6 School of Public Health, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, China
  • 7 Key Laboratory of Coal Environmental Pathogenicity and Prevention, Ministry of Education, Taiyuan, China
  • 8 Ministry of Education (China), Beijing, China
  • 9 First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shaanxi, China
  • 10 NHC Key Laboratory of Pneumoconiosis, First Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan,, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Pneumoconiosis is a widespread occupational pulmonary disease caused by inhalation and retention of dust particles in the lungs, is characterized by chronic pulmonary inflammation and progressive fibrosis, potentially leading to respiratory and/or heart failure. Workers exposed to dust, such as coal miners, foundry workers, and construction workers, are at risk of pneumoconiosis. This review synthesizes the international and national classifications, epidemiological characteristics, strategies for prevention, clinical manifestations, diagnosis, pathogenesis, and treatment of pneumoconiosis. Current research on the pathogenesis of pneumoconiosis focuses on the influence of autophagy, apoptosis, and pyroptosis on the progression of the disease. In addition, factors such as lipopolysaccharide and nicotine have been found to play crucial roles in the development of pneumoconiosis. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the most fundamental achievements in the treatment of pneumoconiosis with the purpose of indicating the future direction of its treatment and control. New technologies of integrative omics, artificial intelligence, systemic administration of mesenchymal stromal cells have proved useful in solving the conundrum of pneumoconiosis. These directional studies will provide novel therapeutic targets for the treatment of pneumoconiosis.

    Keywords: Pneumoconiosis, Inflammation, Fibrosis, current status, cell therapy, Nanotechnology

    Received: 21 May 2024; Accepted: 24 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Hou, Wei, Jiang, Wei, Dong, Li, Liang, Nie, Shi and Qin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Xiaojiang Qin, School of Public Health, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, 030001, Shanxi Province, China

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.