Cytotoxicity and Inflammatory Potential of Soot Particles of "Low-Emission" Diesel Engines

"At the same mass concentration, soot particles produced under lowemission conditions exhibit a much higher toxic and inflammatory potential than particles from an old diesel engine operating under black smoke conditions. This effect is assigned to the defective surface structure of Euro IV diesel soot, rendering it highly active. Our findings indicate that the reduction of soot emission in terms of mass does not automatically lead to a reduction of the toxic effects toward humans when the structure and functionality of the soot is changed, and thereby the biological accessibility and inflammatory potential of soot is increased."

http://edoc.mpg.de/366470