Immune cells known as neutrophils produce reactive oxygen intermediates (ROIs) to combat infection with microbes that can cause diseases such as pneumonia.

A new study spearheaded by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine has determined that environmental monitoring of institutional water systems can help to predict the risk of hospital-acquired Legionella pneumonia, better known as Legionnaires’ disease.

Does air pollution have a bigger effect on the immune system of females than males? It did among mice exposed to ozone - a major component in air pollution that is known to negatively affect lung function - and then infected with pneumonia, as significantly more females died from the infection than males.