Exposure to household biomass burning and coal-fired power plant emissions exacerbates biological aging in females- a case-control study

Coal-fired power plants are major contributors to anthropogenic air pollution, emitting fine particulate matter (PM) and toxic trace elements linked to adverse health outcomes. Populations in the Indo-Gangetic Plain (IGP), one of the world’s most polluted and densely populated regions, experience disproportionate exposure to such emissions, compounded by meteorological and household factors. We investigated the environmental and biological impacts of emissions from the Farakka Thermal Power Plant in eastern India during winter 2021–2022. Particulate samples were collected at upwind and downwind sites and analyzed for metals and organic markers. Whole-blood RNA sequencing was performed from both sites to assess transcriptomic alterations and biological aging. Downwind populations were exposed to a higher chemical burden, with significantly elevated concentrations of V, Fe, Tl, and Se (p < 0.05), despite no significant difference in bulk PM₂.₅. Gene expression profiling revealed an enrichment of inflammatory and apoptotic pathways and downregulation of oxidative phosphorylation and reactive oxygen species signaling. Transcriptomic aging indicated a trend toward accelerated biological aging in the downwind population, with significantly greater aging in females at both sites (p = 0.047). Our integrative chemical–biological assessment demonstrates that coal-fired power plant emissions can induce systemic transcriptional reprogramming, inflammatory activation, and sex-linked biological aging.