They found that as the number of fine particles less than 2.5 microns in diameter increased, so, too, did the risk of dying: each jump of 10 micrograms per
cubic meter corresponded to a 11 to 17 percent increase in the risk of dying from any cause.
The deposited particle mass from 10 to 350 nanograms (a billionth of a gram) per square centimeter of cell surface
corresponds to an airway daily dose of slightly polluted, rural air with 20 micrograms (a millionth of a gram) PM per
cubic meter of air through to very high air pollution in a megacity (1000 micrograms PM per
cubic meter of air).