RATIONALE Sulfur mustard (SM) is a frequently used chemical warfare agent, even in modern history. SM inhalation causes significant respiratory tract injury, with early complications due to airway obstructive bronchial casts, akin to those seen after smoke inhalation and in single-ventricle physiology. This process with SM is poorly understood because animal models are unavailable. OBJECTIVES...

BACKGROUND Organic dusts may cause inflammation in the airways. This study was performed to assess the usefulness of the induced sputum technique for evaluating the presence of airways inflammation using inhaled endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide) as the inducer of inflammation. METHODS To characterise the inflammatory response after inhalation of endotoxin, 21 healthy subjects inhaled 40 microgra...

Mice were exposed to benzene for 13 to 14 weeks by inhalation for either 3 or 5 consecutive days per week or by gavage for 5 consecutive days per week. A weekly evaluation of peripheral blood smears for micronucleated (MN) erythrocyte frequencies and for the percentage of polychromatic erythrocytes (PCE) indicated that the induction of MN-PCE by benzene depended on the sex and strain of mice an...

A physiologically based pharmacokinetic (PB-PK) model was developed to describe trichloroethylene (TCE) kinetics in the lactating rat and nursing pup. The lactating dam was exposed to TCE either by inhalation or by ingestion in drinking water. The nursing pup's exposure to TCE was by ingestion of maternal milk containing TCE. The kinetics of trichloroacetic acid (TCA), a metabolite of TCE, were...

This article reviews exposure information available for trichloroethylene (TCE) and assesses the magnitude of human exposure. The primary sources releasing TCE into the environment are metal cleaning and degreasing operations. Releases occur into all media but mostly into the air due to its volatility. It is also moderately soluble in water and can leach from soils into groundwater. TCE has com...

The many chemical forms of nickel differ in physicochemical properties and biological effects. Health assessments for each main category of nickel species are needed. The carcinogenicity assessment of water-soluble nickel compounds has proven particularly difficult. Epidemiologic evidence indicates an association between inhalation exposures to nickel refinery dust containing soluble nickel com...

Occupational exposure studies were undertaken at a UK electric arc furnace (EAF) steelmaking plant to investigate the exposure of workers via inhalation to dioxins, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) including benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P). Surveys were undertaken in areas including the melting shop, the casting department and a furnace control cabin. The high...

OBJECTIVES The aim of the study has been to explore hemimellitene distribution in blood, liver, lung and kidney as well as toxicokinetics of its elimination from blood of rats after single and repeated inhalation exposure to this compound. Tissue distribution and excretion with urine of 2-dimethylbenzoic acids (2,3-DMBA and 2,6-DMBA) were also evaluated. MATERIAL AND METHODS Male outbred IMP:...

One of the steps during the authorization process of plant protection products (PPP) in the European Union is to evaluate the safety of the operator. For this purpose, information on the probable levels of operator exposure during the proposed uses of the PPP is required. These levels can be estimated by using existing mathematical models or from field study data. However, the existing models h...

Benzene is widely distributed in the environment. The exposure scenario of most concern to the general public is low-level inhalation over long periods. This is because the general population is exposed to benzene mainly through inhalation of contaminated air, particularly in areas of heavy traffic and around gas stations, and through inhalation of tobacco smoke from both active and passive smo...