OBJECTIVES To determine predictors of progression of pleural and parenchymal disease on the chest radiographs of workers exposed to a short term, intense exposure of amosite asbestos. METHODS The first and last of a series of chest radiographs of 887 workers exposed to amosite was interpreted and coded according to International Labour Organisation (ILO) standards by two physicians. Significa...

Bioassays of amosite, short-range (SR), intermediate-range (IR) or intermediate-range chrysotile asbestos in combination with the intestinal carcinogen 1,2-dimethylhydrazine dihydrochloride (DMH) were conducted with male and female Syrian golden hamsters. Amosite and both forms of chrysotile asbestos were administered at a concentration of 1% in pelleted diet for the entire lifetime of the hams...

In a family with a remarkable aggregation of malignant mesothelioma the father, mother, and a son all died of the condition, whereas two other sons and a daughter were unaffected. From 1944 to 1961 the family produced a material that was used to fix screws in drilled holes and consisted of amosite, gypsum, and sand. It was produced in the basement of their villa and was described as being a dus...

Previous studies have shown that long thin asbestos fibres are more pathogenic in in vivo and more active in in vitro assays than short fibre samples. In the present study a long fibre amosite asbestos sample and a short fibre sample prepared from it were tested for ability to cause inflammation in the peritoneal cavity of the mouse; a UICC sample intermediate in fibre size and an inert compact...

Lung tissue from 221 definite and probable cases of malignant mesothelioma reported to the Australian Mesothelioma Surveillance Program from January 1980 through December 1985 and from an age-sex frequency matched control series of 359 postmortem cases were examined by light microscopic (LM) and analytical transmission electron microscopic (TEM) analysis and energy dispersive x-ray analysis (ED...

A wide range of fiber types was tested in two in vitro assays: toxicity to A549 epithelial cells, as detachment from substrate, and the production of the proinflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF) by rat alveolar macrophages. Three of the fibers were also studied in vivo, using short-term inhalation followed by a) bronchoalveolar lavage to assess the inflammatory response and b) measu...

In Finland, unlike other countries, anthophyllite asbestos has been widely used due to its domestic production in 1918-1975. In this particular context, the aim of the present study was to analyse the relationship between asbestos bodies (ABs) in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid and the concentration of ABs and the different amphibole asbestos fibres in lung tissue. Sixty five BAL lung tissue...

Chrysotile fibers promoted the fusion of human erythrocyte membranes and the hemolysis and fusion of fowl erythrocytes. Amosite and glass fibers did not show the same effect. These findings provide a model for the internalization of the fibers by animal cells.