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Pulmonary biochemical response to slate dust in rats
Author(s) -
Khan M. Firoze,
Ali Shahid,
Singh Shivendra V.,
Rahman Qamar,
Viswanathan P. N.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
journal of applied toxicology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.784
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1099-1263
pISSN - 0260-437X
DOI - 10.1002/jat.2550040206
Subject(s) - mitochondrion , cytochrome c oxidase , monoamine oxidase , lung , succinate dehydrogenase , toxicity , chemistry , sialic acid , phospholipid , oxidase test , endocrinology , medicine , biochemistry , biology , enzyme , membrane
The biochemical changes in rat lungs due to intratracheal instillation of 50 mg of slate dust have been studied up to 150 days of dust exposure. The remarkable feature of lung changes was the turnover of collagen in experimental animals after 90 days, reaching substantially higher values at 150 days. A concurrent increase in hexosamine and sialic acid contents was also observed. The phospholipid content in the whole lung tissue, as well as in the mitochondria, was generally higher in the dust‐treated rats, particularly at the later stages. The mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase and glutamate dehydrogenase activities increased, whereas monoamine oxidase was marginally affected. Mitochondria from experimental animals appeared to be in a swollen state, particularly at 120 days of exposure. The above results suggest that slate dust exerts its toxic effects by causing alterations in the tissue make‐up as well as in the mitochondrial functioning of the lung.