Open AccessToxic effects of cadmium microparticles on the respiratory system. An experimental study on rats and mice.
Author(s) -
G Bouley,
A Dubreuil,
Nicole Despaux,
C Boudène
Publication year - 1977
Publication title -
scandinavian journal of work, environment and health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.621
H-Index - 103
eISSN - 1795-990X
pISSN - 0355-3140
DOI - 10.5271/sjweh.2782
Subject(s) - cadmium , chemistry , respiratory system , inhalation , cadmium exposure , pasteurella multocida , immunology , physiology , microbiology and biotechnology , medicine , biology , bacteria , anatomy , genetics , organic chemistry
An experimental study on rats and mice. Scand. j. work environ. & health 3 (1977) 116--121. Experiments on male, specific pathogen-free rats (193) and mice (66) are reported. The test and control animals received a single 15-min exposure to cadmium (cadmium oxide) and aluminum (alumina) microparticles, respectively. The air cadmium content was 10 mg/m3, and 4 microgram of this metal was retained by the lungs of the rats. The animals were observed for 24 days. The following significant differences appeared between the control and test groups: in the cadmium exposed rats the relative lung weight (percentage of body weight) became temporarily higher; the absolute number of alveolar macrophages decreased at first and then increased; numerous polymorphonuclear and lymphocytic cells appeared in the alveoli. According to these inflammatory phenomena, at the 48th h after exposure, there was an alteration in the clearance kinetics of inhaled bacteria and an increase in the death rate of cadmium exposed animals following a test infection with Salmonella enteritidis (rats) or Pasteurella multocida (mice) aerosols. The mechanism of cadmium toxic action on the respiratory system is discussed.