Asbestos doesn't harm the body by being toxic in the ordinary chemical sense. It does its damage through physical persistence and a slow chemical reaction, and this category explains the biochemistry step by step.
Much of the injury traces back to iron carried on and released by the fibers. Through the Fenton reaction, that iron helps turn ordinary byproducts of breathing into hydroxyl radicals, among the most reactive and damaging molecules a cell can encounter. This is redox cycling, and over years it wears down a cell's defenses, including antioxidants like glutathione, and injures DNA in ways that can lead to cancer.
You'll find the pieces of this process defined here, from iron acquisition and the low-molecular-weight iron pool to superoxide, the hydroxyl group, and tyrosine nitration. None of it is required reading to pursue a claim, but it explains why a mineral can sit quietly in the lungs for decades and still cause harm. Every term below links to a full plain-language definition.
Terms in this category
- Biologically Active IronBiologically active iron refers to iron atoms on or within asbestos fibers that can participate in chemical r…
- Capillary PassageCapillary passage describes how extremely thin, needle-like asbestos fibers can travel through very small bio…
- CationA cation is a positively charged ion, an atom or molecule that has lost one or more electrons. In minerals, c…
- DehydroxylationDehydroxylation is a chemical process in which hydroxyl groups (–OH) bound within a mineral's crystal structu…
- Desferrioxamine BDesferrioxamine B (also called deferoxamine) is a chemical compound that strongly binds iron, pulling it out …
- Drug Penetration DepthDrug penetration depth is the distance a chemotherapy or other therapeutic agent can diffuse into a solid tum…
- Fenton ReactionThe Fenton Reaction is a chemical process in which iron reacts with hydrogen peroxide to generate highly reac…
- Glutathione (GSH)Glutathione is a small molecule (a tripeptide made of three amino acids: glutamate, cysteine, and glycine) th…
- Hydroxyl GroupA hydroxyl group is a chemical unit made of one oxygen atom bonded to one hydrogen atom (written as -OH). It …
- Hydroxyl RadicalThe hydroxyl radical (•OH) is one of the most reactive chemical species known in biology, an oxygen-hydrogen …
- Iron AcquisitionIron acquisition is the process by which asbestos fibers attract, bind, and accumulate iron atoms on their su…
- Low-Molecular-Weight Iron PoolThe low-molecular-weight iron pool (also called the labile iron pool) is a small fraction of iron inside cell…
- Mixed-Valence IronMixed-valence iron refers to the presence of iron atoms in two different oxidation states, typically ferrous …
- Redox CyclingRedox cycling is a repeating chemical reaction in which iron (or another metal) on the surface of an asbestos…
- SuperoxideSuperoxide is a highly reactive form of oxygen (chemical formula O₂⁻) that carries an extra electron, making …
- Tyrosine NitrationTyrosine nitration is a chemical change to proteins in which a nitro group is added to the amino acid tyrosin…
Terms in this category
Browse the full Lexicon, or talk it through with a member of our litigation team, not a screener, at 833-4-ASBESTOS.