A short history of the toxicology of inhaled particles

Our plain-English summary of A short history of the toxicology of inhaled particles, by K. Donaldson, A. Seaton (Particle and Fibre Toxicology, 2012).

The study

• Authors: K. Donaldson, A. Seaton
• Journal: Particle and Fibre Toxicology
• Published: 2012;9:13
• Type of article: Historical article
• Cited by: 74 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

Particle toxicology arose in order to understand the mechanisms of adverse effects of 3 major particle types that had historically exerted the greatest toll of ill-health--quartz, coal and asbestos. By the middle of the last century rat inhalation studies had been carried out and the pathology documented, but true mechanistic particle toxicology did not really take off until the 1970s when cell culture techniques became available. By the 1980s glass fibres were a major focus of interest and attempts to develop a structure-toxicity paradigm centred on biopersistence. In the 1990s environmental particles dominated the particle toxicology agenda and the cardiovascular system emerged as a target for inhaled particles, raising new challenges for particle toxicologists. We are currently in the era of nanotoxicology where a large and diverse range of new nanoparticles types are under scrutiny.

In plain English

This article is a narrative review, which the authors called a personal history, of the toxicology of inhaled particles from the 15th and 16th centuries to 2012. It reported no new data. It covered quartz, coal and asbestos, then synthetic vitreous fibres, air pollution particles and nanoparticles. Drawing on earlier work, the review stated that asbestos causes asbestosis, lung cancer, pleural fibrosis, plaques and mesothelioma. It noted that Wagner reported pleural mesothelioma in 1960 in workers from the crocidolite mining area of the Cape Province of South Africa. It described rat studies by the Wagner, Davis and Stanton groups that identified critical roles for fibre type and length. It also described later research pointing to biopersistence as the explanation for differences between amphibole and chrysotile asbestos, with chrysotile shown to be less persistent. It noted that fibrous carbon nanotubes have been found to have the potential to produce asbestos-like effects in the peritoneal and pleural spaces. The authors concluded that the issues surrounding quartz, coal and asbestos have never been fully resolved.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: narrative historical review (described by the authors as a personal history); no new data
• Who was studied: No study population; the review covers the history of inhalation particle toxicology (accidental inhalation of particles in workplaces and the environment) from the 15th and 16th centuries to 2012
• Exposure: Quartz (crystalline silica), coal and asbestos (including crocidolite, amphibole and chrysotile asbestos), as well as synthetic vitreous fibres, ambient air pollution particles, manufactured nanoparticles including carbon nanotubes, and a brief note on cigarette smoke
• Main results:
  • The review stated that, in the pleura, asbestos gives rise to pleural fibrosis, plaques and mesothelioma, in addition to asbestosis and lung cancer
  • Citing earlier work, the review recounted that Wagner reported pleural mesothelioma in 1960 in workers from the crocidolite mining area of the Cape Province of South Africa
  • The review described rat studies by the Wagner, Davis and Stanton groups that identified critical roles for fibre type and fibre length
  • The review reported that an IARC working party (2001) found biopersistence dominated: non-biopersistent synthetic vitreous fibres were exonerated as carcinogens and the more biopersistent ones were classified as carcinogens
  • The review stated that biopersistence was uncovered as the explanation for differences between the more harmful amphibole asbestos and the less harmful chrysotile asbestos, chrysotile having been shown to be less persistent in vitro and in vivo
  • The review stated that thousands of mesothelioma deaths occur every year in Western countries owing to the use of asbestos until the 1980s
  • The review stated that carbon nanotubes in a fibrous morphology have been found to have the potential to produce asbestos-like effects in the peritoneal and pleural spaces
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that although nanotoxicology now dominates the field, the issues surrounding the big three (quartz, coal and asbestos) have never been fully resolved, and many questions remain
• Limitations the authors state:
  • The authors stated that this is a personal history reflecting their own perception of the landmarks, and that another observer might write a different history
  • The authors stated that the short format made it impossible to cover the work of all particle toxicologists

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Pathology, biopersistence.

Related studies

• Particle toxicology: from coal mining to nanotechnology — P.J. Borm (2002)
• The pathological response and fate in the lung and pleura of chrysotile in combination with fine particles compared to amosite asbestos following short-term inhalation exposure: interim results — D.M. Bernstein, R.A. Rogers, et al. (2010)
• A short history of occupational disease: 2. Asbestos, chemicals, radium and beyond — D. Petts, M. Wren, et al. (2021)
• Dosimetry of inhaled elongate mineral particles in the respiratory tract: The impact of shape factor — B. Asgharian, T.P. Owen, et al. (2018)
• Historical background to the asbestos problem — D.H. Lee, I.J. Selikoff (1979)
• Predicting EMP hazard: Lessons from studies with inhaled fibrous and non-fibrous nano- and micro-particles — G. Oberdörster, U. Graham (2018)

Browse more research in Particle and Fibre Toxicology, or return to medical research.