Effect of asbestos on lipid peroxidation in the red cells

Our plain-English summary of Effect of asbestos on lipid peroxidation in the red cells, by S. Gabor, Z. Anca (British Journal of Industrial Medicine, 1975).

The study

• Authors: S. Gabor, Z. Anca
• Journal: British Journal of Industrial Medicine
• Published: 1975;32(1):39-41
• Cited by: 30 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

In vitro exposure of red cells to vie International Union against Cancer (UICC) standard reference asbestos samples resulted in an increase of thiobarbituric acid substances. Chrysotiles developed the largest amounts of lipid peroxides, followed by anthophyllite, amosite, and crocidolite in decreasing order. Compared with the control samples erythrocytes free of dusts, all types of the asbestos examined disclosed significant differences. The results obtained provide support for the cytotoxic potential of amosite and crocidolite and, on the other hand, suggest that a lipid peroxidation of unsaturated fatty acids may be involved in the mechanisms(s) of membrane-damaging effects of asbestos dusts.

In plain English

This was a laboratory experiment from Cluj, Romania. The authors mixed human red blood cells, taken from healthy donors, with five standard reference asbestos samples from the International Union against Cancer (UICC): two chrysotiles (A and B), amosite, crocidolite and anthophyllite. Each mixture contained 13 mg of asbestos and was kept at 37°C for one hour. The authors then measured lipid peroxides, which are products of chemical damage to fats, both in the surrounding fluid and in the washed red cell membranes. Control samples were red cells broken open by freezing and thawing, with no dust. All five asbestos types produced more lipid peroxides than the controls, and the authors reported the differences as statistically significant. Chrysotile produced the most, followed by anthophyllite, amosite and crocidolite. For amosite and crocidolite, the increase was larger in the membranes (114% and 64%) than in the fluid (75% and 35%). The authors concluded that lipid peroxidation is one of the ways asbestos dusts might damage cells. The tests were done on cells in test tubes, not in people.

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: In vitro laboratory experiment on human red blood cells, compared with control samples of red cells broken open by freezing and thawing without dust
• Who was studied: Human red blood cells (erythrocytes) collected from healthy donors, at the Institute of Public Health and Medical Research, Cluj, Romania. The table lists 20 control experiments and 10 experiments for each asbestos sample. The number of donors is not given.
• Exposure: Five UICC standard reference asbestos samples: chrysotile A and chrysotile B (serpentine group), and amosite, crocidolite and anthophyllite (amphibole group). For each test, 1 ml of dust suspension containing 13 mg asbestos was mixed with 6 ml of 8% red cell suspension and incubated for one hour at 37°C.
• Main results:
  • All five asbestos types increased lipid peroxides in the red cells compared with the dust-free controls, and the authors reported significant differences for every type.
  • Chrysotile produced the largest amounts of lipid peroxides, followed in decreasing order by anthophyllite, amosite and crocidolite.
  • In the fluid (supernatant), lipid peroxides rose by 190% over the control with chrysotile A and by 160% with chrysotile B.
  • For amosite, the increase over control was 114% in the red cell membranes (precipitate) and 75% in the fluid. For crocidolite it was 64% in the membranes and 35% in the fluid.
  • The authors interpreted the membrane-associated increase as showing that amosite and crocidolite are not entirely without cytotoxic potential, although these fibers had been considered inactive at breaking open red cells.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that lipid peroxidation is one of the various mechanisms by which asbestos dusts might exert their cell-damaging action.

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: UICC, Chrysotile, Anthophyllite, Amosite, Crocidolite.

Related studies

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• Excessive lipid-phagocytosis of neutrophils in a patient with mesothelioma — C. Morales-Indiano, M. Carbonell Prat, et al. (2015)
• The ability of mineral dusts and fibres to initiate lipid peroxidation. Part I: parameters which determine this ability — M. Gulumian (1999)
• The role of catalytic iron in asbestos induced lipid peroxidation and DNA-strand breakage in C3H10T1/2 cells — C.J. Turver, R.C. Brown (1987)
• Possible role of lipid peroxidation in the induction of NF-kappa B and AP-1 in RFL-6 cells by crocidolite asbestos: evidence following protection by vitamin E — S.P. Faux, P.J. Howden (1997)

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