Phenotypic characterisation of peripheral blood lymphoid cells in people exposed to fibrous zeolite

Our plain-English summary of Phenotypic characterisation of peripheral blood lymphoid cells in people exposed to fibrous zeolite, by M. Ozesmi, A. Karlsson-Parra, G. Hillerdal, et al (British Journal of Industrial Medicine, 1986).

The study

• Authors: M. Ozesmi, A. Karlsson-Parra, G. Hillerdal, U. Forsum
• Journal: British Journal of Industrial Medicine
• Published: 1986;43(12):830-3
• Cited by: 7 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

Among inhabitants of the village of Karain in Turkey there is an extremely high incidence of malignant mesothelioma, most probably due to exposure to erionite, which is a fibrous zeolite and similar in appearance and properties to asbestos. This mineral may be found in the dust in the village. To characterise possible disturbances in the immune system of people exposed to fibrous zeolite, a phenotypic characterisation of lymphoid cells in the peripheral blood of 74 immigrants to Sweden from Karain was performed. Compared with normal controls, the mean percentages of Leu 4+ cells (Pan-T) and Leu 3a+ cells ("helper/inducer" T cells) were significantly decreased, whereas the mean percentage of Leu 2a+ cells ("suppressor/cytotoxic" T cells) was normal, leading to a significant reduction of the Leu 3a/Leu 2a subset ratio. The percentage of B cells (Leu 12+ cells) was significantly increased, whereas the percentages of both HLA-DR+ and HLA-DQ+ cells were normal. The percentage of natural killer cells (NK) and killer (K) cells as defined by the monoclonal anti-Leu 7 and anti-Leu 11b were also normal. These findings indicate that exposure to fibrous zeolite causes a numerical imbalance between the two phenotypically different T cell subsets similar to that seen in asbestos exposed individuals.

In plain English

This study examined immune cells in the blood of people from Karain, a village in Anatolia, Turkey. Malignant mesothelioma is extremely common there, probably from breathing erionite, a fibrous zeolite mineral the authors describe as similar to asbestos. Ninety-four former residents living in Stockholm, Sweden, took part. Blood was taken from 74 (38 women, 36 men), and seven of them had pleural plaques on chest x ray. Their blood was compared with blood from healthy donors. In the Karain group, the shares of all T cells (Leu 4+) and helper/inducer T cells (Leu 3a+) were lower (p less than 0.01). The ratio of helper/inducer to suppressor/cytotoxic T cells was also lower (p less than 0.05). The share of B cells (Leu 12+) was higher (p less than 0.05). Other cell types and serum immunoglobulins were normal. The lymphoid cell percentages showed no correlation with age, sex, family history of mesothelioma or years lived in Karain. The authors concluded that fibrous zeolite exposure causes a T cell imbalance similar to that seen in asbestos-exposed people. They said it was unclear whether this imbalance helps cause mesothelioma.

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: Cross-sectional comparison of blood lymphoid cell types in exposed people versus healthy blood donor controls
• Who was studied: Immigrants to Stockholm, Sweden, from the village of Karain, Turkey. Ninety-four took part, and blood was taken from 74 (38 women, 36 men). Seven of them had pleural plaques. The number of controls varied by test: 10 healthy blood donors for most markers and 34 for the Leu 3a/Leu 2a comparison. Leu 7 and Leu 11b were measured in 15 of the Karain group.
• Exposure: Environmental exposure to erionite (a fibrous zeolite) from living in Karain: 10 had lived there for less than ten years, 38 for ten to 20 years, and 26 for over 20 years
• Main results:
  • In the Karain group, the mean percentage of all T cells (Leu 4+) was lower than in controls (p < 0.01), and the percentage of B cells (Leu 12+) was higher (p < 0.05)
  • In the Karain group, the percentage of helper/inducer T cells (Leu 3a+) was significantly lower than in controls (p < 0.01), while the percentage of suppressor/cytotoxic T cells (Leu 2a+) was normal
  • In the Karain group, the Leu 3a/Leu 2a ratio was significantly decreased (p < 0.05)
  • In the Karain group, the percentages of HLA-DR and HLA-DQ expressing cells did not differ from controls
  • In the Karain group, NK/K cell numbers (anti-Leu 7 and anti-Leu 11b) were normal
  • In the Karain group, serum albumin, IgG, IgA and IgM were within the normal range
  • Within the Karain group, the percentages of lymphoid cells showed no correlation with age, sex, family history of mesothelioma or duration of residence in Karain
  • People with chest x ray abnormalities showed a more profound reduction of Leu 3a+ cells and a lower ratio than the rest of the Karain group, but these differences were not statistically significant
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that exposure to fibrous zeolite causes a numerical imbalance between T cell subsets similar to that seen in asbestos-exposed individuals. They described this as, to their knowledge, the first evidence of such a derangement in people exposed to erionite.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • The authors stated that it is still unclear whether the T cell imbalance is of aetiological importance for mesothelioma or is a secondary epiphenomenon

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Mesothelioma.

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Zeolite, Karain, Malignant Mesothelioma, erionite, Monoclonal.

Related studies

• CT findings in malignant pleural mesothelioma related to nonoccupational exposure to asbestos and fibrous zeolite (erionite) — C. Erzen, M. Eryilmaz, et al. (1991)
• Natural fibrous zeolites and their carcinogenicity-a review — K.R. Spurny (1983)
• Prospective clinical and radiologic study of zeolite-exposed Turkish immigrants in Sweden — M. Ozesmi, G. Hillerdal, et al. (1990)
• Reduction of chrysotile asbestos-induced genotoxicity in human peripheral blood lymphocytes by garlic extract — K. Bhattacharya, S. Yadava, et al. (2004)
• Sequential immunological studies on an asbestos-exposed population. I. Factors affecting peripheral blood leucocytes and T lymphocytes — M.M. Wagner, M.J. Campbell, et al. (1979)
• Malignant mesothelioma induced by asbestos and zeolite in the mouse peritoneal cavity — Y. Suzuki, N. Kohyama (1984)

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