Pulmonary fibre burden in sheep living in the Biancavilla area (Sicily): preliminary results

Our plain-English summary of Pulmonary fibre burden in sheep living in the Biancavilla area (Sicily): preliminary results, by P. DeNardo, B. Bruni, L. Paoletti, et al (The Science of the Total Environment, 2004).

The study

• Authors: P. DeNardo, B. Bruni, L. Paoletti, R. Pasetto, B. Sirianni
• Journal: The Science of the Total Environment
• Published: 2004;325(1-3):51-8
• Cited by: 19 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

In a national survey on mortality from malignant pleural neoplasms in Italy, aimed at detecting geographic clusters of cases of the disease, the town of Biancavilla, located in a volcanic area of Eastern Sicily, showed high risk of pleural mesothelioma in the absence of occupational asbestos exposure. An environmental survey suggested the stone quarries located in 'Monte Calvario', south-east of the town of Biancavilla, as a possible source of asbestiform fibre exposure. A subsequent crystal-chemistry investigation of the 'Monte Calvario' amphiboles identified the mineral asbestiform fibres as 'fluoro-edenite', a new end-member of the edenite ==> fluoro-edenite series. A collaborative epidemiological and environmental study was initiated to investigate the characteristics of the outbreak of malignant mesothelioma and test the hypothesis of a causal association with exposure to naturally occurring fibres. To investigate if a sheep population could be used to monitor the environmental diffusion of the fibres, we examined lung specimens from 27 culled sheep, at least 3 years old and living near Monte Calvario to check for the presence of fluoro-edenite fibres, using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis and X-ray microanalysis. Fourteen mineral species have been isolated in the mineral particulate matter taken from pulmonary parenchyma, and fluoro-edenite was detected in eight sheep. These preliminary data suggest a possible bio-indicative role of sheep as sentinel animals in the evaluation of environmental fibre diffusion, which merits further investigation.

Copryright 2003 Elsevier B.V.

In plain English

This study tested whether sheep could act as 'sentinel' animals for tracking the spread of fluoro-edenite. Fluoro-edenite is a naturally occurring fibrous amphibole from stone quarries at Monte Calvario near Biancavilla, Sicily, a town with a cluster of pleural mesothelioma. The authors examined one lung sample from each of 27 ewes aged 3 years or older. The ewes came from a flock of about 200 that grazed within 1 to 3 km of the quarries, and they were slaughtered after testing positive for brucellosis. Using scanning electron microscopy and X-ray microanalysis, the authors found fourteen mineral species in the lungs. Inorganic fibres were found in 12 of the 27 sheep (44.4%): fluoro-edenite in six (22.2%), probable fluoro-edenite in two (7.4%), and fibres of a quite different chemical composition in four (14.8%). The authors concluded that these preliminary data suggest a possible role for sheep as sentinel animals for environmental fibre spread, which merits further study. They noted that their data can only suggest the fibres came from the quarry. They listed analysing the number of fibres in lung tissue as further work.

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: Preliminary animal sentinel study: mineral and fibre analysis of lung samples from slaughtered sheep, using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray microanalysis
• Who was studied: 27 adult ewes aged 3 years or older, selected from 45 animals slaughtered after testing positive for ovine brucellosis. They came from a flock of about 200 animals living in the Biancavilla area of eastern Sicily. One lung sample (tracheal lobe) was taken per animal. Dates of sampling are not given.
• Exposure: Environmental (non-occupational) exposure to naturally occurring fluoro-edenite, a fibrous amphibole from the Monte Calvario stone quarries. The flock grazed within a 1 to 3 km radius of the quarries. No exposure levels were measured.
• Main results:
  • Fourteen mineral species were found in the mineral particles recovered from the lungs of the 27 sheep.
  • Most of the minerals (such as feldspars, quartz and pyroxenes) corresponded to minerals occurring naturally in the local geology of Biancavilla.
  • Some particles came from outside materials dispersed in the environment, such as industrial waste and building demolition materials (iron alloy and man-made mineral fibres).
  • Inorganic fibres were found in 12 of the 27 sheep (44.4%).
  • In six of the 27 sheep (22.2%) the fibres were classed as true fluoro-edenite.
  • In two of the 27 sheep (7.4%) the fibres were classed as probable fluoro-edenite.
  • In four of the 27 sheep (14.8%) the fibres had a chemical composition quite different from fluoro-edenite.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that these preliminary data suggest sheep may be useful as sentinel animals for assessing how fibres spread in the environment, and that this merits further investigation. They also stated that the sheep data showed fibre exposure risk is not confined to urban areas, raising the possibility of a hazard to the rural community.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • The authors stated that their data can only suggest that the fibres originated from the quarry.
  • The authors noted that magnesium and calcium may partly dissolve after long-term presence in the body, which might make fibre identification more difficult.
  • The authors described this as a preliminary study. They listed analysing the number of fibres in lung tissue as further work, so fibre counts were not reported.

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Biancavilla, Neoplasm, Pleural Mesothelioma, Asbestos Exposure, Asbestiform, Amphibole Group, fluoro-edenite, End-Member.

Related studies

• Fluoro-edenitic fibres in the sputum of subjects from Biancavilla (Sicily): a pilot study — M.G. Putzu, C. Bruno, et al. (2006)
• Asbestos fiber identification in liver from cholangiocarcinoma patients living in an asbestos polluted area: a preliminary study — F. Grosso, A. Croce, et al. (2019)
• Lung fibre burden in lung cancer cases employed in the rock and slag wool industry — K. Soldan, F.D. Pooley, et al. (2006)
• Mass, number and size of lung fibres in the pathogenesis of asbestosis in sheep — P. Sébastien, R. Bégin, et al. (1990)
• High risk of pleural plaques and parenchymal abnormalities in women living in Biancavilla (Italy) — C. Ledda, C. Loreto, et al. (2016)
• Pulmonary uptake of gallium-67 in asbestos-exposed humans and sheep — R. Bégin, A. Cantin, et al. (1983)

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