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A BIOLOGIC INDICATOR FOR AIR POLLUTION
Citation:
Sherwin, R. A BIOLOGIC INDICATOR FOR AIR POLLUTION. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, D.C., EPA/600/1-79/038.
Description:
The report describes studies wherein guinea pigs and mice were exposed to low levels of nitrogen dioxide either continuously or on an intermittent schedule. The major objective was to develop highly sensitive discriminants involving correlations of structural and functional alterations. The two major test areas developed were the quantitative measurements of Type 2 cell populations and protein leakage within the lung. The increase in number and size of Type 2 pneumocytes with NO2 exposure is believed to represent a corresponding loss of Type 1 lung cells, and the protein leakage within the lung is in accord with the concept that the Type 1 cell is a critical barrier for fluid transport in the alveolar area. The authors suggest that their research data supports the hypothesis that to properly evaluate the possible health effects from air pollutants one must give attention to the subclinical cellular alterations that deplete the functional and structural reserves of organs which are the primary target for air pollutants.