Biochemical response of squirrel monkeys to ozone

A nonhuman primate aerosol deposition model for toxicological and pharmaceutical studies

Nonhuman primates may be used as human surrogates in inhalation exposure studies to assess either the (1) adverse health effects of airborne particulate matter or (2) therapeutic effects of aerosolized drugs and proteins. Mathematical models describing the behavior and fate of inhaled aerosols may be used to complement such laboratory investigations. For example, the optimal conditions, in terms of ventilatory parameters (e.g., breathing frequency and tidal volume) and aerosol characteristics (e.g., geometric size and density), necessary to target drug delivery to specific sites within the respiratory tract may be estimated a priori with models. In this work a mathematical description of the rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) lung is presented for use with an aerosol deposition model. Deposition patterns of 0.01- to 5-microm-diameter monodisperse aerosols within lungs were calculated for 3 monkey lung models (using different descriptions of alveolated regions) and compared to human lung results obtained using a previously validated mathematical model of deposition physics. Our findings suggest that there are significant differences between deposition patterns in monkeys and humans. The nonhuman primates had greater exposures to inhaled substances, particularly on the basis of deposition per unit airway surface area. However, the different alveolar volumes in the rhesus monkey models had only minor effects on aerosol dosimetry within those lungs. By being aware of such quantitative differences, investigators can employ the respective primate models (human and nonhuman) to more effectively design and interpret the results of future inhalation exposure experiments.

Biochemical basis of ozone toxicity

Ozone (O3) is the major oxidant of photochemical smog. Its biological effect is attributed to its ability to cause oxidation or peroxidation of biomolecules directly and/or via free radical reactions. A sequence of events may include lipid peroxidation and loss of functional groups of enzymes, alteration of membrane permeability, and cell injury or death. An acute exposure to O3 causes lung injury involving the ciliated cell in the airways and the type 1 epithelial cell in the alveolar region. The effects are particularly localized at the junction of terminal bronchioles and alveolar ducts, as evident from a loss of cells and accumulation of inflammatory cells. In a typical short-term exposure the lung tissue response is biphasic: an initial injury-phase characterized by cell damage and loss of enzyme activities, followed by a repair-phase associated with increased metabolic activities, which coincide with a proliferation of metabolically active cells, for example, the alveolar type 2 cells and the bronchiolar Clara cells. A chronic exposure to O3 can cause or exacerbate lung diseases, including perhaps an increased lung tumor incidence in susceptible animal models. Ozone exposure also causes extrapulmonary effects involving the blood, spleen, central nervous system, and other organs. A combination of O3 and NO2, both of which occur in photochemical smog, can produce effects which may be additive or synergistic. A synergistic lung injury occurs possibly due to a formation of more powerful radicals and chemical intermediates. Dietary antioxidants, for example, vitamin E, vitamin C, and selenium, can offer a protection against O3 effects.

Splenomegaly in mice following exposure to ambient levels of ozone

Female strain A/J mice were exposed to 0.31 ppm (608 micrograms/m3) ozone continuously for 103 h every other week for 6 mth. Following an additional period of 5 mth in a filtered air environment, animals were killed and examined for evidence of altered spleen weight. It was observed that animals exposed to ozone had a greater spleen weight, and spleen to body weight ratio than air-breathing controls. In some of the ozone-exposed mice, pronounced splenomegaly was noted. Increased spleen weight appears to be another example of an extrapulmonary effect of ozone inhalation.

Host cell reactivation capacity of different strains of E. coli B resistant or sensitive to ozone

Host cell reactivation capacity for ozonated or irradiated phage was determined for different strains of E. coli either more sensitive or resistant to ozone than the wild type strain. The results suggest that the ozr gene product could be involved in the same repair pathway for ozone-induced lesions on DNA as the polA gene. The possible involvement of a specific endonuclease for these lesions is also considered.

Ozone-induced formation of O,O'-dityrosine cross-linked in proteins

Treatment of spectrin, insulin, glucagon and ribonuclease with ozone results in covalent cross-linking of these proteins. This cross-linking is not reversed by treatment with dithiothreitol and thus can not be ascribed to -S-S- bond formation. A concomitant O,O'-dityrosine formation is observed by spectrofluorometric analysis of the protein and by amino acid analysis and thin-layer chromatography of hydrolyzed protein samples. It is highly probable that the observed protein cross-linking should be attributed to interpeptide O,O'-dityrosine bonds. Several authors have shown before that oxidation of proteins with horseradish peroxidase and H2O2 also leads to O,O'-dityrosine formation. Peroxidase-induced O,O'-dityrosine formation in galactose oxidase (d-galactose:oxygen 6-oxidoreductase, EC 1.1.3.9) causes a strong increase of enzyme activity. In accordance with these observations ozone treatment of galactose oxidase also leads to O,O'-dityrosine formation with a concomitant 8-fold increase of enzyme activity.

Does the rodent model adequately predict the effects of ozone induced changes to human erythrocytes?

There is an important need to develop animal models to simulate the response of humans to environmental pollutants. The rodent model has been commonly employed to predict the effects of ambient ozone on human RBCs. The use of rodent models for such a purpose is questioned. This challenge is based on the a) ability of mice to significantly enhance ascorbic acid synthesis following ozone stress, b) the ability of ascorbic acid to prevent oxidant [i.e. acetylphenylhydrazine (APH)] stress to human G-6-PD deficient RBCs and c) the lack of ability of humans to synthesize ascorbic acid.