Indoor exposure to respirable particulate matter and particulate-phase PAHs in rural homes in North India.

In order to evaluate the exposure of the northern India rural population to polyaromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) inhalation, indoor pollution was assessed by collecting and analyzing the respirable particulate matter PM2.5 and PM10 in several homes of the village Bhithauli near Lucknow, UP. The home selection was determined by a survey.

Monitoring and identification of airborne asbestos in unorganized sectors, India.

Rajasthan state in India is credited to cater more than 90% of total production of asbestos in this country, of which around 60% is processed there in unorganized sectors including milling and manufacturing of asbestos-based products. Unorganized asbestos units particularly mills showed unhealthy occupational conditions, therefore industrial hygiene study was carried out focusing on the prevalence of asbestos fibres in air at work zone area of asbestos milling units. Fibre levels were in the range of 2.

ROS-mediated genotoxicity of asbestos-cement in mammalian lung cells in vitro.

Asbestos is a known carcinogen and co-carcinogen. It is a persisting risk in our daily life due to its use in building material as asbestos-cement powder. The present study done on V79-cells (Chinese hamster lung cells) demonstrates the cytotoxic and genotoxic potential of asbestos-cement powder (ACP) in comparison with chrysotile asbestos.

Alteration in cellular and biochemical markers of pulmonary toxicity in rat lung exposed to carpet dusts.

Epidemiological studies of workers in weaving units in carpet industries have shown relationships between the airborne dust concentrations and pulmonary ill health. Therefore, to predict the health risk of carpet weavers, this preliminary experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of carpet dust (knotted, tufted) on cellular and biochemical mediators considered as potential biological markers of lung injury. Lung cytoplasmic (lactate dehydrogenase, LDH), lysosomal (acid phosphatase, ACP), type II (alkaline phoshatase, ALP) and Clara-cell marker enzymes (gamma-glutamyl transferase, GGT) were monitored in rat cell-free lung lavage (BAL) during postexposure days 1, 4, 8, and 16.