Publications by authors named "Patti Zeidler-Erdely"

Welding fumes are a Group 1 (carcinogenic to humans) carcinogen as classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. The process of welding creates inhalable fumes rich in iron (Fe) that may also contain known carcinogenic metals such as chromium (Cr) and nickel (Ni). Epidemiological evidence has shown that both mild steel (Fe-rich) and stainless steel (Fe-rich + Cr + Ni) welding fume exposure increases lung cancer risk, and experimental animal data support these findings.

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Hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)] is a common environmental pollutant and chronic exposure to Cr(VI) causes lung cancer in humans, however, the mechanism of Cr(VI) carcinogenesis has not been well understood. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death, although the mechanisms of how lung cancer develops and progresses have been poorly understood. While long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are found abnormally expressed in cancer, how dysregulated lncRNAs contribute to carcinogenesis remains largely unknown.

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Thermal spray coating is a process in which molten metal is sprayed onto a surface. Little is known about the health effects associated with these aerosols. Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to aerosols (25 mg/m × 4 hr/d × 4 d) generated during thermal spray coating using different consumables [i.

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The mechanisms of particle-induced pathogenesis in the lung remain poorly understood. Neutrophilic inflammation and oxidative stress in the lung are hallmarks of toxicity. Some investigators have postulated that oxidative stress from particle surface reactive oxygen species (psROS) on the dust produces the toxicopathology in the lungs of dust-exposed animals.

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Thermal spray coating is an industrial process in which molten metal is sprayed at high velocity onto a surface as a protective coating. An automated electric arc wire thermal spray coating aerosol generator and inhalation exposure system was developed to simulate an occupational exposure and, using this system, male Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to stainless steel PMET720 aerosols at 25 mg/m × 4 h/day × 9 day. Lung injury, inflammation, and cytokine alteration were determined.

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Stainless steel welding creates fumes rich in carcinogenic metals such as chromium (Cr). Welding consumables devoid of Cr are being produced in an attempt to limit worker exposures to toxic and carcinogenic metals. The study objective was to characterize a copper-nickel (Cu-Ni) fume generated using gas metal arc welding (GMAW) and determine the pulmonary deposition and toxicity of the fume in mice exposed by inhalation.

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Humans will set foot on the Moon again soon. The lunar dust (LD) is potentially reactive and could pose an inhalation hazard to lunar explorers. We elucidated LD toxicity and investigated the toxicological impact of particle surface reactivity (SR) using three LDs, quartz, and TiO.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) is a known carcinogen that can lead to lung cancer, and this study explores how it causes cancer, focusing on changes in the epitranscriptome in human bronchial cells and mouse and human lungs.
  • - Researchers used methods like microarray analysis and tumorigenesis assays to show that chronic Cr(VI) exposure results in increased m6A RNA modification and elevated levels of the RNA methyltransferase METTL3 in transformed cells and lung tumors.
  • - The study found that reducing METTL3 expression in Cr(VI)-transformed cells decreased their cancer-like traits and tumor growth, indicating that Cr(VI) alters the cellular epitranscriptome, contributing
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Environmental inhalation exposures are inherently mixed (gases and particles), yet regulations are still based on single toxicant exposures. While the impacts of individual components of environmental pollution have received substantial attention, the impact of inhalation co-exposures is poorly understood. Here, we mechanistically investigated pulmonary inflammation and lung function decline after inhalation co-exposure and individual exposures to ozone (O) and ultrafine carbon black (CB).

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It is estimated that greater than 1 million workers are exposed to welding fume (WF) by inhalation daily. The potentially toxic metals found in WF are known to cause multiple adverse pulmonary and systemic effects, including cardiovascular disease, and these metals have also been shown to translocate to the liver. This occupational exposure combined with a high fat (HF) Western diet, which has been shown to cause hyperlipidemia and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), has the potential to cause significant mixed exposure metabolic changes in the liver.

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  • The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classifies iron oxides as Group 3, meaning they are not classifiable as carcinogenic, while certain iron-related occupational exposures are classified as Group 1, known to be carcinogenic.
  • A study conducted with A/J mice showed that exposure to iron (III) oxide (FeO) and calcium chromate (CaCrO) resulted in a significant increase in lung tumors, with both substances enhancing lung tumor multiplicity compared to control (sham) groups.
  • Histopathological analysis revealed that bronchiolo-alveolar adenomas and carcinomas were the main types of lung tumors observed, with a notable increase in the CaCrO group and a nearly significant increase in
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  • Studies show that circulating factors might cause cardiovascular issues related to lung exposure to welding fumes.
  • After rats were exposed to two types of welding fumes, their serum was analyzed to see how it affected endothelial cells involved in heart health.
  • The exposure to stainless steel welding fumes led to significant changes in genes related to endothelial function, suggesting that such fumes can negatively impact blood vessel health through altered circulating factors.
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The objective of this study was to evaluate the association between carbon nanotube and nanofiber (CNT/F) exposure and responses of whole blood challenged with secondary stimulants, adjusting for potential confounders, in a cross-sectional study of 102 workers. Multi-day exposure was measured by CNT/F structure count (SC) and elemental carbon (EC) air concentrations. Demographic, lifestyle and other occupational covariate data were obtained via questionnaire.

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Article Synopsis
  • The exposome encompasses all exposures throughout an individual's life and their impact on health, specifically examining how these factors intertwine.
  • An experiment was conducted using different strains of male rats on varying diets, exposing them to welding fumes to analyze health effects across genetic backgrounds.
  • Results showed that while diet influenced kidney toxicity under welding fume exposure, genetic strain played a crucial role in other health outcomes, highlighting the importance of both environmental and genetic factors in health assessments.
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Background: The mechanisms driving systemic effects consequent pulmonary nanoparticle exposure remain unclear. Recent work has established the existence of an indirect process by which factors released from the lung into the circulation promote systemic inflammation and cellular dysfunction, particularly on the vasculature. However, the composition of circulating contributing factors and how they are produced remains unknown.

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Article Synopsis
  • Millions of workers globally are exposed to harmful welding fumes, which are linked to serious health issues, including lung cancer.
  • The International Agency for Research on Cancer classified these fumes as a Group 1 carcinogen in 2017, indicating strong evidence of their cancer risk for humans.
  • Recent animal studies suggest that welding fumes can promote lung tumors irrespective of the presence of known carcinogenic metals, highlighting the need for more research to understand the health impacts of different welding fume compositions.
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The objective of the current study was to determine if age, diet, and genetic disposition (animal strain) in an animal model had early effects on specific molecular markers in circulating peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). Three strains [Sprague-Dawley (SD), Fischer 344 (F344), and Brown-Norway (BN)] of male rats were maintained on a high-fat (HF) or regular diet. Blood was collected at 4, 12, and 24 wk to assess chemistry and to recover PBMCs.

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Article Synopsis
  • In 2017, the International Agency for Research on Cancer labeled welding fumes as carcinogenic to humans, emphasizing the need for further study on the toxicity of different metals involved, specifically chromium, nickel, and iron.
  • The study aimed to compare the pulmonary toxicity of various metal oxides and assess their potential to promote lung tumors in mice using specific doses and exposure methods.
  • Findings showed that iron oxide (Fe2O3) had significant inflammatory effects and promoted lung tumors, whereas nickel oxide (NiO) had negligible effects, and chromium oxides (Cr2O3 and CaCrO4) had acute but not long-lasting pneumotoxic effects, aligning with prior epidemiological data.
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Resistance spot welding is a common process to join metals in the automotive industry. Adhesives are often used as sealers to seams of metals that are joined. Anti-spatter compounds sometimes are sprayed onto metals to be welded to improve the weldability.

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Recent experimental evidence indicates significant pulmonary toxicity of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), such as inflammation, interstitial fibrosis, granuloma formation, and carcinogenicity. Although numerous studies explored the adverse potential of various CNTs, their comparability is often limited. This is due to differences in administered dose, physicochemical characteristics, exposure methods, and end points monitored.

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Pulmonary toxicity studies on carbon nanotubes focus primarily on as-produced materials and rarely are guided by a life cycle perspective or integration with exposure assessment. Understanding toxicity beyond the as-produced, or pure native material, is critical, due to modifications needed to overcome barriers to commercialization of applications. In the first series of studies, the toxicity of as-produced carbon nanotubes and their polymer-coated counterparts was evaluated in reference to exposure assessment, material characterization, and stability of the polymer coating in biological fluids.

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Welding generates a complex aerosol of incidental nanoparticles and cytotoxic metals, such as chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), and iron (Fe). The goal was to use both in vivo and in vitro methodologies to determine the mechanisms by which different welding fumes may damage the lungs. Sprague-Dawley rats were treated by intratracheal instillation (ITI) with 2.

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Welding fume inhalation causes pulmonary toxicity, including susceptibility to infection. We hypothesized that airway epithelial ion transport is a target of fume toxicity, and investigated the effects of fume particulates from manual metal arc-stainless steel (MMA-SS) and gas metal arc-mild steel (GMA-MS) on ion transport in normal human bronchial epithelium (NHBE) cultured in air-interface. MMA-SS particles, more soluble than GMA-MS particles, contain Cr, Ni, Fe and Mn; GMA-MS particles contain Fe and Mn.

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Article Synopsis
  • Epidemiologic studies indicate that exposure to welding fumes may increase lung cancer risk; however, more controlled animal studies are necessary.
  • The study examines whether inhalation of freshly generated gas metal arc-stainless steel (GMA-SS) welding fumes promotes lung tumors in mice, building on previous findings of lung tumor promotion through oropharyngeal aspiration.
  • Results show that inhalation of GMA-SS fumes significantly increased lung tumor development in mice exposed to a tumor initiator, reinforcing the link between welding fume exposure and lung cancer risk seen in epidemiological data.
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Welding fume is a complex mixture of different potentially cytotoxic and genotoxic metals, such as chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), and iron (Fe). Documented health effects have been observed in workers exposed to welding fume. The objective of the study was to use an animal model to identify potential biomarkers of epigenetic changes (e.

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