Quantitative assessment of chrysotile fibrils in the bloodstream of rats which have ingested the mineral under different dietary conditions.
Samples of hepatic portal blood derived from control rats and from animals ingesting chrysotile asbestos were examined for the presence of mineral fibers. Only fibrils (97% less than 1 micron) were detected in the blood samples of both control and chrysotile-exposed rats. Total fibril counts per milliliter of blood revealed that in 6 out of 15 of the dietary experiments, the chrysotile-exposed groups had significantly higher counts than the equivalent controls. The actual quantity of chrysotile mineral (by counts or mass) which may be persorbed upon passage through the gastrointestinal tract and enter the blood stream is minute in comparison with the ingested dose.
D000818:Animals; D001194:Asbestos / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000097:blood*; D017632:Asbestos, Serpentine; D004032:Diet; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D008102:Liver Circulation; D008297:Male; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D013997:Time Factors
D017632:Asbestos, Serpentine; D001194:Asbestos