[Study on the injury of vascular endothelial cells affected by dust particles from workplaces in pottery factories and tungsten mines].
OBJECTIVE
to assess direct adverse effects of occupational dusts from pottery factories and tungsten mines on vascular endothelial cells in vitro test.


METHODS
human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) line HUV-EC-C were used as target cells. HUVEC were then treated with respirable dust particles from workplaces in pottery factories and tungsten mines in concentrations of 25, 50, 100, 200 and 400 microg/ml for 24 h. Standard quartz was used as control. LDH activity, cell viability, the release of NO and TNF-α levels were determined to assess the biological responses of the dust particles.


RESULTS
dose-response relationships between the dust concentrations and the enhancement of the LDH activity, the release of NO and TNF-α were found in both dust particles from pottery factories and tungsten mines. The cell viability decreased with the increase of dust concentration from 25 to 400 microg/ml. Compared with the dust particles from workplaces, the quartz dust induced significantly higher LDH activity (P < 0.05) after cultured with HUVEC. No significant difference of releases of NO were observed among the dust particles from workplaces and standard quartz. However, significantly higher levels of TNF-α were induced by standard quartz compared with dust samples from workplaces at concentrations of 200, 400 microg/ml.


CONCLUSIONS
occupational dust particles from workplaces and quartz could induce the injury and the releases of TNF-α from HUVEC.
Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, China.
Wen-Juan
WJ
Cheng
Hai-Jiao
HJ
Wang
Ting
T
Zhou
Yue-Wei
YW
Liu
Wei-Hong
WH
Chen
D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002516:Ceramics; D004391:Dust; D061307:Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D011791:Quartz; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000378:metabolism*; D014414:Tungsten
D004391:Dust; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D011791:Quartz; D014414:Tungsten