title: Strain differences influence timing and magnitude of both acute and late inflammatory reactions after intratracheal instillation of an alkylating agent in rats.
abstract: The acute pulmonary responses after exposure to sulfur and nitrogen mustards are well documented whereas the late pulmonary effects are not. With a novel focus on the immune system this paper investigate whether late phase pulmonary effects developed in rats exposed to the nitrogen mustard melphalan are linked to the acute responses and whether the reactions are genetically regulated. The DA rat strain was used to establish a lung exposure model. Five other inbred rat strains (PVG, PVG.1AV1, LEW, WF and F344) were compared within the model at selected time points. All rat strains displayed a biphasic pattern of leukocyte infiltration in the lungs, dominated by neutrophils 2 days after exposure and a second peak dominated by macrophages 29 days after exposure. The number of macrophages was higher in the DA rat compared with the other strains. The infiltration of lymphocytes in the lungs varied in both time of appearance and magnitude between strains. The quantity of collagen deposition in the lungs varied between strains at day 90; LEW and WF displayed high collagen content which coincided with an increased level of cytotoxic T cells. LEW further displayed an increased number of T helper cells and natural killer (NK) T cells in the lungs. The results in this study suggest there is a link between the development of lung fibrosis and high cytotoxic cell responses and that there is a genetic influence, as there are variations in acute and late adverse reactions between rat strains in both timing and magnitude.
authors.affiliation: Division of CBRN Defence and Security, Swedish Defence Research Agency, Umeå, Sweden; Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine, Unit of Respiratory Medicine, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden.
authors.forename: Asa
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gustafsson
authors.forename: Linda
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Svensson-Elfsmark
authors.forename: Johnny C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Lorentzen
authors.forename: Anders
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bucht
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000818:Animals; D002619:Chemical Warfare Agents / Q000633:toxicity*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D007322:Instillation, Drug; D007442:Intubation, Intratracheal; D007694:Killer Cells, Natural / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D008558:Melphalan / Q000633:toxicity*; D020556:Neutrophil Infiltration / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D011658:Pulmonary Fibrosis / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013045:Species Specificity; D006377:T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D002619:Chemical Warfare Agents; D008558:Melphalan
keywords: genetic; inflammation; melphalan; mustard gas; pulmonary fibrosis