title: Development of a Zealand white rabbit deposition model to study inhalation anthrax.
abstract: Despite using rabbits in several inhalation exposure experiments to study diseases such as anthrax, there is a lack of understanding regarding deposition characteristics and fate of inhaled particles (bio-aerosols and viruses) in the respiratory tracts of rabbits. Such information allows dosimetric extrapolation to humans to inform human outcomes. The lung geometry of the New Zealand white rabbit (referred to simply as rabbits throughout the article) was constructed using recently acquired scanned images of the conducting airways of rabbits and available information on its acinar region. In addition, functional relationships were developed for the lung and breathing parameters of rabbits as a function of body weight. The lung geometry and breathing parameters were used to extend the existing deposition model for humans and several other species to rabbits. Evaluation of the deposition model for rabbits was made by comparing predictions with available measurements in the literature. Deposition predictions in the lungs of rabbits indicated smaller deposition fractions compared to those found in humans across various particle diameter ranges. The application of the deposition model for rabbits was demonstrated by extrapolating deposition predictions in rabbits to find equivalent human exposure concentrations assuming the same dose-response relationship between the two species. Human equivalent exposure concentration levels were found to be much smaller than those for rabbits.
authors.affiliation: a Arlington Division, Applied Research Associates, Inc. , Arlington , VA , USA and.
authors.forename: Bahman
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Asgharian
authors.affiliation: a Arlington Division, Applied Research Associates, Inc. , Arlington , VA , USA and.
authors.forename: Owen
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Price
authors.affiliation: b Biological Monitoring & Modeling Group, Battelle, Pacific Northwest Division , Richland , VA , USA.
authors.forename: Senthil
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kabilan
authors.affiliation: b Biological Monitoring & Modeling Group, Battelle, Pacific Northwest Division , Richland , VA , USA.
authors.forename: Richard E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Jacob
authors.affiliation: b Biological Monitoring & Modeling Group, Battelle, Pacific Northwest Division , Richland , VA , USA.
authors.forename: Daniel R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Einstein
authors.affiliation: b Biological Monitoring & Modeling Group, Battelle, Pacific Northwest Division , Richland , VA , USA.
authors.forename: Andrew P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Kuprat
authors.affiliation: b Biological Monitoring & Modeling Group, Battelle, Pacific Northwest Division , Richland , VA , USA.
authors.forename: Richard A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Corley
mesh_terms: D000391:Air Microbiology; D000818:Animals; D000881:Anthrax / Q000635:transmission*; D001408:Bacillus anthracis; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D019570:Inhalation Exposure; D008168:Lung / Q000382:microbiology; D008954:Models, Biological; D011817:Rabbits; D012137:Respiratory System / Q000033:anatomy & histology
keywords: Deposition modeling; Zealand white rabbit; lung geometry; morphometric variables; particles