Comparison of alveolar macrophage cytotoxicity and ability to cause inflammation in the mouse peritoneal cavity for a range of different fibre types at equal fibre number.

We have previously reported on the ability of fibres to damage epithelial cells and fibroblasts and described a relationship between increasing toxicity and increasing fibre length for a range of asbestos samples (Brown et al 1986). We have also utilised the mouse peritoneal cavity as site to study the inflammogenic potential of fibres (Donaldson et al 1989). As part of a programme aimed at examining the relationship between the biological activity of a range of non-asbestos fibres and aspects of their structure, we examined the ability of these vitreous and composite fibres to damage alveolar macrophages and to cause peritoneal inflammation. The study was carried out at equal fibre number in both studies so that a direct comparison could be made for fibres of varying density where matching by mass would have resulted in dramatic differences in fibre number.