plutonium-dioxide and Cocarcinogenesis

Our current experiments were designed to show whether 12 months' exposure to cigarette smoke enhances the incidence of lung tumours in mice that had previously inhaled 239PuO2. These periods of smoke exposure are almost complete. After death their lungs will be cleared and any nodules found will be sectioned for histopathology. This paper reports the results of two preliminary experiments conducted earlier. The first study showed that mice could tolerate the proposed smoking regime for 3 months, with no sign of ill health in any animal throughout. The major difference found was a reduced growth rate in both smoke- and sham-exposed mice relative to that of cage controls. After 3 months of treatment, histopathology and morphometry of lung sections found only slight smoke-induced changes. These included a reduced proportion of alveolar space and an increased number of pulmonary alveolar macrophages (PAM) per unit area. Bronchopulmonary lavage showed that the PAM from smoke-exposed mice were larger than those from sham-exposed or control mice and that an increased proportion of cells were binucleate. All mice in the second study were initially exposed to 239PuO2, then subsequently divided into three treatment groups as above. Cigarette smoke exposure was shown to inhibit the removal of 239Pu from the lung whilst sham exposure had no effect. Smoke exposure also produced an increase and sham exposure a decrease in lung weights relative to those of cage controls. The latter was probably as a result of their lower growth rate. In our current experiments it is likely that the group receiving 239PuO2, then smoke, will receive a higher radiation dose to lung than those receiving 239PuO2 only. Any increased tumour incidence found will be considered in conjunction with this evidence.

Topics: Animals; Cocarcinogenesis; Lung Neoplasms; Mice; Neoplasms, Radiation-Induced; Plutonium; Smoking

This study describes the effect of intratracheal instillations (2 X 5 mg) of benzo(a)pyrene (B(a)P) on lung carcinogenesis in rats which had previously inhaled different levels of 239 plutonium oxide (220, 630, 6300 Bq, initial lung burden). Survival decreased with increasing PuO2 exposure and additional B(a)P exposure. The incidence of malignant lung tumours, adjusted for differences in survival, increased in a dose-related fashion with PuO2 dose and was elevated in the presence of additional B(a)P exposure. A multiplicative relative risk model was found to describe reasonably well the observed joint effect. The practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Topics: Administration, Intranasal; Animals; Benzo(a)pyrene; Benzopyrenes; Cocarcinogenesis; Drug Synergism; Lung Neoplasms; Male; Plutonium; Rats; Rats, Inbred Strains; Risk