Mechanisms of inhaled multiwalled carbon nanotube-induced immunosuppression in mice.

摘要

MWCNT represent the next class of materials to be created and utilized on a large scale in the near future and therefore, they may pose an occupational health risk to those working in this industry. The aim of this project was to elucidate a potential mechanism for Inhaled Multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) induced systemic immunosuppression. These studies utilized the C57BU6 male mouse and a novel whole body inhalation exposure system in order to identify the pathways involved in the observed immune suppression that followed 14 day inhalation exposures to MWCNT at particle concentrations up to 1 mg/m 3 for 6 hours per day. The hypothesis that inhaled MWCNT cause increased production of Transforming Growth Factor Beta (TGFbeta) in the lung that results in systemic activation of the cyclooxygenase pathway and subsequent systemic immune suppression was proposed and tested using the following 3 aims.;Specific Aim 1. To Determine if MWCNT inhalation exposure results in T cell dysfunction and subsequent systemic immune suppression.;Specific Aim 2. To determine if the cyclooxygenase pathway is involved in MWCNT-induced T cell dysfunction and systemic immune suppression.;Specific Aim 3. To identify TGFbeta as a signaling molecule from the lung that results in activation of the cyclooxygenase pathway following MWCNT inhalation.