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Updated: Aug 30, 2026

Production and Measurement of Organic Particulate Matter in the Harvard Environmental Chamber
Published on: November 18, 2018
[Effects of organic aerosols on the respiratory system in occupational exposure]
Eugenija Zuskin1, Jadranka Mustajbegović, Josipa Kern
1Skola narodnog zdravlja Andrija Stampar Medicinskog fakulteta Sveucilista u Zagrebu, Rockefellerova 4, 10000 Zagreb.
Abstract:
The effects of organic dusts on the respiratory system of workers employed in food processing, in textile workers, as well as in agricultural and livestock farmers are reported. Deposition and elimination of particles from the lung as well as the possible mechanisms of the organic dust effects on respiratory system are described. Separately are presented results of our investigations on the prevalence of respiratory symptoms and diseases as well as lung function tests as indicators of the condition of the respiratory system. Data on the experimental studies with aqueous extracts of organic dusts on smooth muscle of isolated guinea pig trachea suggest that the bronchoconstrictive effects in humans can be reproduced in nonsensitized guinea pigs. The preventive measures in the development of respiratory impairments in subjects occupationally exposed to organic dusts are described.
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