Stimulation of alveolar macrophages by mineral dusts in vitro: luminol-dependent chemiluminescence study

Luminol-dependent chemiluminescence (CL) of normal (nonactivated) rabbit alveolar macrophages (AMs) was measured in suspension upon stimulation by various size fractions of one quartz dust sample or by various mineral dusts (quartz, corundum, anatas, and chrysotile asbestos as an example of fibrous dust). The CL-triggering capacity of the tested dusts was inhibited by their preincubation with autologous serum. The intensity of luminol-dependent CL induced by particulate dusts upon their action on AMs depended on the kind of dust, on the dust particle sizes, and on the ratio of the number of particles to the number of cells in a given suspension. The cytotoxicity and/or fibrogenicity of the dust and its capacity to trigger the luminol-dependent CL of nonadherent AMs were not directly correlated.