Toxicity study of a novel composite dust suppressant in C57BL/6 mice

Construction dust is a major source of air pollution and easily causes intractable respiratory diseases such as pneumoconiosis. Dust suppressants are effective for dust control, yet most existing studies only focus on dust suppression performance, lacking systematic toxicological assessments, especially data on extrapulmonary multi-organ toxicity. In this study, SPF male C57BL/6 mice were used to establish three subchronic inhalation exposure groups: dust alone, dust suppressant alone, and co-exposure of dust and suppressant. Indicators including body weight, organ coefficients, blood routine, serum cytokines, and liver, kidney, and heart pathological lesions were detected to investigate the extrapulmonary multi-organ toxicity of an eco-friendly composite dust suppressant. The suppressant had little effect on mouse body weight. At appropriate concentrations (4-20 mg/m³), it inhibited dust-induced inflammatory responses and alleviated liver and kidney injuries. When the concentration reached 100 mg/m³, the suppressant interacted with dust to increase DNA oxidative damage markers, indicating potential genotoxic risks. This study fills the gap in extrapulmonary toxicological research of dust suppressants, provides references for toxicology evaluation and experimental basis for determining safe application concentrations on construction sites.