Exposure assessment for airborne man-made mineral fibres: the role of fibre dimensions

Abstract

Environmental exposures to man-made mineral fibres (MMMF) typically contain fibres which are polydisperse with respect to fibre dimensions. Fibre dimensions may influence their biological action through effects on: the efficiency of transport to target tissues; the residence time in target tissues; and the biological activity of fibres in contact with target cells. This variability of biological activity vs fibre dimensions should be accounted for when assessing exposure for epidemiological studies of the risk of cancer in subjects exposed to MMMF. In order to provide insight into the influence of fibre dimensions on the potential carcinogenicity of MMMF, this paper reviews literature concerning the sites of lung tumours, regional fibre deposition, biological effects of fibres in in vivo and in vitro systems, dissolution rates of fibres and rates of physiological clearance of inhaled particles. Tumorigenicity of fibres in contact with target tissue appears to be primarily a function of fibre length, whereas both fibre diameter and fibre length may affect the penetration of fibres through the respiratory tract as well as their residence time in target tissues. A methodology is presented to use this information to compute estimates of biologically effective exposure from the joint distribution of fibre lengths and diameters found in an environmental exposure.