A Primate Bronchoscopy Model of Pneumoconiosis: Description of the Model and Initial Anthracite and Quartz Dust-Induced Lesions

Abstract

Abstract Coal worker's pneumoconiosis and silicosis are still important respiratory diseases within the mining industry. Bronchoalveolar lavage is used to obtain samples from miners with respiratory disease to diagnose, investigate, and treat pneumoconiosis. More information is needed about the characteristics of these respirable mineral dusts and the retrieved lavage specimens to better understand and diagnose pneumoconiosis. We have used bronchoscopy to instill characterized mineral dusts into a focal area of nonhuman primate lung. Bronchoalveolar lavage was used to recover alveolar lining materials from dust-exposed and unexposed lung of the same individuals. We found that multiple doses of fibrogenic or nonfibrogenic dust could be bronchoscopically placed into a small focal area of the lung and that the dust and resulting lesions remained localized to the area of instillation. The characterized quartz dust produced marked focal fibrosis and necrosis that resembled progressive massive fibrosis, as seen...