Pathological analysis of main organ damage in rats induced by smoke inhalation in military airtight cabins

Abstract

Objective To investigate the effect of toxic smoke on the heart, lung, liver and kidney of male rats after combustion of non-metal material in military airtight cabins. Methods 36 male SD rats were randomly divided into control group and five smoke inhaled groups (1, 6, 24, 72 h and 7 d post-exposure) with 6 rats in each group. The control group inhaled fresh air and smoke inhalation groups were continuously exposed in smoke for 10 min, and the pathological changes of heart, lung, liver and kidney in each group were observed. Results Varying degrees of injury can be observed in heart, lung, trachea, liver, kidney of rats after smoke inhalation at different time points and smoke particles were observed to deposit extensively in the tissues above. The degree of damage at 24 h post-exposure was the most serious and the process of injury coexisted with proliferation after 24 h post-exposure. All the observation above suggests that smoke inhalation can lead to a certain degree of damage on heart, lung, trachea, liver and kidney, and the process of self-repairing could be coexisted after smoke exposure. Damage to the myocardium: particulate matter deposition, myocyte swelling, local dissolution and necrosis. Damage to the lung tissue: diffuse hyperemia of the pulmonary interstitium, infiltration of inflammatory cells and erythrocyte exudation in the alveoli. Damage to the trachea: edema of epithelial cells, partial cilium exfoliation, and separation of local epithelial cells from cartilage. Damage to the liver: particulate matter deposition, hepatocyte cytoplasm loosening, and varying degrees of edema and vacuolation. Damage to the kidney: the damage of the glomerular vascular endothelial cells, the interstitial space of the renal tubules and the deposition of smoke particles in the lumen. Conclusion Smoke particles resulting from combustion of nonmetal materials in military airtight cabins can deposit in tissues of heart, lung, liver, kidney and other major organs through the blood circulation after inhalation and lead to morphological pathological changes of tissues in above organs. Key words: smoke inhalation injury; pathology; military airtight cabin; rats, Sprague-Dawley; Systemic toxicity