Immunotoxicology: environmental contamination by polybrominated biphenyls and immune dysfunction among residents of the State of Michigan
In 1973, inadvertent contamination occurred in a special farm feed supplement for lactating cows. Polybrominated biphenyls (PBBs) were used in place of magnesium oxide resulting in serious harm to farm animals, including cattle, chickens, geese, ducks. Farm families, accustomed to eating their own products, were most heavily exposed. To study the impact of PBBs, 336 adult Michigan farm residents, 117 general consumers for comparison, 75 dairy farm residents in Wisconsin, who had not eaten PBB-contaminated food, were examined, as were 79 healthy subjects in New York City. Abnormalities in the Michigan groups included hypergammaglobulinemia, exaggerated hypersensitive response to streptococci, significant decrease in absolute numbers and percentage of T and B-lymphocytes, and increased number of lymphocytes with no detectable surface markers (''null cells''). Significant reduction of in vitro immune function was noted in 20-25% of the Michigan farm residents who had eaten food containing PBB. The decreased immune function detected among the PBB-exposed farm residents tended to affect families as a unit and was independent of exposed individuals' age or sex, pointing against the possibility of genetic predisposition.
- Research Organization:
- Mount Sinai School of Medicine of the City Univ. of New York, NY
- OSTI ID:
- 5393570
- Journal Information:
- Cancer Detect. Prev.; (United States), Journal Name: Cancer Detect. Prev.; (United States)
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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FOOD CHAINS
CONTAMINATION
HALOGENATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
TOXICITY
RETICULOENDOTHELIAL SYSTEM
SENSITIVITY
ANIMAL FEEDS
CATTLE
DOMESTIC ANIMALS
LYMPHOCYTES
MAN
MICHIGAN
MILK
NEW YORK CITY
WISCONSIN
ANIMAL CELLS
ANIMAL TISSUES
ANIMALS
AROMATICS
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BLOOD
BLOOD CELLS
BODY
BODY FLUIDS
CONNECTIVE TISSUE CELLS
FEDERAL REGION II
FEDERAL REGION V
FOOD
LEUKOCYTES
MAMMALS
MATERIALS
NEW YORK
NORTH AMERICA
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
PRIMATES
RUMINANTS
SOMATIC CELLS
TISSUES
USA
VERTEBRATES
560300* - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology