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A case-control study was undertaken to study lung cancer in relation to dietary habits, occupational exposure, and living in urban or country areas. Suspect lung cancer cases in West Sweden and population controls were interviewed using a food frequency questionnaire. The study comprised 177 female and 359 male cases and 916 controls. The cases mainly comprised former and current smokers (82% female, 95% male). For the analysis, cases were divided into the histological diagnoses adenocarcinoma and squamous cell, small cell, and adenosquamous cell carcinomas, as well as into smoking categories. A high frequency of consumption of vegetables was significantly related to a lower risk for adenocarcinoma and squamous cell and adenosquamous cell carcinoma among men and adenocarcinoma among women. A low odds ratio in the highest quartile of vegetable consumption in men was seen in all smoking categories. There were no significant protective effects from fruit in the different lung cancer subgroups, although a significant trend was found for heavy-smoking females. A high consumption of milk was related to an increased risk for lung cancer, especially adenosquamous cell carcinoma. The results suggest that the protective effect or risk due to dietary factors may affect different forms of lung cancer. The results from this as well as previous studies suggest a complex interaction between diet and lung cancer risk, involving the types of lung cancer as well as consumption patterns in the population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

EXPOSURE to dust may involve co-exposure to agents which are allergens, together with those which are pro-inflamm atory. To study the effects of such a coexposure, the humoral and inflammatory responses were studied in guinea pigs inhaling the T-celldependent antigen ovalbumin (OVA) and the inflammatory agents (1 3)- beta -D-glucan and lipopolysaccharide (LPS). The effects were evaluated as inflammatory cells in the lung and serum antibodies to OVA. LPS caused a stimulation of the OVA-induced antibody production which was abolished by simultaneous exposure to (1 3)- beta -D-glucan. An increase of eosinophils after OVA exposure was decreased by coexposure to (1 3)- beta -D-glucan. The results demonstrate a complex interaction between adaptive and innate immune mechanisms in the lung, determined by exposure to common contaminants in airborne dust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To follow up a group of newly employed workers in a cotton mill, and to report changes in symptoms over time.Methods: A group of 110 mill workers at a cotton mill in Shijiazhuang, China, was investigated by questionnaire, skin testing, and spirometric measurements of airway responsiveness through forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1). The workers were examined before starting work, at 10 weeks, and at one year.Results: Decreases in FEV1 over shifts were small at 10 weeks and one year, and slightly higher among people with skin reactions to cotton dust extracts. Airway responsiveness, defined as the average decrease in FEV1 after 1.25 mg methacholine was increased at 10 weeks. It remained about the same after one year, except in the workers positive for the skin test, in whom it was further increased. Subjective symptoms of chest tightness and cough with phlegm increased progressively at 10 weeks and one year; nasal irritation remained unchanged and dry cough decreased between 10 weeks and one year.Conclusion: The results suggest that the airway inflammation caused by cotton dust increases with increasing exposure time and that the changes are more notable in workers with reactivity to cotton dust extract. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Previous studies have reported an association between tea drinking and lung cancer. In view of these data, the relationship between tea drinking as well as other dietary factors and lung cancer was investigated in a case-control study in the west of Sweden.Methods: Patients with suspected lung cancer were collected from pulmonary units at central hospitals in the area investigated, and population controls were matched for age. The material reported here comprises 308 male cases with a confirmed diagnosis of lung cancer and 504 controls. The participants were interviewed by specially trained nurses, using a questionnaire to assess smoking, dietary habits, occupational exposures and conditions in the residential area (local air pollution). This paper reports the results from dietary factors studied with a food frequency technique.Results: The results demonstrated a strong protective effect of vegetables (odds ratio [OR] = 0.69, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.46-1.05, and OR = 0.37, 95% CI: 0.23-0.61 for intermediate and high consumption classes respectively). A low OR was consistent for all histological types of lung cancer. High consumption of fruits did not show any similar protective effect. Drinking milk was associated with a dose-response related risk increase after adjustment for smoking and vegetable consumption (P for trend = 0.07). Odds ratio was 1.73, 95% CI: 1.00-3.01 for high consumption of milk.Conclusions: High intake of vegetables had a strong protective effect among males. Diet is thus a potential confounding factor in studies on lung cancer and environmental factors and should thus be taken into consideration in the planning of such studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The release of serotonin from platelets was examined using polymorphonuclear leucocytes (PMN) from normal volunteers. The stimulating agents employed were zymosan and heat-killed bacteria from Enterobacter agglomerans, which is commonly found in cotton dust. Optimal conditons for release were established. Both zymosan and E. agglomerans yielded a release of serotonin of an equal magnitude. The data are discussed in relation to the pathogenesis of respiratory disease associated with occupational exposure to cotton dust. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports that (1→3)-β-D-glucan compound does not induce acute inflammation after nasal deposition. The absence of an inflammatory reaction after exposure to (1→3)-β-D-glucan agrees with results from inhalation studies in animals. On the other hand, a marked nasal swelling and increased amounts of interleukin-8 were found in a study where subjects inhaled floor dust, spiked with (1→3)-β-D-glucan. Microbial cell wall agents play an important role in the development of nonallergic airways inflammation in occupational and general environments with microbial contamination.

Background: There are indications that a diet rich in vegetables and/or fruit has a protective effect against several types of diseases, including cancer. Data from experimental and epidemiological studies suggest that antioxidant constituents may provide protection against environmental carcinogens.Aims: This study investigated the effect of additional vegetables in the diet on the expression of the endogenous antioxidant enzyme GSTP1 in human lymphocytes.Methods: Six subjects were given an addition of mixed vegetables to their normal diet for a period of three weeks. The expression of GSTP1 protein and mRNA in lymphocytes was measured by Western blot and RT competitive PCR.Results: After the intervention all six subjects had lower levels of GSTP1 mRNA, and five of the six subjects had lower GSTP1 protein levels. This suggests that increased vegetable intake decreases GSTP1 expression, possibly through the supply of additional antioxidants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]