#0016 Multiple exposures to poultry barn air and lipopolysaccharide synergistically increase the pulmonary expression of TLR‐4 and IL‐1β
Poultry Barn Workers Are at Risk for Lung Damage
In recent decades, the predominant means of poultry production has shifted from small farms to enormous barns housing thousands of birds. While such barns provide an economical means of supplying poultry products on a large scale, the people who work in them can be exposed to diverse respiratory hazards, including noxious gases, pesticides, poultry residues, and molds. Thus, it is possible that poultry barn workers are at high risk for developing respiratory disorders and lung damage.
In our new study, we set out to learn more about how exposure to poultry barn air affects the lungs. To begin with, we placed mice inside a poultry barn in cages. To model a poultry barn worker’s exposure to barn air, the mice lived in these cages for 8 hours a day, 6 days a week, for 5 weeks in total.
Then, we examined the mice’s lungs via histopathology as well as analysis of the blood and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid analysis. Our findings revealed clear signs of lung damage, including evidence of inflammation, deterioration of the lining of the lungs, and thickening of the walls separating the small respiratory chambers (called “alveoli”). Moreover, exposure to poultry barn air caused the lungs to have increased levels of an immune pathway-related protein called toll‐like receptor 4, which is usually a sign of infection or injury. We also observed elevated levels of a protein called interleukin‐1β, which plays an important role in promoting inflammation. Further exposure to hazardous compounds called endotoxins, which can be found in poultry barn air, worsened the signs of lung damage.
Taken together, these findings provide concerning, but clear evidence that breathing poultry barn air can cause lung damage. We hope that our findings will spur action to improve respiratory safety protocols in the poultry industry in order to ensure that poultry barn workers can work without sacrificing their health.
Link to the original journal article:
https://doi.org/10.1002/1348-9585.12094
Title of the paper:
Multiple exposures to poultry barn air and lipopolysaccharide synergistically increase the pulmonary expression of TLR‐4 and IL‐1β
Authors:
Gaganpreet Kaur and Ram Saran Sethi
