Free Radical Generation during Interaction of Chrysotile Asbestos with Natural Compounds

Free radical generation was found after the addition of some natural biological substances (adrenaline, ascorbate, ubiquinone Q9, etc.) to a chrysotile asbestos suspension. This was detected by the chemiluminescent method with lucigenin as an indicator. The detailed study of the chemiluminescent reaction in the adrenaline-chrysotile system indicated that the reaction required hydroxyl ions, which arose in the chrysotile suspension, and was accompanied by a superoxide radical formation. At the same time, the radical production was very low in suspensions of amphybole asbestos, talc, and quartz, which could not alkalinize the water medium. On the basis of these results, it may be concluded that chrysotile has a unique ability to generate free radicals upon interaction with some biological molecules in a water medium. This fact may explain the great carcinogenicity of chrysotile. The injection of cigarette smoke solution into chrysotile (but not into amphibole asbestos or talc) suspension induced intensive chemiluminescence. This suggests that smoke aggravates the effect of chrysotile on human health by increasing free radical generation on the surface of the fibers.