Pathogenesis of experimentally induced asbestos mesothelioma in rats

Fragments of parietal and visceral pleura were studied by total films preparation, light microscopy and SEM at different times after intrapleural injection of asbestos in Wistar rats. Pleural rat mesothelium in histological slices consists normally of one layer of oblong cells. By SEM the cells are flat and coated with microvilli of different lengths. In total films the parietal mesothelium was composed of large polygonal cells covering intercostal spaces and small cells covering spaces over the ribs. Inflammatory reaction and permanent pathological regenerative processes were observed in the mesothelium during 24 months after inoculation of asbestos fibres. Different lesions which we regarded as preneoplastic or premesotheliomatous were observed against the background of or without these processes. They were diffuse irregular hyperplasia and proliferation of epithelium-like or fibroblast-like cells and focal nodous proliferates composed of such cells with various morphological structures. The number of thymidine-labelled cells was significantly more inside the proliferates than in the surrounding tissue. They were confirmed by SEM and histological slices of the same fields. Chronic pathological regeneration of pleural mesothelium could be the background against which preneoplastic lesions and mesotheliomas develop easily.