Pulmonary alveolar lipoproteinosis in rats following intratracheal injection of pyrite particles.

Wistar rats were injected intratracheally with pyrite particles and after 6 and 12 mo, lungs were evaluated for histological changes. Results were compared with rats that were given particles of galena, lead silicate, travertine, and quartz. Under the light microscope no significant changes were observed in the lungs from animals treated with galena, lead silicate, and travertine. In the lungs from animals that received quartz, a typical nodular fibrosis was observed. Moreover, both pyrite-treated rats and quartz-treated rats developed pulmonary alveolar lipoproteinosis; the lesions were much less prominent and severe in animals injected with pyrite than with quartz. These results indicate that pyrite, like only a few other types of dust that are different from quartz, can evoke the development of pulmonary alveolar lipoproteinosis in rats.