Cytotoxic action of quartz dust on stimulated and nonstimulated peritoneal macrophages in vitro.

Quartz dust cytotoxicity was studied in starch-stimulated and nonstimulated mouse peritoneal macrophage cultures in vitro. Morphological changes, release of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) into the culture medium, and lactate production were used as parameters of cell damage. Phagocytosis of quartz dust by macrophages increased cell detachment of both the stimulated and nonstimulated cells. Both cell types released significant amounts of LDH into the supernatant culture medium. The increased LDH release was more from stimulated dust-free and corundum- and quartz-exposed macrophages than from nonstimulated macrophages. There was no statistically significant difference in lactate production between stimulated and nonstimulated macrophage cultures in the presence or absence of quartz or corundum dust.