Hemolytic activity of phosphorite and apatite dusts in vitro.

An examination was performed to assess the hemolytic activity of phosphorite and apatite dust in vitro by a method used by Potts et al. (1978). After evaluation of dispersion, a certain contents of elements was established, using a spectrometer of X-ray fluorescence. Phosphorite dusts caused 50.4% of hemolyse that is about 5 times more than those caused by dust of apatites. The mean hemolysis index for phosphorite dust was 0.799 and for apatite dust 0.142. Thus, phosphorites are much more toxic to a human being than apatites. A higher level of hemolytical activity in phosphorite dust as compared to apatite one can be explained by significant difference in the contents of certain elements, SiO2, in particular. The mean SiO2 level in samples containing phosphorites was 6.3 +/- 0.1% compared to samples of apatites (3.8 +/- 0.09%).