Karol M H
Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15238, USA.
Environ Health Perspect. 1998 Apr;106 Suppl 2(Suppl 2):533-40. doi: 10.1289/ehp.98106533.
Immunotoxicity encompasses both reduced and heightened immune function. Diverse chemicals can impair functioning of the immune system. Both monographs and books have been devoted to detailed descriptions of immunotoxicity. This paper gives a brief overview of the methods currently used to assess the immunotoxic potential of chemicals. It also discusses the trend toward the use of alternative methods to mammalian models, such as feral species, in vitro assays, and computational models. The strategy of using a tier approach to screen chemicals for immunotoxicity is described, together with the rationale for, and limitations of, this approach. Interpretation of data with regard to clinical disease and human health is addressed. The immune system poses substantial complexities in this regard as the system has functional reserve and functional redundancy.
免疫毒性包括免疫功能降低和增强。多种化学物质可损害免疫系统的功能。专著和书籍都对免疫毒性进行了详细描述。本文简要概述了目前用于评估化学物质免疫毒性潜力的方法。还讨论了使用替代哺乳动物模型的方法的趋势，如野生动物物种、体外试验和计算模型。描述了采用分级方法筛选化学物质免疫毒性的策略，以及该方法的原理和局限性。阐述了关于临床疾病和人类健康的数据解读。在这方面，免疫系统存在重大复杂性，因为该系统具有功能储备和功能冗余。
