TY - JOUR T1 - Accumulation of eosinophils and T-lymphocytes in the lungs after exposure to pinewood dust JF - European Respiratory Journal JO - Eur Respir J SP - 118 LP - 124 DO - 10.1183/09031936.04.00059804 VL - 25 IS - 1 AU - S. Gripenbäck AU - L. Lundgren AU - A. Eklund AU - C. Lidén AU - L. Skare AU - G. Tornling AU - J. Grunewald Y1 - 2005/01/01 UR - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/25/1/118.abstract N2 - Exposure to wood dust within the woodworking industry has been shown to cause a variety of respiratory disorders. The aim of this study was to investigate the cellular effects in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid and peripheral blood from healthy individuals exposed to pinewood dust. Eleven healthy volunteers were exposed to pinewood dust for 1 h in a whole-body exposure chamber. BAL fluid and blood cells were differentially counted and the expression of activation, adhesion and subset markers on alveolar macrophages and T-lymphocytes was determined 2–6 weeks before and 20 h after the exposure. Following pinewood dust exposure, the total BAL fluid cell concentration increased from 81.4 (64.1–97.5)×106 cells·L−1 (median (interquartile range)) to 195.3 (154.6–341.2)×106 cells·L−1. The BAL fluid T-lymphocyte concentration increased from 3.8% (3.5–6.5%) to 7.6% (4.9–11.2%), and BAL fluid eosinophil concentration from 0.0% (0.0–0.2%) to 1.8% (0.6–3.5%). Inhalation of pinewood dust leads to the recruitment of inflammatory cells to the airways of healthy individuals. The increase in numbers of eosinophils, T-lymphocytes and mast cells, i.e. cells of crucial importance to airway inflammation, in the lungs may be related to the increased risk of developing respiratory disorders among woodworkers. ER -