15 T h e R e l a t i o n of M i c r o o r g a n i s m s and M i c r o b i a l
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P r o d u c t s to C o t t o n JANET J. FISCHER University of North Carolina, School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC 27514 Microbial species (fungi, gram negative bacteria, gram positive bacteria, thermophilic bacteria) and many microbial products (including enzymes and endotoxin) have been identified in "cotton" dusts and cotton bract extracts. A selective review of the literature outlines previous data on these microbial factors. Critical evaluation of the older references is attempted but is often impossible due to the absence of methological data. Viable gram negative microorganism counts and endotoxin levels are emphasized because they correlate with pulmonary function change. Data are presented on the levels of these microbial factors in the air of the carding room of mills (52,000 colony forming units of gram negative bacteria/m of air and 1-2 µg of endotoxin/ m ), in the air of a model cardroom (20,000 colony forming units of gram negative bacteria/m of air and 0.1 µg of endotoxin/m ), and in various plant parts and "cotton" dusts. 3
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Current concern about the r e l a t i o n of dust t o pulmonary symptoms i n the c o t t o n i n d u s t r y has l e d t o a resurgence of i n t e r e s t i n the v a r i o u s c o n s t i t u e n t s of "cotton" dust. As p a r t of an ongoing study of the v a r i o u s f a c t o r s t h a t may p l a y an e t i o l o g i c a l r o l e i n b y s s i n o s i s , we have s t u d i e d the m i c r o b i a l f a c t o r s (organisms and t h e i r p r o d u c t s ) . T h i s review of the p e r t i n e n t l i t e r a t u r e i s s e l e c t i v e and does not purport t o be a l l i n c l u s i v e . The i n i t i a l approach was a c r i t i c a l a n a l y s i s of the d a t a , and t h i s was c a r r i e d out when p o s s i b l e . Many of the references d i d not supply enough data about methods t o permit a c r i t i c a l e v a l u a t i o n . T h i s i s e s p e c i a l l y t r u e f o r the data on f u n g i and gram-positive organisms. The paper concentrates on the counts o f v i a b l e gram-negative o r ganisms and the content of endotoxin because these c o r r e l a t e best w i t h pulmonary f u n c t i o n changes i n workers.
0097-6156/82/0189-0225$6.50/0 © 1982 American Chemical Society
Montalvo; Cotton Dust ACS Symposium Series; American Chemical Society: Washington, DC, 1982.
COTTON
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A number of papers describe the types and q u a n t i t i e s of microorganisms and t h e i r products i n cotton, cotton plant p a r t s and cotton m i l l dusts (1-37). P r a u s n i t z (l ) reported the presence of gram-negative b a c t e r i a i n b r i t i s h cotton m i l l s i n 1936. Neal et al.(_2) concluded that gram-negative microorganisms, or t h e i r products, caused an acute i l l n e s s experienced by r u r a l mattress makers. T u f f n e l l i n 1960 (3 ) d i d not i m p l i c a t e b a c t e r i a as the c a u s a l agent of b y s s i n o s i s . Antweiler i n 1961 (4) r e j e c t e d the gram-negative endotoxin hypothesis. In recent years other i n v e s t i g a t o r s have suggested that gram-negative b a c t e r i a and t h e i r endotoxins are a p o s s i b l e c a u s a l agent of b y s s i n o s i s . The l i t e r a t u r e i s d i f f i c u l t to i n t e r p r e t because of a number of v a r i a b l e s which are l i s t e d i n Table I and because each r e f e r ence u s u a l l y addresses only one aspect of the problem. T h i s r e view i s s e l e c t i v e and concentrates on papers where the d e t a i l s of the study method are given. Table I V a r i a b l e s Involved M a t e r i a l s Studied Raw cotton from fields gins m i l l s before carding m i l l s a f t e r carding Cotton p l a n t p a r t s l e a f and b r a c t s seeds pericarp Weeds contaminating cotton Cotton dusts t o t a l airborne dusts dusts from cardroom f l o o r s dusts from dust f i l t e r s dusts from v e r t i c a l e l u t r i a t o r s (airborne r e s p i r a b l e
