The Cytotoxic Potential of Household Waste During Composting

Abstract

During the last 10 years an increasing number of plants for re-use of refuse have been constructed in Europe and the U.S.A. During the same period several cases of occupational respiratory diseases among workers have been reported in the recycling industry. The aim of this project was to show, in vitro, if there is any change in the cytotoxic potential of garbage dust during the process of converting household waste to compost. Two cell lines have been exposed to extracts of waste fuel pellets and compost, taken from three different time periods in the composting process. Sig nificant differences were found in the cytotoxic potential of extracts of household waste (P<0.05). Extracts of 0.48 mg well^-1 raw compost, fresh compost and matured compost show a cytotoxic effect at 97, 41 and 44%, respectively of unexposed cells. In conclusion, these results show the greatest cytotoxic potential when the microbial activity seems to be at its height in the composting process. Earlier, studies on the effect of endotoxin (lipopolysacchande, LPS) on the cells, and with pure endotoxin did not find any cytotoxic effect in the assay. Further mvestigations are needed in order to find which micro-organisms or components from these are responsible for the cytotoxic potential. © 1997 ISWA

Keywords

Cytotoxic effect in vitro A 549 VERO cell culture compost organic dust.

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Arbejds- og Fabrikstilsynet (1942). Beretning for aarene 1939-41, Copenhagen, Denmark: Arbejdsog Fabrikstilsynet. pp. 77-78.

Brunt, L.P. , Dean, R.B. & Patrick, P.K. (1985). Composting (characteristics of composting). In Solid Waste Management Selected Topics ( M. J. Suess , ed.), Copenhagen, Denmark: World Health Organization.

Chan-Yeung, M. , Dimich-Ward, H. , Enarson, D.A. & Kennedy, S.M. (1992). Five cross-sectional studies of grain elevator workers. American Journal of Epidemiology 136, 1269-1279.

Chino, M. , Kanazawa, S. , Mori, T. , Araragi, M. & Kanke, B. (1983). Biochemical studies on composting of municipal sewage sludge mixed with rice hull. Soil Science and Plant Nutrition 29, 159-173.

Clark, C.S. , Rylander, R. & Larson, L. (1983). Levels of gram-negative bacteria, Aspergillus fumigatus, dust and endotoxin at compost plants. Applied Environmental Microbiology 45, 1501-1505.

Crook, B. , Bardos, R.P. & Lacey, J. (1988). Domestic waste composting plants as sources of airborne micro-organisms. U.K. Department of Environment , grant no. 1/MSl126/209/85.

Dahlqvist, M. & Ulfvarson, U. (1994). Acute effects on forced expiratory volume in one second and longitudinal change in pulmonary function among wood trimmers. American Journal of Industrial Medicine 25, 551-558.

Donham, K.J. , Haglind, P. , Peterson, Y. , Rylander, R. & Belin, L. (1989). Environmental and health studies of farm workers in Swedish swine confinement buildings. British Journal of Industrial Medicine 46, 31-37.

Gordon, T. & Harkema, J.R. (1995). Cotton dust produces an increase in epithelial mucosubstances in rat airways. American Journal of Respiratory Critical Care Medicine 151, 1981-1988.

10.

Jäppinen, P. , Haahtela, T. & Liira, J. (1987). Chip pile workers and mould exposure. Allergy 42, 545-548.

11.

Johnson, C.M. , Hanson, M.N. & Rohrbach, M.S. (1986). Endothelial cell cytotoxicity of cotton bracts tannin and aqueous cotton bracts extract: Tannin is the predominant cytotoxin present in aqueous cotton bracts extract. Environmental Health Perspectives 66, 97-104.

12.

Lundholm, M. & Rylander, R. (1980). Occupational symptoms among compost workers. Journal of Occupational Medicine 22, 256-257.

13.

Malmros, P. , Sigsgaard, T. & Bach, B. (1992). Occupational health problems due to garbage sorting . Waste Management & Research 10, 227-234.

14.

Milanowski, J. & Dutkiewicz, J. (1992). Effect of organic dust-derived microbial agents on the function of alveolar macrophages in vitro. Polish Journal of Immunology 17, 353-366.

15.

Millner, P.D. , Marsh, P.B. , Snowden, R.B. & Parr, J.F. (1977). Occurrence of Aspergillus fumigatus during composting of sewage sludge. Applied Environmental Microbiology 34, 765-772.

16.

Nakasaki, K. , Sasaki, M. , Shoda, M. & Kubota, H. (1985a). Change in microbial numbers during thermophilic composting of sewage sludge with reference to CO2 evolution rate . Applied Environmental Microbiology 49, 37-41.

17.

Nakasaki, K. , Shoda, M. & Kubota, H. (1985b). Effect of temperature on composting of sewage sludge. Applied Environmental Microbiology 50, 1526-1530.

18.

Nakasaki, K. , Kato, J. , Akiyama, T. & Kubota, H. (1987). Transformations of water soluble organic materials during thermophilic composting of sewage sludge. Journal of Fermentation Technology 65, 675-681.

19.

Nakasaki, K. & Akiyama, T. (1988). Effects of seeding on thermophilic composting of household organic waste. Journal of Fermentation Technology 66, 37-42.

20.

Olenchock, S.A. , Sorenson, W.G. , Kullman, G.J. & Jones, W.G. (1991). Biohazards in composted wood chips. In Biodeterioration and biodegradation 8 ( H. W. Rossmore , ed.), London: Elsevier Applied Science, 481-483.

21.

Rylander, R. , Haglind, P. & Lundholm, M. (1985). Endotoxin in cotton dust and respiratory function decrement among cotton workers in an experimental cardroom. American Review of Respiratory Disease 131, 209-213.

22.

Sigsgaard, T. , Bach, B. , Taudorf, E. , Malmros, P. & Gravesen, S. (1990). Accumulation of respiratory disease among employees in a recently established plant for sorting refuse. Ugeskr Læg 152/35, 2485-2488.

23.

Sigsgaard, T. , Hansen, I. & Sherson, D. (1992a). Asthma, hyperreactivity, and ODTS among recycling workers. European Respiratory Journal 5 (Suppl), 407s-408s.

24.

Sigsgaard, T. , Pedersen, O.F. , Juul, S. & Gravesen, S. (1992b). Respiratory disorders and atopy in cotton, wool, and other textile mill workers in Denmark. American Journal of Industrial Medicine 22, 163-184.

25.

Sigsgaard, T. , Roepstorff, V. , Tuxford, A.F. & Hoult, B. (1993). Cytotoxicity of Bacillus species to vero cells . Proc. Seventeenth Cotton Dust Research Conference (L. N. Domelsmith, R. R. Jacobs & P. J. Wakelyn, eds.), National Cotton Council, Memphis, TN, U.S.A. 258-260.

26.

Sigsgaard, T. , Malmros, P. , Nersting, L. & Petersen, C. (1994a). Respiratory disorders and atopy in Danish refuse workers. American Journal of Respiratory Critical Care Medicine 149, 1407-1412.

27.

Sigsgaard, T. , Roepstorrf, V. & Tuxford, A.F. (1994b). Cytotoxicity of cotton dust and dust components to A549 and VERO cells. Proc. Eighteenth Cotton Dust Research Conference (R. R. Jacobs, P. J. Wakelyn & L. N. Domelsmith, eds.), 322-325.

28.

Weber, S. , Kullman, G. , Petsonk, E. et al. (1993). Organic dust exposures from compost handling: case presentation and respiratory exposure assessment. American Journal of Industrial Medicine 24: 365-374.