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5148681 
Technical Report 
Potential Carcinogenic Hazard Of Zeolite-Clinoptilolite 
Pylev, LN; Krivosheeva, LV; Bostashvili, RG 
1984 
nye Zabolevaniya 
3 
The potential carcinogenicity of clinoptilolite (12173103) was studied in-vitro. The amount of carcinogenic polycyclic hydrocarbons, especially benzo(a)pyrene (50328) (BaP), adsorbed by zeolites was measured. The ability of clinoptilolite to chemisorb BaP was tested. Samples were randomly taken from ore mines. Clinoptilolite dust and dust samples from facility machinery were collected. The concentration of clinoptilolite in the samples ranged from 60 to 70 percent. For BaP determination, 50 gram samples were subjected to extraction. Emission spectrum analysis determined the BaP in the extraction. Small amounts of BaP were found in all the samples. Dried ore contained the highest concentration of BaP at 9.48 milligrams per kilogram (mg/kg), and mined ore had the least, 0.94mg/kg. Carcinogenic material was determined in volcanic material taken from the mines. The amount of BaP in clinoptilolite dust and machinery dust samples was about the same. By nature of its crystalline structure and surface properties, clinoptilolite had pronounced adsorptive properties. It was found that clinoptilolite actively adsorbed BaP from solution. When tested against bovine serum, clinoptilolite in 3 days of benzene incubation had extracted 5 to 7.8 percent of adsorbed BaP, but only 2 percent was extracted from serum. The authors conclude that clinoptilolite adsorbs carcinogens and acts as a modifier and promoter in carcinogenesis by causing adsorption of the carcinogen onto lung surfaces. (Russian)