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Battlefield Chemical Inhalation Injury
Published in Jacob Loke, Pathophysiology and Treatment of Inhalation Injuries, 2020
Synonyms for phosgene (CG) include carbonyl chloride, carbonoxychloride, chloroform] chloride, Green Cross. Its formula is COCL2; vapor density 3.4 (gas); specific gravity 1.4 (liquid); boiling point 8.2°C. Phosgene in low concentration has an odor of new-mown or musty hay or green corn. An odor threshold of 1.5 ppm has been reported. Even with training, this threshold is not consistently observed. There is also a rapid olfactory adaptation, which further limits odor as a useful warning. Consequently, odor threshold does not provide adequate warning of toxic exposure. Phosgene appears as a gas, hydrolyzing sufficiently in the air to produce a white cloud that typically hugs the ground (trenches in World War I) (Bunting, 1945a).
Chemistries of Chemical Warfare Agents
Published in Brian J. Lukey, James A. Romano, Salem Harry, Chemical Warfare Agents, 2019
Terry J. Henderson, Ilona Petrikovics, Petr Kikilo, Andrew L. Ternay Jr., Harry Salem
General Remarks: Used as a choking agent during World War I, phosgene was perhaps the most effective of all CWAs used during the war. It was developed by Fritz Haber to be a more effective CWA than chlorine. Phosgene was first used in World War I by the Germans, but was later used during the war by the French, the Americans, and the British. The first deployment of the compound was at Ypres, Belgium on December 19, 1915, when German soldiers released ~4000 cylinders of phosgene combined with chlorine gas against British troops. Phosgene has rarely been used since World War I but is still responsible for the majority of deaths resulting from chemical warfare. Today, phosgene has an annual U.S. production demand of ~5400 million pounds, with its most important industrial use in the production of isocyanates, R–N=C=O.
Organic Chemicals
Published in William J. Rea, Kalpana D. Patel, Reversibility of Chronic Disease and Hypersensitivity, Volume 4, 2017
William J. Rea, Kalpana D. Patel
Phosgene is a severely toxic nerve gas. It is important because it is an intermediate product in the development of 150 cyanates. It reacts readily with amines containing H2N groups and with alcohol-containing HO groups. Phosgene was used as a nerve gas in World War I, damaging respiratory function in those who were contaminated by it. Today, it has been found to emanate from electrostatic precipitators, causing severe reactions in the chemically sensitive.
Mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes attenuate phosgene-induced acute lung injury in rats
Published in Inhalation Toxicology, 2019
Ning Xu, Yiru Shao, Kaili Ye, Yubei Qu, Obulkasim Memet, Daikun He, Jie Shen
As a highly toxic gas, phosgene was widely used as chemical weapon during World War I. Currently, phosgene is commonly used in the chemical industry for organic synthesis of pesticide, drug, dyestuff and other chemical products. Exposure to phosgene can cause injury to respiratory system (Hardison et al., 2014; Wyatt & Allister, 1995). Acute lung injury (ALI) and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) are commonly observed complications after phosgene inhalation (Saeed et al., 2018). Phosgene-induced ALI is characterized by massive pulmonary edema, disruption of epithelial tight junctions, surfactant dysfunction, and oxidative stress (Chen et al., 2015). Once inhaled, hydroxy in phosgene acylates amino (-NH2), sulfhydryl (-SH), and hydroxyl (-OH) groups of proteins, directly damaging bronchial epithelial cells, alveolar epithelial cells, and vascular endothelial cells, and breaking integrity of air–blood barrier. In addition to direct damage, alveolar macrophages secrete chemokines to induce inflammation, causing secondary damage to lung tissue after phosgene inhalation. Due to specificity and complexity, there are no effective ways to cure phosgene-induced ALI at present.
Mesenchymal stem cells overexpressing Ang1 attenuates phosgene-induced acute lung injury in rats
Published in Inhalation Toxicology, 2018
Yiru Shao, Jie Shen, Fangqing Zhou, Daikun He
Phosgene (carbonyl chloride) is a valuable industrial material that has been extensively used in synthetic chemical processes (Filipczak et al., 2015). Although its storage and supply are limited, accidental environmental or occupational exposures are still occurring. Exposure to high concentrations of phosgene can induce acute lung injury (ALI), which may develop into severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) (Luo et al., 2014). Although colleagues from DSTL in the UK have shown that positive airway pressure (via ventilation) is beneficial for phosgene exposure, there are far more therapeutic drugs that have been tested to treat acute phosgene exposure to treat the pulmonary edema that occurs. Currently, there are no approved therapeutics, but there have been studies trying to find one. (Grainge & Rice, 2010; Holmes et al., 2016). However, there is no specific treatment targeting phosgene-induced acute lung injury (P-ALI).
Adenovirus-delivered angiopoietin-1 ameliorates phosgene-induced acute lung injury via inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome activation
Published in Inhalation Toxicology, 2018
Dai-Kun He, Jun-Feng Chen, Yi-Ru Shao, Fang-Qing Zhou, Jie Shen
Phosgene, a highly reactive electrophilic gas, is currently an important industrial material and is widely used in the manufacture of dyestuffs, acid chlorides, isocyanates, pharmaceuticals, polycarbonates, polyurethanes, carbamates, and related pesticides (Borak & Diller 2001). Accidental phosgene inhalation could result in acute lung injury (ALI) and even fatal acute respiratory distress syndrome in some condition (Pauluhn et al., 2007). Mechanism exploration of phosgene-induced lung injury is necessary for therapy development.