CELL-PROLIFERATION AND NASAL CARCINOGENESIS

The nasal passages of rodents provide valuable opportunities for resea rch on relationships between cell proliferation and cancer. The nose, which has multiple functions, possesses a diverse range of tissue type s, each with its own morphologic, physiologic, and metabolic character istics and site-specific cell turnover rates. Moreover, for inhaled ma terials deposited in the nose, complex regional uptake or deposition p atterns can result in site-specific responses, including cancer. Prese nted here are important criteria necessary for undertaking cell prolif eration studies in the nasal passages. The current literature concerni ng nasal toxicity and the toxicant-induced proliferative response are also reviewed. Rodent nasal epithelium provides a fruitful area for re search on the role of cell proliferation in carcinogenesis.