Flexible low-cost system for small animal aerosol inhalation exposure to drugs, proteins, inflammatory agents, and infectious agents

Abstract

The design for a simple, low-cost aerosol generation system for rodent inhalation studies is described here. This system is appropriate for low biohazard–level agents. In this study, two biosafety level 2 agents, Pasturella pneumotropica and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, were tested successfully. This system was also used to immunize mice and guinea pigs in ovalbumin-based models of pulmonary inflammation. This design is appropriate for studies with limited budgets and lower-level biosafety containment.

Keywords

• aerosol
• inhalation
• lung
• inflammation
• leukocyte