ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an in-depth summary of human, animal, and in vitro studies of neurotoxicological, neurohistopathological, or neurobehavioral effects from exposure to jet fuels. While neurobehavioral animal studies are generally limited to inhalation, dermal or oral gavage exposures or oral gavage treatments, human occupational exposure studies generally include simultaneous inhalation and dermal routes. Considering the extensive acute and repeated human exposure to jet fuels, there has been minimal research conducted to evaluate possible neurotoxicological, neurohistopathological, and neurobehavioral consequences. The majority of the human exposure data comes from accidental acute exposure of a few individuals to high fuel concentrations. There is a significant literature detailing auditory system deficits in animals exposed repeatedly to doses of toluene higher than those found typically in jet fuels, especially when the chemical exposures are accompanied by exposure to noise. Several in vitro studies suggest that exposure to jet fuel or jet fuel exhaust components can damage or destroy cells from the several brain areas tested.
