Rapid development of coal mining, metallurgic and chemical industry in Central Kazakhstan deteriorated the ecological situation in the region. Karaganda is the main industrial center where big coal-mining and collieries of the Republic are located. Dust in Karaganda contains heavy metals such as Pb, Cu, Se, Co, Ni, Sn, Cr exceeding the limit of their permissible concentrations. Long-term exposure to their mixture results in accumulation of hazardous effects on the health of the population, children in particular.

Some authors believe that lower concentrations of ecotoxicants under long-term exposure cause systemic changes in adaptive mechanisms of defense. Regarding this problem we studied functional-metabolical changes in rat marrow cells under experimental conditions. Indications of rat marrow cells (RMC), as a criterion of environmental dusty load to homeostasis, may observe early changes at cellular level prior to appearance of pre-pathological symptoms. Experimental animals underwent single intratracheal administration of dust from 3 different regions in dose of 50 mg/ml during time intervals of 2 weeks, 1 month and 2 months. According to the pollution levels three regions were divided: region C - relatively clean or a zone of “relative prosperity” (control); region B - intensive traffic or a zone of “relative tension” and region A – a region of big industrial plants or “ecologically unfavorable” zone. The animals were also divided into three groups, correspondingly. The results of cytomorphological study showed that cytotoxic effects of dusts collected from two regions on marrow cells became apparent in degenerative changes of nucleus and cytoplasm, in their vacualization in them and in change of their size and form.

The interest to the study of enzymatic activity of intracellular metabolism in marrow leucocytes and monocytes is accounted for cell capability evolved phylogenetically to fast respond to any changes in homeostasis, on the other hand, by the fact that changes in enzymatic activities occur earlier than those in morphology and quantity. Thus, the results of cytochemical studies on RMC showed that at later stages of experiments phospholipids (PL) content in animals of the 2^nd group increased authentically by 43%, 13 fold in the activity of G-6-PDH, 4 times in alpha-GPD, 2,4 times in acidic phosphatase and by 63% in NBT-test. While the activity of myeloperoxidase (MPO) decreased by 56%. The animals from the 3^rd group reported an increase in the content of PL by 60%, lysosomal-cationic proteins (LCP) by 31%, 5 times in G-6-PDG, 28 times in alpha-GPD, 2,9 times in NBT-test were observed in comparison with those of ^st group, whereas the activity of MPO decreased by 56%.

Therefore, dusts from the regions of the city revealed different cytotoxic effects. The effect of the dust from more polluted region A was observed already at the early stages of the experiments. The effect of that from relative clean region B observed at later stages. Increase in LCP content and in the activity of MPO was as a result of cell destruction which increased enzymatic degradation not only in lysosome but also in mitochondria. It was also confirmed by authentically increase in the activity of G-6-PDH and alpha-GPD. Considerable in activity AF confirms the destabilization of marrow phagocyte lysosome membrane where catabolic processes were prevailed. Analyses of cytomorphological and cytochemical indications of marrow cells showed a decreased cell resistance, intensity of unspecific defense mechanisms in response to dust exposure.