An historical perspective of immunotoxicology is presented beginning from early observations in which exposure to workplace environments led to unexpected immune-mediated lung diseases to its eventual evolution as a sub-discipline in toxicology. As with most toxicology disciplines, immunotoxicology originated from concerns by scientists within industry and government as well as medical professionals to limit human exposure to agents that can potentially effect human health. The basis for these concerns originated from laboratory studies in experimental models and clinical observations that suggested certain industrial and agrochemicals, pharmaceuticals and consumer products were capable of inadvertently interacting with the immune system and cause adverse health effects. The types of immunopathologies observed and mechanisms responsible were found to be broad, being dependent upon the physiochemical properties of an agent, exposure route, and target organ/tissue, and included allergic/hypersensitivity responses, immune dysfunction, manifested by suppression or, in rare instances, stimulation, autoimmune or autoimmune-like diseases, and chronic inflammatory disorders.
Keywords: Environmental immunology; historical perspective; immunotoxicology.