Environmental Exposures May Damage DNA in as Few as Three Days Am.Thor.Society

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Sunday, May 17, 2009

_Environmental Exposures May Damage DNA in as Few as Three Days_

(http://greenerhealth.blogspot.com/2009/05/environmental-exposures-may-damage-dn\

a.html)

Newswise — Exposure to particulate matter has been recognized as a

contributing factor to lung cancer development for some time, but a new study

indicates inhalation of certain particulates can actually cause some genes to

become reprogrammed, affecting both the development and the outcome of

cancers and other diseases.

The research was scheduled to be presented on Sunday, May 17, at the 105th

International Conference of the American Thoracic Society in San Diego.

“Recently, changes in gene programming due to a chemical transformation

called methylation have been found in the blood and tissues of lung cancer

patients,†said investigator Baccarelli, M.D., Ph.D., assistant

professor of applied biotechnology at the University of Milan. “We aimed at

investigating whether exposure to particulate matter induced changes in DNA

methylation in blood from healthy subjects who were exposed to high levels of

particulate matter in a foundry facility.â€

Researchers enrolled 63 healthy subjects who worked in a foundry near

Milan, Italy. Blood DNA samples were collected on the morning of the first day

of the work week, and again after three days of work. Comparing these

samples revealed that significant changes had occurred in four genes associated

with tumor suppression.

“The changes were detectable after only three days of exposure to

particulate matter, indicating that environmental factors need little time to

cause

gene reprogramming which is potentially associated with disease outcomes,â€

Dr. Baccarelli said.

“As several of the effects of particulate matter in foundries are similar

to those found after exposure to ambient air pollution, our results open

new hypotheses about how air pollutants modify human health,†he added.

“The

changes in DNA methylation we observed are reversible and some of them are

currently being used as targets of cancer drugs.â€

Dr. Baccarelli said the study results indicate that early interventions

might be designed which would reverse gene programming to normal levels,

reducing the health risks of exposure.

“We need to evaluate how the changes in gene reprogramming we observed are

related to cancer risk,†he said. “Down the road, it will be particularly

important not only to show that these changes are associated with

increased risk of cancer or other environmentally-induced diseases, but that,

if we

were able to prevent or revert them, these risks could be eliminated.â€

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