title: Micronuclei in nasal mucosa, oral mucosa and lymphocytes in students exposed to formaldehyde vapor in anatomy class.
abstract: The frequency of micronuclei (MN) in cells of the nasal mucosa, oral mucosa and in lymphocytes was evaluated for 25 students in anatomy classes exposed to formaldehyde (FA) over an 8-week period. Each student served as his or her own control. The time-weighted average concentration (TWA) of formaldehyde in anatomical laboratories and in students' dormitories was 0.508 +/- 0.299 mg/m3 and 0.012 +/- 0.0025 mg/m3, respectively. A higher frequency of micronuclei was observed in nasal and oral exfoliative cells after formaldehyde exposure (3.85 +/- 1.48 vs 1.20 +/- 0.676 and 0.857 +/- 0.558 vs 0.568 +/- 0.317, paired-t test: P < 0.001 and P < 0.01, respectively). No significant increase in the frequency of lymphocyte micronuclei was found after formaldehyde exposure (P > 0.05). The present study shows that nasal mucosa cells exposed through respiration are the chief target of FA-induced genotoxic effects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Health, Tongji Medical University, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Ying
authors.forename: W S
authors.initials: WS
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: M Y
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: X L
authors.initials: XL
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.forename: S Y
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Yin
authors.forename: X S
authors.initials: XS
authors.lastname: Zhu
mesh_terms: D004615:Embalming; D005260:Female; D005557:Formaldehyde / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D015162:Micronucleus Tests; D009061:Mouth Mucosa / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D009153:Mutagens / Q000009:adverse effects*; D009297:Nasal Mucosa / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D013337:Students, Medical; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000648:ultrastructure
chemical_list: D009153:Mutagens; D005557:Formaldehyde