Mutagen sensitivity as a susceptibility marker for endometriosis.
BACKGROUND
The mutagen sensitivity assay has been well established and widely used as a good independent risk predictor for developing cancers. Although endometriosis is considered a benign disorder, it exhibits several features similar to malignancy. The objectives of this study were to evaluate whether mutagen sensitivity can predict the risk of endometriosis development.


METHODS
The subjects were women undergoing different surgical procedures due to different stages of endometriosis. Bleomycin was used as a mutagen, and the mutagen sensitivity of peripheral lymphocytes from women with and without endometriosis was determined by measuring chromatid breaks induced by bleomycin in short-term culture using cytogenetic analysis.


RESULTS
The mean +/- SD (range) number of chromatid breaks per cell in women with and without endometriosis was 0.68 +/- 0.12 (0.50-0.94) and 0.52 +/- 0.10 (0.35-0.68), respectively. There was a significant difference with regard to mean chromatid breaks per cell between women with and without endometriosis (P < 0.001). On logistic regression analysis, the odds ratio (95% confidence interval) of chromatid breaks per cell was 5.80 (2.19-15.37, P < 0.001) for cases compared with controls. Yet, variables of interest including age, dysmenorrhoea, previous induced abortion and smoking in the home and workplace were not statistically correlated with chromatid breaks per cell.


CONCLUSIONS
These preliminary data suggest that sensitivity to bleomycin-induced chromatid breaks in lymphocytes is associated with the risk of endometriosis development.
D000028:Abortion, Induced / Q000009:adverse effects; D000328:Adult; D000375:Aging / Q000235:genetics; D001761:Bleomycin; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002842:Chromatids / Q000187:drug effects; D020732:Cytogenetic Analysis; D004249:DNA Damage; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D004412:Dysmenorrhea / Q000235:genetics; D004715:Endometriosis / Q000097:blood / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects; D009152:Mutagenicity Tests; D009153:Mutagens; D016017:Odds Ratio; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects
D009153:Mutagens; D001761:Bleomycin