title: Volatile anaesthetic halothane causes DNA damage in A549 lung cells.
abstract: The present study was performed to elucidate the extent of damage and the ability of lung epithelial cells to recover or to undergo apoptosis after in vitro treatment with the volatile anaesthetic halothane. The results obtained from the comet assay clearly show that halothane, applied at 3.0mM concentration, causes DNA and cell damage. Cells exhibited nuclear fragmentation and budding early after treatment and these events gradually increased during the next few days. The presence of a large number of mini-comets after single cell gel electrophoresis was found to represent apoptotic bodies with fragmented DNA. Our results demonstrate apoptosis-like changes after in vitro exposure of A549 cells to the volatile anaesthetic halothane. The majority of the affected cells did not recover and were directed to cell death.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cytology, Histology and Embryology, Faculty of Biology, University of Sofia, 8 Dragan Tzankov Street, 1164 Sofia, Bulgaria.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Topouzova-Hristova
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Daza
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Garcia-Herdugo
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Stephanova
mesh_terms: D018685:Anesthetics, Inhalation / Q000633:toxicity*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000187:drug effects; D004249:DNA Damage / Q000187:drug effects*; D006221:Halothane / Q000633:toxicity*; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D048629:Micronuclei, Chromosome-Defective
chemical_list: D018685:Anesthetics, Inhalation; D006221:Halothane