title: Chromosome translocations in workers exposed to benzene.
abstract: As benzene has been linked with elevated risk of both acute myeloid leukemia and lymphoma, we explored the effect of benzene exposure on levels of t(8;21), t(15;17), and t(14;18) translocations. Circulating lymphocytes of normal individuals also often contain t(14;18). Quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis showed that 37 workers with benzene exposure had a decreased level of t(14;18) in their blood with only 16.2% having 10 or more copies of the t(14;18) BCL-2/IgH fusion gene/microg DNA, as opposed to 55% of 20 controls (P = .0063 by Fisher's exact test). This decline may be related to the immunotoxicity to specific subtypes of circulating B-lymphocytes, but the data do not support the use of t(14;18) as a biomarker of increased lymphoma risk in benzene-exposed populations. None of 88 individuals (31 controls and 57 exposed) exhibited detectable t(8;21) transcripts, and while t(15;17) transcripts were detected in two individuals, the result is inconclusive as one was exposed and the other was unexposed.
authors.affiliation: School of Public Health, 140 Warren Hall, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-7360, USA.
authors.forename: Cliona M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: McHale
authors.forename: Qing
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Lan
authors.forename: Chiara
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Corso
authors.forename: Guilan
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Luoping
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Roel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Vermeulen
authors.forename: John D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Curry
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Rustam
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Turakulov
authors.forename: Russell
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Higuchi
authors.forename: Soren
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Germer
authors.forename: Songnian
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yin
authors.forename: Nathaniel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Rothman
authors.forename: Martyn T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Smith
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001554:Benzene / Q000633:toxicity*; D002273:Carcinogens / Q000633:toxicity*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002877:Chromosomes, Human / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D019254:Genes, bcl-2 / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D007143:Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains / Q000235:genetics; D008223:Lymphoma / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D014178:Translocation, Genetic / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D002273:Carcinogens; D007143:Immunoglobulin Heavy Chains; D001554:Benzene