Exposure to residential indoor air induces heritable DNA mutations in mice.
Exposure to the mixed indoor air pollutants released from synthetic materials and chemical products poses a serious public health problem, but little evidence has been provided to clarify whether such pollutants at environmentally relevant concentrations produce inheritable germline mutations. In the present study, mice were exposed to samples of indoor air from a newly decorated apartment bedroom. Results showed expanded simple tandem repeat (ESTR) mutations occurring in the germline of control and exposed parents, which were also detected in their offspring using three probes, Ms6-hm, Hm-2, and MMS10. Data indicated that mice being exposed to indoor air triggered a significant increase in frequency of ESTR mutations, which may be due primarily to a rise in mutations inherited through the paternal germline. These results suggest that exposure to a mixture of pollutants in indoor air obtained from an apartment in China induced ESTR mutations. Thus, humans exposed to polluted indoor apartment air in China may be at risk for developing germline mutations.
Zhou
Yin
Y
Department of Molecular Cell Biology and Toxicology, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing.
Liu
Yunru
Y
Qiu
Wen
W
Zeng
Jinyan
J
Chen
Xiaodong
X
Zhou
Hanzhi
H
Li
Aiping
A
Zhou
Jianwei
J
D016902:Air Pollution, Indoor / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D002681:China; D004252:DNA Mutational Analysis; D005260:Female; D018095:Germ-Line Mutation / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D019570:Inhalation Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000032:analysis; D051379:Mice; D008813:Mice, Inbred ICR; D016296:Mutagenesis / Q000187:drug effects*; D020080:Tandem Repeat Sequences / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology