title: Evaluation of Genomic Damage in Peripheral Lymphocytes from Occupationally Exposed Anesthetists: Assessment of the Effects of Age, Sex, and GSTT1 Gene Polymorphism.
abstract: Occupational exposure to anaesthetic gases is one of the major hazards to healthcare personnel. We evaluated the cytogenetic effects of chronic exposure to low concentrations of anaesthetic gases in operating theatres. The study included 21 anesthetists and 21 control subjects who matched in age and gender. Chromosome aberrations (CAs) and sister chromatid exchanges (SCEs) assays were performed. All subjects were also genotyped for glutathione S-transferase T1 (GSTT1) gene polymorphisms. Significant differences were found between exposed and controls in terms of SCEs frequency (P = 0.001) and replication index value (P = 0.005), but not in terms of CAs (P = 0.201) and aberrant cells (P = 0.227) frequencies. Regression analyses indicated that age and the years of employment did not influence the level of chromosomal damage in both groups. Finally, among anesthetists, GSTT1 null individuals showed a significant higher frequency of SCE with respect to GSTT1-positive subjects.
authors: Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Torino, 10123, Italy. alfredo.santovito@unito.it.
authors: Alfredo
authors: A
authors: Santovito
authors: Piero
authors: P
authors: Cervella
authors: Massimiliano
authors: M
authors: Delpero
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D018685:Anesthetics, Inhalation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D002869:Chromosome Aberrations / Q000187:drug effects; D005260:Female; D015894:Genome, Human / Q000187:drug effects; D005982:Glutathione Transferase / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009719:Nurse Anesthetists; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D012854:Sister Chromatid Exchange / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D018685:Anesthetics, Inhalation; C413545:glutathione S-transferase T1; D005982:Glutathione Transferase
keywords: Anaesthetic Gases; CA; GSTT1; Occupational Exposure; SCE