Chromosome breakage and cellular death are induced in oral epithelial cells of hairdressers: a preliminary study

Micronuclei and other nuclear anomalies in exfoliated urothelial cells and urinary 8-hydroxy-deoxyguanosine levels among Turkish hairdressers

Hairdressers are constantly occupationally exposed to many chemicals have the potential to cause allergies and carcinogenic effects, act as skin and eye irritants and induce oxidative stress and DNA damage. This study aimed to evaluate occupation-induced genotoxicity based on the presence of micronucleus (MN) and other nuclear anomalies in urothelial cells and measure oxidative DNA damage based on the 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine level in the urine of Turkish hairdressers. Originality of this study comes from that there was no study on MN and other nuclear anomalies frequencies and oxidative DNA damage in urine samples of hairdressers in the literature. The mean±standard deviation frequency (‰) of micronucleated (MNed) cells was higher in the hairdresser group (n=56) (4.81±7.87, p<0.001) than in the control group (n=56) (0.93±1.85). Nuclear buds were not observed in either group. While the frequency of basal cells was higher in the control group (446.6±106.21) than in the hairdresser group (367.78±101.51, p<0.001), the frequency of binuclear, karyolytic, pycnotic and karyorrhectic cells were higher in the hairdresser group (0.41±0.80, p<0.001; 438.02±118.27, p<0.001; 0.43±0.76, p<0.001; and 47.27±28.40, p<0.001) than in the control group (0.04±0.27, 358.57±95.71, 0.05±0.23 and 24.41±14.50). Condensed chromatins were observed only in the hairdresser group. Specific gravity adjusted 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine level was statistically lower in the hairdresser group (908.21±403.25 ng/mL-SG) compared to the control group (1003.09±327.09 ng/mL-SG) (p=0.024). No significant correlation was found between the 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine level and the frequency MN. The amount of formaldehyde released during Brazilian keratin treatment was higher than the American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists -Threshold Limit Value (ACGIH-TLV; 0.1 ppm). Similarly, the amount of ethyl acetate released in three salons was above the recommended limit (400 ppm). These findings suggest that hairdressers have an increased risk of genotoxicity and cytotoxicity owing to occupational exposure, regardless of age, working hours, smoking and alcohol consumption.

Do hairdressers comprise a high risk group for genotoxicity? A systematic review

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Nowadays, hair dye products are widely used for aesthetic purposes, in which it generates chemical exposure to customers and, mainly, hairdressers. The aim of this systematic review was designed to elucidate the following question: are hair dye products able to induce DNA damage in hairdressers?

METHODS

Studies were included in our analyses if they met the following criteria: (1) studies measuring genetic damage in vivo; (2) studies published in English; (3) studies that provided data clearly presented in scientific standards.

RESULTS

Full manuscripts from 13 studies were carefully selected in this setting. Our results demonstrate that hair dye products may contain chemical agents able to induce DNA strand breaks or chromosome damage since the majority of studies demonstrated positive findings for genotoxicity. A total of 7 studies (out of 13) had strong or moderate rates in the quality assessment. The type of genotoxicity assay and sample selection criteria time influenced the outcome.

CONCLUSION

In summary, our results reveal that hairdressers are occupationally exposed to genotoxic agents. Such findings are very important for protecting these professionals who are continuously exposed to chemicals for long periods.

Cytogenetic Biomonitoring in Buccal Mucosa Cells from Seaport Dockers

BACKGROUND/AIM

Dockers of seaport working as stevedores are self-employed workers who carry out arduous and dangerous activities. To date, few studies have investigated the human health risks in these professionals. The aim of this study was to evaluate cytogenetic damage in oral cells of dockers of seaports working as stevedores by micronucleus assay in buccal cells.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

For this study, a total of 26 seaport dockers working as stevedores aged 51.2±8.4 years (all men) were included in this study. All volunteers had worked for at least 3 years. The control group consisted of 25 participants aged 55.2±9.9 years (all men), who did not work in the Port of Santos city.

RESULTS

The results showed statistically significant differences (p<0.05) of micronucleated cells in buccal mucosa cells of seaport dockers. Pyknosis, karyolysis and karrhyorexis did not show statistically significant differences (p>0.05) between groups.

CONCLUSION

The results of the present study suggest that seaport dockers present mutagenicity in oral cells.

Results of buccal micronucleus cytome assay in pesticide-exposed and non-exposed group

Since many different pesticides have been used occupationally, there have been inconsistent results regarding DNA damages among greenhouse workers. Thus, the aim of the study is to evaluate DNA damages, cell death, and chromosomal instability by using the buccal micronucleus cytome (BMcyt) assay in greenhouse workers and to compare those with a non-exposed group. The BMcyt assay was applied to the exfoliated buccal cell samples collected from 66 pesticide-exposed and 50 non-exposed individuals. We evaluated the frequency of micronucleus (MN), nuclear bud (NBUD), binucleated (BN) cells, and karyolitic (KL), pyknotic (PY), and karyorrhectic (KH) cells. The results showed that the MN, BN, PY, and KH frequencies of the pesticide-exposed group were significantly higher than those of the controls (P ˂ 0.05, P ˂ 0.05, P ˂ 0.01, and P ˂ 0.05, respectively). We observed that the MN, BN, PY, and KH frequencies in the autumn were statistically different compared with those in the control group (P = 0.037 for MN, P = 0.001 for BN, P = 0.016 for PY, and P = 0.033 for KH). The same comparison was done in the spring for the control, and there was a statistically significant difference for MN (P = 0.046) and PY (P = 0.014). We can conclude that pesticide exposure in greenhouse workers was one of the factors that altered DNA damages, cell death, and chromosomal instability in oral mucosa cells.

Buccal micronucleus assay in human populations from Sicily (Italy) exposed to petrochemical industry pollutants

Petroleum refinery workers are potentially exposed to a wide range of petrochemical industry pollutants (PIP), such as benzene and 1,3-butadiene, cancer-related compounds classified as carcinogenic to humans. The aim of this study was to evaluate the cytogenetic effects of exposure to PIP from two industrialised areas in South/East Sicily (Italy) using a micronucleus (MN) assay and other nuclear anomalies (ONA) on exfoliated buccal cells. Results highlighted not only a statistically significant high level of increase of MN in petroleum refinery (PR) workers, but also in the subjects not working in PR but living in the industrialised area. The ONA analysis showed a highly significant increase in karyolytic cells in exposed vs unexposed subjects, in contrast to a decrease in differentiated cells. These results suggest the presence of a cytotoxic effect in the oral mucosa cells, probably related to the pollutant compounds present in the environment close to the petrochemical industries. Our data confirm that the analysis of exfoliated buccal cells is a useful and simple non-invasive method to evaluate the genotoxic/cytotoxic effects of pollutants in a specific area. To avoid confounding factors due to the different lifestyles of the human subjects, the above assays could be better applied on farm animals, which have a relatively consistent lifestyle and, in some cases, a very low genetic heterogeneity.

Micronucleus Assay of Buccal Mucosal Cells in Hairdressers: The Importance of Occupational Exposure

Background and objective: Today, the chemical materials available in hair dyes are considered risk factors for many cancers, particularly oral cancer. This study was performed to study the effect of occupational exposure on micronucleus (MN) frequency of buccal mucosa cells in hairdressers. Materials and methods: This historical cohort study was performed on 28 hairdressers and 28 control samples. To eliminate the gender variable, all the samples were women and they were matched by age. Buccal mucosa cells were removed using a wet spatula and after fixation, Papanicolaou staining method was applied. The percentage of the cells containing MN was registered. T-test was used to compare the results between the two groups. Results: The mean percentages of MN in buccal mucosa cells of hairdresser’s and control sample were 16.61±4.95 and 8.84±4.74, respectively, with a significant difference (P<0.001). In addition, higher MN mean percentage was reported in subjects working more than 60 hours weekly compared with those working 60 hours and less; however, the difference was not statistically significant (P=0.14). Conclusion: In the present study, hairdressers demonstrate significantly higher average of MN in buccal mucosa cells. Also, it seems increment in their working time can increase MN frequency in these studied samples.