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| Tuesday, 22 March 2005 10:10 | | BNN: British Nursing News Online · www.bnn-online.co.uk
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Scientists at Taiwan's National Defence Medical Centre claim that exposure to traffic fumes could damage human DNA.
The researchers, writing in the journal Occupational and Environmental Health, studied a small group of female motorway toll booth operators who worked 10 km south of Taipei, Taiwan, the country's busiest toll station.
They measured the amount of the chemical 1-OHPG in the urine of 47 toll booth workers and 27 female officer workers. They also measured levels of 8-OHdG - an indicator of DNA damage caused by oxygen free radical activity in the body. They also took blood samples to measure the levels of circulating nitric oxide, which indicates harmful oxidation linked with traffic fumes.
The operators worked in eight hour shifts, for four consecutive days, before taking a day off. During their shift, they took breaks of between 30 and 45 minutes every couple of hours. They regularly changed lane booth, working a rotation system.
Smoking also increases the amount of urinary 8-OHdG, and there were more smokers among the office workers.
But levels of urinary 8-OHdG were an average of 90% higher among the non-smoking toll booth operators than they were among the office workers. Levels of nitric oxide were an average of 30% higher.
The levels of 1-OHPG were strongly linked to the levels of 8-OHdG. The higher the 1-OHPG, the higher was the 8-OHdG. And this held true even after adjusting for smoking or mode of transport to work.
The authors conclude that traffic fumes boost oxygen free radical activity and therefore DNA damage, and that environmental levels should be curbed to protect people's health.
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