Biomarkers of exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and DNA damage: a cross-sectional pilot study among roofers in South Florida

Abstract

ObjectiveThe main goal of this pilot study was to assess the technical and logistic feasibility of a future study. The research hypothesis is that occupational exposures to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are associated with increased risk of DNA damage among roofers who work with hot asphalt.DesignThis is a cross-sectional pilot study.SettingThe study included roofers from four different construction sites in Miami-Dade County, Florida.Participants19 roofers were recruited (six Hispanics and 13 African–Americans, all male), all of whom were eligible (no history of cancer and no history of chronic diseases of kidneys or liver). All participants provided pre-shift samples and 18 provided post-shift samples. Samples of one participant were excluded from the final analyses as they were considered unreliable.ResultsLevels of urinary PAH metabolites increased during 6 h of work. Linear regression models of post-shift metabolites included their pre-shift levels, post-shift urinary creatinine levels (for models of 1-OHPyr and 9-OHPhe), and skin burn due to contact with hot asphalt (for models of 1-OHPyr and 1-OHNap). Pre-shift levels of urinary 8-OHdG were not associated with any of the variables considered. For post-shift levels of 8-OHdG, however, post-shift 1-OHPyr (95% CI 0.091 to 0.788) and use of protective gloves (95% CI −1.57 to −0.61) during work explained 86.8% of its variation. Overall, highest levels of urinary PAH metabolites and of 8-OHdG were observed among workers who reported having skin burn and who did not use gloves during work.ConclusionsUrinary 1-OHPyr is a promising predictor of oxidative DNA damage among roofers. Work-related skin burn and use of protective gloves appear to influence PAH exposure and DNA damage levels in this group, suggesting the importance of dermal absorption.

A review of the current state of the art of physiologically-based tests for measuring human dermal in vitro bioavailability of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) in soil

“…Although these occupational studies show that exposure to PAH results in increased PAH in the systemic circulation of workers and that covering vulnerable skin areas with protective clothing reduces exposure (Serdar et al, 2012) they do not give a quantitative or even semi-quantitative breakdown of how much of the internal dose comes from dermal absorption. Whilst this is very important information which clearly identifies the need for measuring how much PAH from a soil sample ends up in the human body from the dermal absorption route, the actual scientific methods are not very helpful in designing a testing methodology which makes that measurement.…”

“…Occupational exposure to materials containing high concentrations of PAH has been described in a number of publications (Tsai, et al, 2001;Vaananen et al, 2005;Christopher et al, 2011;Kriech et al, 2011;Osborn et al, 2011b;Smith et al, 2011;McClean et al, 2012;Serdar et al, 2012;Fent et al, 2014;Kamal et al, 2014). Skin exposure is commonly measured using a wipe soaked in corn oil (Moody and Maibach, 2006) followed by extraction and quantification of the PAH content (Vaananen et al, 2005;Christopher et al, 2011;Osborn et al, 2011b;Cavallari et al, 2012;McClean et al, 2012;Fent et al, 2014).…”

“…Metabolites of hydroxylated PAH (pyrene, phenanthrene, naphthalene and fluorene) have been analysed by Turkall et al (1994); Elovaara et al, (2006);McClean et al,, (2012); Serdar et al, (2012);and, Choosong et al, 2014). Pliel et al (2000) quantified exposure of marker compounds (e.g.…”

Assessing cancer hazards of bitumen emissions – a case study for complex petroleum substances

“…However, exposure measurements did not show an association with biomarkers or measures of DNA damage. The authors noted that urinary 8-OHdG is highly affected by urine dilution and roofing workers are subject to bitumen skin burns (as reported by Serdar et al 2012) and excessive heat and can dehydrate during a single workday. In addition to low levels of bitumen emissions, the authors cited that subjects were exposed to a widespread range of PACs, diesel exhausts, UV, heat and other potential confounding contaminants in the environment.…”

Comparison of Urinary PAHs among Firefighters and Asphalt Pavers

“…It contains a mixture of polycyclic aromatic compounds which lead asphalt pavers to be exposed to PAHs. PAH metabolites are accepted biomarkers for monitoring exposure to asphalt emissions [19] [20] and urinary 1-OH-Pyrene has proven to be a favorable predictor of oxidative DNA damage, specifically in asphalt exposed workers [21]. Urinary PAHs in asphalt pavers is associated with both inhalation and dermal exposure [22], with dermal exposure being the primary route [23] [24].…”