[Studies on DNA damage in workers with long-term exposure to lower concentration of carbon disulfide].

OBJECTIVE

DNA damage in human buccal cells of workers occupationally long-term exposed to carbon disulfide (CS(2)) was monitored with comet assay.

METHODS

Ninety workers exposed to CS(2) were randomly selected as exposure group from a large-scale chemical fiber manufacturer in Hubei and 81 workers not exposed to CS(2) as control group. DNA damage in their buccal cells was detected with comet assay.

RESULTS

Rate of DNA tail was 0.51% in exposure group, significantly higher than that in control group (0.23%), with very statistical significance. Rate of DNA tail was 0.50% in male exposure group and 0.56% in exposure group with short length of employment, significantly higher than that in control group (0.08% and 0.25%, respectively). Multivariate unconditional logistic regression analysis showed that possibility of DNA damage was significantly higher in exposure group than that in control group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

Long-term exposure to lower concentration of carbon disulfide could cause certain damage to human buccal cell DNA.