Associating Air Pollution with Cytokinesis-Block Micronucleus Assay Parameters in Lymphocytes of the General Population in Zagreb (Croatia).

Air pollution is recognized as one of the most serious public health issues worldwide and was declared to be a leading environmental cause of cancer deaths. At the same time, the cytokinesis-block micronucleus (CBMN) assay serves as a cancer predictive method that is extensively used in human biomonitoring for populations exposed to environmental contamination. The objective of this cross-sectional study is two-fold: to evaluate genomic instability in a sample (N = 130) of healthy, general population residents from Zagreb (Croatia), chronically exposed to different levels of air pollution, and to relate them to air pollution levels in the period from 2011 to 2015. Measured frequencies of CBMN assay parameters were in agreement with the baseline data for the general population of Croatia. Air pollution exposure was based on four factors obtained from a factor analysis of all exposure data obtained for the examined period. Based on the statistical results, we did not observe a significant positive association between any of the CBMN assay parameters tested and measured air pollution parameters for designated time windows, except for benzo(a)pyrene (B[a]P) that showed significant negative association. Our results show that measured air pollution parameters are largely below the regulatory limits, except for B[a]P, and as such, they do not affect CBMN assay parameters' frequency. Nevertheless, as air pollution is identified as a major health threat, it is necessary to conduct prospective studies investigating the effect of air pollution on genome integrity and human health

Air Pollution and Primary DNA Damage among Zagreb (Croatia) Residents: A Cross-Sectional Study.

More than eight million premature deaths annually can be attributed to air pollution, with 99% of the world's population residing in areas below recommended air quality standards. Hence, the present study aimed to examine the association between primary DNA damage and air pollution data among 123 participants enrolled between 2011 and 2015 in Zagreb, Croatia. While most measured air pollutants adhered to regulatory limits, benzo[a]pyrene concentrations bound to PM <sub>10</sub> exceeded them. Factorial analysis narrowed down air pollution data to four exposure factors (particulate matter, two metal factors, and other pollutants). Despite the absence of significant positive associations between modeled air pollution exposure factors and comet assay descriptors (tail length, tail intensity, tail moment, and highly damaged nuclei), the critical health implications of air pollution warrant further investigations, particularly with biomarkers of exposure and different biomarkers of effect in populations facing air pollution exposure

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Air

Policiklički aromatski ugljikovodici (PAU) spojevi su koji se sastoje od dva ili više kondenziranih aromatskih prstenova. Nastaju prilikom nepotpunog izgaranja ili pirolize organskih tvari. Dokazano je da neki PAU imaju kancerogena, a neki mutagena svojstva, pa je stoga potrebno kontinuirano pratiti koncentracije PAU u zraku, vodi i tlu, te pokušati sanirati izvore PAU. PAU s dva ili tri aromatska prstena postojani su u plinovitoj fazi, dok se PAU s više aromatskih prstenova nalaze u zraku uglavnom vezani na čestice. Visoke koncentracije PAU prisutne su u atmosferi urbanih područja, a najviše su zimi kada su pojačane emisije iz kućnih ložišta. U ljetno doba koncentracije su niže jer je većina policikličkih aromatskih ugljikovodika nestabilna na visokim temperaturama, a osim toga dolazi do njihove oksidacije i fotooksidacije. Metode mjerenja PAU u zraku uključuju uzorkovanje prosisavanjem na filterski papir ili kruti adsorbens, ekstrakciju i kromatografsku analizu. U ovom radu prikazani su rezultati mjerenja benzo[a]pirena (BaP) kao glavnog predstavnika PAU na nekim lokacijama u svijetu. Razine BaP u svijetu uspoređene su s rezultatima mjerenja provedenim do sada u Hrvatskoj.Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a large group of organic compounds consisting of two or more condense aromatic rings. They are products of incomplete combustion or pyrolysis of organic matter. Because some PAHs such as Benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) are proven carcinogens and mutagens, it is necessary to continuously monitor their concentrations in the air, water, and soil. PAHs with two or three aromatic rings are stable in the gas phase, while most PAHs with five or more aromatic rings bond to particles. Higher concentrations of PAHs are present in the atmosphere of urban areas, mostly in the winter, due to heating. In the summer, these concentrations drop because most PAHs are unstable at high temperatures and break down by oxidation and photooxidation. Measurements of PAHs in the air include sampling on the filter paper or solid adsorbent, extraction, and chromatographic analysis. This review presents the measurements of BaP in some locations in the world and compares them with the findings in Croatia

Altered Levels of Sphingosine, Sphinganine and Their Ceramides in Atopic Dermatitis Are Related to Skin Barrier Function, Disease Severity and Local Cytokine Milieu

Dysfunctional skin barrier plays a key role in the pathophysiology of atopic dermatitis (AD), a common inflammatory skin disease. Altered composition of ceramides is regarded as a major cause of skin barrier dysfunction, however it is not clear whether these changes are intrinsic or initiated by inflammation and aberrant immune response in AD. This study investigated the levels of free sphingoid bases (SBs) sphingosine and sphinganine and their ceramides and glucosylceramide in the stratum corneum (SC) and related them to skin barrier function, disease severity and local cytokine milieu. Ceramides were measured in healthy skin, and lesional and non-lesional skin of AD patients by a novel method based on deacylation of ceramides which were subsequently determined as corresponding sphingoid bases by using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS). The cytokine levels were determined by multiplex immunoassay. Atopic skin showed increased levels of most investigated markers, predominantly in lesional skin. The largest difference in respect to healthy skin was found for glucosylceramide with respective median values of 0.23 (IQR 0.18–0.61), 0.56 (IQR 0.32–0.76) and 19.32 (IQR 7.86–27.62) pmol/g protein for healthy, non-lesional and lesional skin. The levels of investigated ceramide markers were correlated with disease severity (scoring atopic dermatitis, SCORAD) and skin barrier function (trans-epidermal water loss, TEWL) and furthermore with cytokines involved in innate, Th-1, and Th-2 immune response. Interestingly, the strongest association with SCORAD was found for sphinganine/sphingosine ratio (r = −0.69, p < 0.001; non-lesional skin), emphasizing the importance of SBs in AD. The highest correlation with TEWL was found for glucosylceramide (r2 = 0.60, p < 0.001), which was investigated for the first time in AD. Findings that the changes in SBs and ceramide levels were predominant in lesional skin and their association with disease severity and cytokine levels suggest an immune-system driven effect. a novel analysis method demonstrates a robust and simple approach that might facilitate wider use of lipid biomarkers in the clinics e.g., to monitor (immune) therapy or dissect disease endotypes