Oxidative Stress and DNA Damages Induced by Occupational Exposure to Asbestos: A Systematic Review

Our plain-English summary of Oxidative Stress and DNA Damages Induced by Occupational Exposure to Asbestos: A Systematic Review, by M.S. Someah, F. Golbabaei, R. Arjomandi, et al (Iranian Journal of Public Health, 2023).

The study

• Authors: M.S. Someah, F. Golbabaei, R. Arjomandi, F.B. Semiromi, A. Mohammadi
• Journal: Iranian Journal of Public Health
• Published: 2023;52(8):1613-1625
• Type of article: Review
• Cited by: 5 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

Background: Asbestos is one of the most important environmental and occupational carcinogens. Nevertheless, the mechanisms by which asbestos fiber exposure causes chronic diseases are not fully understood. We performed the first systematic review on the epidemiological evidence to examine the association between occupational exposure to asbestos and oxidative stress and DNA damage.

Methods: In this systematic review study, the PubMed and Scopus databases were searched for English-language publications. Eleven cross-sectional studies were included in the systematic review. A literature search was conducted by the main keywords including "Asbestos", "crocidolite", "chrysotile", "amphibole", "amosite", "Oxidative Stress", "DNA Damage", and "DNA injury". To evaluate the quality of studies, the "Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale" (NOS) was used.

Results: Overall, 1235 articles were achieved by searching in databases. Finally, by considering the inclusion, and exclusion criteria, 11 articles were conducted for this study. These studies were published between 1986 and 2020. Oxidative stress and DNA damage can occur in exposure to asbestos. Among various biomarkers, 8-OHdG is the best. The analysis of 8-oxodG in asbestos workers can help identify subjects with a higher level of genotoxic damage.

Conclusion: This systematic review suggests that oxidative stress and DNA damage are two main outputs of asbestos exposure. Therefore, oxidative stress and DNA damage biomarkers can be used for identifying subjects at higher risk of cancer. These findings support policy initiatives aimed at detecting and eliminating asbestos fiber exposure and preventing potential health hazards in occupational settings.

Copyright © 2023 Seyed Someah et al. Published by Tehran University of Medical Sciences.

In plain English

This article was a systematic review of earlier studies. The authors searched PubMed and Scopus for English-language studies published between 1975 and 9 November 2021 on occupational asbestos exposure and markers of oxidative stress and DNA damage. Of 1235 records found, 11 studies were included. All were cross-sectional, published between 1986 and 2020, with 12 to 850 participants, mostly in Europe. The authors rated ten poor, one moderate and none high quality. Few studies specified the asbestos fiber type. The authors reported significant changes in oxidative stress and DNA damage markers in exposed workers, including the DNA marker 8-oxodG (also written 8-OHdG). However, a Japanese study found higher levels that were not statistically significant, and a 1986 Canadian study found no link with sister chromatid exchanges, a chromosome change. The authors concluded that oxidative stress and DNA damage can occur with asbestos exposure and that 8-OHdG is the best marker. They noted the studies were few and low quality, that meta-analysis, fiber-type comparison and dose-response analysis were not possible, and that other workplace carcinogens may have raised 8-oxodG levels.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Systematic review of published observational studies (PRISMA guidelines). All included studies were cross-sectional. Quality was rated with the Newcastle-Ottawa Quality Assessment Scale.
• Who was studied: 11 cross-sectional studies of occupationally exposed workers, published 1986 to 2020. They were found by searching PubMed and Scopus for English-language studies from 1975 to 9 Nov 2021. Sample sizes ranged from 12 to 850. Most studies were from Europe (Germany, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Italy); others were from Japan, Iran and Canada.
• Exposure: Occupational asbestos exposure in asbestos production, asbestos cement, pottery and ceramics, construction and residential building, and mechanical, petrochemical and marine jobs. Few included studies specified fiber type. The article says only two did, but it gives fiber information for three: crocidolite exposure, alone or with other types including chrysotile, in 18.2% of workers in the two German studies; and about 95% chrysotile and 5% crocidolite at the Czech plant. In most studies, exposure was estimated from duration (at least five years) using questionnaires and interviews.
• Main results:
  • Of the 11 included studies, the authors rated the majority (ten) poor quality and one (Cellai 2020) moderate quality. None was high quality.
  • Across the reviewed studies, the authors reported significant changes in biomarkers of oxidative stress and DNA damage in biological samples from asbestos-exposed workers.
  • 8-oxodG received the most attention among the biomarkers. The authors reported high levels in asbestos workers.
  • In the Japanese study of construction workers (Yoshida 2001), 8-oxodG and biopyrrin levels in the asbestos-exposed group were higher than in controls, but the difference was not statistically significant.
  • In the 1986 Canadian study (Kelsey), asbestos exposure was not associated with an increase in baseline sister chromatid exchanges or with increased susceptibility to benzo[a]pyrene-induced sister chromatid exchanges. The authors noted this study's low quality.
  • In the Slovak asbestos cement plant study (Dusinská 2004), oxidized pyrimidines were significantly higher in exposed men than in non-exposed men. Micronuclei frequency did not differ between groups, but exposed workers had significantly more chromosomal aberrations.
  • In the Italian study rated moderate quality (Cellai 2020), workers with 10 or more years of prior asbestos exposure had a significant 194% excess of 8-oxodG adducts.
  • In the Czech study (Pelclová 2008), the asbestos-exposed group had higher 8-isoprostane levels than controls.
  • In the Iranian asbestos cement study (Afaghi 2015), exposed workers had higher blood MDA and lower total thiol molecules than controls. There was no discernible difference in total antioxidant capacity.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that oxidative stress and DNA damage can occur with asbestos exposure and that 8-OHdG is the best biomarker. They added that measuring 8-oxodG in asbestos workers can help identify those with more genotoxic damage.
• Limitations the authors state:
  • Few studies met the inclusion criteria.
  • The quality of the included studies was relatively low.
  • No homogeneous studies were available for meta-analysis.
  • Different asbestos types could not be examined because of inadequate information.
  • Dose-response analysis was not possible, so the link between exposure level and biomarker amount was unclear.
  • Workers may have been exposed to other carcinogens (such as formaldehyde, silica dust or heavy metals) at the same time, which the authors said could explain high 8-oxodG levels.

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Oxidative Stress, Damages, Occupational Exposure, Systematic Review, Crocidolite, Chrysotile, Amphibole Group, Amosite.

Related studies

• Phagocytosis of crocidolite asbestos induces oxidative stress, DNA damage, and apoptosis in mesothelial cells — W. Liu, J.D. Ernst, et al. (2000)
• TNFalpha and MIP-2: role in particle-induced inflammation and regulation by oxidative stress — K.E. Driscoll (2000)
• Malignant mesothelioma as an oxidative stress-induced cancer: An update — S.H. Chew, S. Toyokuni (2015)
• Rapid and easy method for monitoring oxidative stress markers in body fluids of patients with asbestos or silica-induced lung diseases — K. Syslová, P. Kacer, et al. (2009)
• Potential role of ferritin heavy chain in oxidative stress and apoptosis in human mesothelial and mesothelioma cells: implications for asbestos-induced oncogenesis — W. Aung, S. Hasegawa, et al. (2007)
• Cytotoxicity, oxidative stress and genotoxicity induced by glass fibers on human alveolar epithelial cell line A549 — V. Rapisarda, C. Loreto, et al. (2015)

Browse return to medical research.