Dirty air takes 3 days to mutate

Breathing polluted air for a short time can cause some genes to change. This effect increases the risk of cancer and many other diseases according to newly published Italian scientists.

Applied biotechnology experts of the University of Milan (Italy) collected blood samples from 63 workers working in the dusty environment of a steel mill near Milan. Sampling was done before workers entered the factory and was repeated for several days later.

After analyzing DNA in blood samples, the scientists found that the four genes of the study participants changed. It is worth noting that some new workers have been in the factory for 3 days, but it is inevitable that the same effect as those who have worked for many years. The findings suggest that harmful factors in the environment take very little time to cause "reprogramming" in genes - one of the causes of increased risk.

Dr. Andrea Baccarelli of the University of Milan, said that the same impact also occurs in people living in cities with polluted atmosphere. But because the concentration of micro particles in urban air is dozens of times lower than that of a steel mill, genetic changes take place for months or years.

Micro particles in the atmosphere include metal molecules, dust and soot. They can get deep into the lungs. Exposure to microscopic particles can cause respiratory diseases, heart-related diseases and lung cancer. Until now, scientists only knew very little about the pathogenesis of micro particles.

According to Baccarelli, genes in the human body are organized into different groups in a process called 'methylation'. When microscopic particles enter the body, they inhibit gene sequencing, which reduces the number of gene groups. Because genes produce proteins, the amount of protein (important for DNA and the body) also decreases. Scientists found gene group decline in patients with lung cancer.