Detection of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon-DNA adducts in white blood cells from coke oven workers: correlation with job categories.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH)-DNA adducts were quantitatively determined by ultrasensitive radioimmunoassay (USERIA) and 32P postlabeling in 128 DNA samples from WBCs of 68 coke oven workers and a local control group of 13 workers. Forty-four samples had a detectable adduct level by USERIA, with a mean of 0.390 fmol adducts/micrograms DNA (12.9 adducts/10(8) nucleotides) in the exposed group compared to a mean of 0.316 fmol adducts/micrograms DNA (10.4 adducts/10(8) nucleotides) in the control group. The mean adduct level with 32P postlabeling was 0.05 fmol/micrograms DNA (1.67 adducts/10(8) nucleotides) for the exposed group and 0.046 fmol/microgram DNA (1.54 adducts/10(8) nucleotides for the control group. Based on job description the workers were divided in 4 groups: control, low-, medium-, and high-exposure group. Both methods produced a positive correlation coefficient between estimated exposure and PAH-DNA adduct levels. The significance levels determined with Kendall rank correlation were P = 0.0145 for USERIA and P = 0.0594 for 32P postlabeling. Adduct levels determined by 32P postlabeling showed a correlation with tobacco smoking in the control group. No significant correlation between PAH-DNA adduct levels measured by USERIA and 32P postlabeling was found. These results show that these methods recognize different parts of the complex exposures in a coke oven plant.