Claudia Bolognesi1, Lucia Migliore2, Florigio Lista3, Sergio Caroli4, Marina Patriarca4, Roberta De Angelis5, Riccardo Capocaccia5, Sergio Amadori6, Alessandra Pulliero7, Cristina Balia7, Renato Colognato2, Vincenzo La Gioia8, Stefano Bonassi9, Alberto Izzotti10. 1. IRCCS AUO San Martino-IST Istituto Nazionale Ricerca sul Cancro, Genoa, Italy. Electronic address: claudia.bolognesi@hsanmartino.it. 2. Department of Translational Research and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy. 3. Army Medical and Veterinary Research Center, Rome, Italy. 4. Department of Food Safety and Veterinary Public Health, Italian National Institute of Health (ISS), Rome, Italy. 5. National Centre for Epidemiology, Surveillance and Health Promotion (CNESPS), Italian National Institute of Health (ISS), Rome, Italy. 6. Tor Vergata University Hospital, Roma, Italy. 7. IRCCS AUO San Martino-IST Istituto Nazionale Ricerca sul Cancro, Genoa, Italy. 8. Ministry of Defence, General Staff, Rome, Italy. 9. Unit of Clinical and Molecular Epidemiology, IRCCS San Raffaele Pisana, Rome, Italy. 10. IRCCS AUO San Martino-IST Istituto Nazionale Ricerca sul Cancro, Genoa, Italy; Department of Health Sciences, University of Genoa, Genova, Italy.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Leukemia/lymphoma cases reported in 2001 among United Nation soldiers or peacekeepers deployed to the Balkans aroused alert on the exposure to depleted uranium. Recent epidemiological studies carried out in different European countries among peacekeepers who served in the Balkans failed to demonstrate a higher than expected risk of all cancers but, mostly due to their limitations in size and follow up time, leave open the debate on health risk of depleted uranium. The aim of SIGNUM (Study of the Genotoxic Impact in Military Units) was to identify potential genotoxic risk associated with the exposure to depleted uranium or other pollutants in the Italian Army military personnel deployed in Iraq. METHODS: Blood and urine samples were collected before and after the deployment from 981 Italian soldiers operating in Iraq in 2004-2005. As, Cd, Mo, Ni, Pb, U, V, W, and Zr were determined in urine and serum. DNA-adducts, 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanine and micronuclei frequency were evaluated in blood lymphocytes. Three different genetic polymorphisms, GSTM1, XRCC1, OGG1 were analyzed. RESULTS: Significant T0-T1 reduction in the total concentration of uranium, increases for Cd, Mo, Ni, Zr, and decreases for As, Pb, W, and V in urine and plasma were observed. Increases in oxidative alterations and in micronuclei frequency, included in the range of values of non-occupationally exposed populations, were observed at the end of the period of employment. CONCLUSIONS: Our results did not detect any toxicologically relevant variation of DNA-damage biomarkers related to the deployment in the operational theater.
BACKGROUND:Leukemia/lymphoma cases reported in 2001 among United Nation soldiers or peacekeepers deployed to the Balkans aroused alert on the exposure to depleted uranium. Recent epidemiological studies carried out in different European countries among peacekeepers who served in the Balkans failed to demonstrate a higher than expected risk of all cancers but, mostly due to their limitations in size and follow up time, leave open the debate on health risk of depleted uranium. The aim of SIGNUM (Study of the Genotoxic Impact in Military Units) was to identify potential genotoxic risk associated with the exposure to depleted uranium or other pollutants in the Italian Army military personnel deployed in Iraq. METHODS: Blood and urine samples were collected before and after the deployment from 981 Italian soldiers operating in Iraq in 2004-2005. As, Cd, Mo, Ni, Pb, U, V, W, and Zr were determined in urine and serum. DNA-adducts, 8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanine and micronuclei frequency were evaluated in blood lymphocytes. Three different genetic polymorphisms, GSTM1, XRCC1, OGG1 were analyzed. RESULTS: Significant T0-T1 reduction in the total concentration of uranium, increases for Cd, Mo, Ni, Zr, and decreases for As, Pb, W, and V in urine and plasma were observed. Increases in oxidative alterations and in micronuclei frequency, included in the range of values of non-occupationally exposed populations, were observed at the end of the period of employment. CONCLUSIONS: Our results did not detect any toxicologically relevant variation of DNA-damage biomarkers related to the deployment in the operational theater.
Authors: Marta Geretto; Marco Ferrari; Roberta De Angelis; Filippo Crociata; Nicola Sebastiani; Alessandra Pulliero; William Au; Alberto Izzotti Journal: Int J Environ Res Public Health Date: 2021-05-18 Impact factor: 3.390