Hemoglobin adducts of aromatic amines: associations with smoking status and type of tobacco.

Hemoglobin adducts of 15 aromatic amines were determined in nonsmokers and smokers of blond- or black-tobacco cigarettes living in Turin, Italy. The subjects were all males age 55 or less and were representative of the population previously examined in a case/control study of bladder cancer. 4-Aminobiphenyl adduct levels were found to be significantly different in the three groups, and the differences were approximately proportional to the relative risk of each group. Adjustment for age and cigarette consumption did not materially influence the differences. A significant correlation of adduct levels with cigarette consumption was also observed for all smokers as well as for smokers of blond tobacco. Other amines for which significant differences between smokers and nonsmokers were observed were 3-aminobiphenyl, 2-naphthylamine, o- and p-toluidine, 2,4-dimethylaniline, and 2-ethylaniline. Some of these amines are human bladder carcinogens, and their occurrence in blood as hemoglobin adducts is evidence for their metabolic activation. Thus, by a combination of traditional epidemiological methods and modern chemical analyses, we have provided evidence for a biochemical basis for the often observed association between cigarette smoking and bladder cancer.