Biomonitoring of possible human exposure to environmental genotoxic chemicals: Lessons from a study following the wreck of the oil tanker Braer
✍ Scribed by Jane Cole; David M. Beare; Alastair P.W. Waugh; Emily Capulas; Kay E. Aldridge; Colin F. Arlett; Michael H.L. Green; Jacqueline E. Crum; Derek Cox; R. Colin Garner; Karen H. Dingley; Elizabeth A. Martin; Karen Podmore; Robert Heydon; Peter B. Farmer
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 1997
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 247 KB
- Volume
- 30
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0893-6692
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
In January 1993 the oil tanker Braer ran aground be coded, (ii) clearly defined and proven protocols in the Shetland Islands, Scotland. Approximately should be used, (iii) irreplaceable samples should 80,000 tons of crude oil were released. Exception-not be used for method development, (iv) should a ally high winds caused extensive pollution and ex-problem become apparent during the study, work posure of the local population to crude oil. We de-on such samples should cease immediately until the scribe the study which was immediately set in place problem is solved, (v) all critical experimental comto examine the exposed population for evidence of ponents should be pretested against a laboratory genotoxic exposure. Blood samples were taken and standard. (4) The study design should include repliprimary DNA damage was measured in the mono-cate experiments to monitor experimental variability nuclear cell fraction by the butanol modification of and reproducibility, as well as internal standards the 32 P-postlabelling method. Mutation was mea-and cryopreserved ''in house'' samples. Care must sured at the hprt locus in T lymphocytes. No evi-be taken that samples from any one exposure group dence of genotoxicity was obtained for either end are spread between a number of independent expoint, but nevertheless, we believe that useful les-periments and that each experiment includes samsons were learnt, which should be incorporated into ples from a number of exposure groups. (5) A comthe design of future studies: (1) A rapid response is puterised data base should be maintained with full essential, and even if sufficient funds are not imme-details of experimental variables, donor attributes, diately available, it is still worth attempting to obtain and raw data so that any contribution of experimensamples quickly and use cryopreservation, also to tal artefacts to ''outlier'' results can be monitored. attempt to estimate exposure. (2) Adequate num-( 6) Because of the nature of the statistical variation bers of volunteers must be sought, together with for many environmental genotoxicity end points, enough controls, not just to allow meaningful analy-only a large-scale study is likely to be capable of sis but to overcome loss of samples and failure of yielding useful information. Environ. Mol. Mutagen. things to go according to plan. (3) Points concern-30: 97-111, 1997.