Bio-monitoring of DNA damage in matchstick industry workers from Peshawar Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

ABSTRACT

Background: Safety protocols are usually neglected in most of the matchstick industries rendering the laborer prone to various occupational hazards.

Objective: The present study highlights DNA damage among matchstick factory workers (n = 92) against a control group (n = 48) of healthy individuals.

Methods: Genotoxicity was measured in peripheral blood lymphocytes of the test subjects using a Single Cell Gel Electrophoresis assay (SCGE/comet assay).

Results: Our results substantiate a high Total Comet Score (TCS) for factory workers (74.5 ± 47.0) when compared to the control group (53.0 ± 25.0) (P ≤ 0.001). Age and duration of occupational exposure had no significant effect (P > 0.05) on TCS value. As for job function, the TCS value was greatest in sweepers (91.0 ± 56.1) and lowest in box-making operators (26.0 ± 25.0) indicating that waste disposal poses the higher risk of DNA damage.

Conclusions: Our study corroborates that matchstick chemicals can potentially damage the DNA of exposed subjects.

KEYWORDS:

• Genotoxic effect
• DNA damage
• matchstick industry
• comet assay

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the participants for their contribution to this research, and the Physician at Hospital in Kharkhano Industrial estate Peshawar for their support in conducting this study. We also acknowledge Dr. Jawad Ahmad Director Khyber Medical University Peshawar for providing the facility of florescence microscope.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This research work was funded by the University of Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.