CYTOGENETIC ANALYSIS OF PERIPHERAL LYMPHOCYTES IN MEDICAL PERSONNEL BY MEANS OF FISH

Genotoxic effects of occupational exposure to cytostatics were investi gated in 20 nurses and physicians working in various departments of on e hospital. The group was divided into two equal subgroups one of whic h was involved in the administration of cytostatics (exposed subgroup) and the other was not (unexposed subgroup). The whole group and the t wo subgroups were compared with a control group of 11 healthy blood do nors. Two differently labeled whole chromosome painting (WCP) probes s pecific for the chromosomes 1 and 4 were used simultaneously. Chromoso me aberrations were classified in terms of the Protocol for Aberration Identification and Nomenclature (PAINT) nomenclature, The results obt ained by the painting method were: compared with findings of conventio nal unbanded chromosome analysis. Significant differences in the numbe rs of translocations (F-G/100 = 2.25+/-1.50 vs. 0.66+/-0.21, p<0.01) a nd unstable chromosome aberrations determined by the conventional meth od (AB.C/100 = 2.70+/-2.31 vs. 1.63+/-1.59, p<0.05) were found between the exposed subgroup and controls. The unexposed subgroup differed fr om the controls only in the number of translocations (F-G/100 = 2.93+/ -2.79 vs. 0.66+/-0.51, p<0.05). No significant differences in the numb er of stable and unstable aberrations were found between the exposed a nd the unexposed subgroups, On the other hand, highly significant diff erences (p<0.01) were demonstrated by the two methods between the whol e group tall medical personnel) and the controls, All differences whic h were found to be significant when translocations were compared were also found to be significant when total stable chromosome exchanges, i .e., the sum of translocations and insertions, were considered. Multic olour chromosome painting is apparently a more sensitive method than t he conventional metaphase-based analysis. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B. V.