Evaluation of exposure to environmental and occupational carcinogens in construction workers

Abstract

The civil construction sector has a large representation in the Brazilian economy and social importance, considering that only in the state of São Paulo, the number of active companies in 2009 was 10,543, with 606,060 people employed. The workers, such as construction workers, have long working hours and are exposed to various environmental and occupational factors that may lead to the development of diseases such as cancer. It is estimated that 2% to 8% of cancers worldwide are a result of occupational exposure to carcinogenic substances, and the most common is lung cancer, which is responsible for 70% of cases. The exposure of workers to materials containing asbestos, silicon and metals, and exposure to solar radiation, are factors that can affect the stability of the human genome, causing breaks in DNA, which can cause major gene alterations in the normal functioning cycle and survival cell. Therefore, this project aims to assess the genotoxic damage and potential risk of cancer in exposed workers. For this, will be determined the frequencies of micronuclei in blood lymphocytes and buccal mucosa cells of construction workers and compared to a control group. Also will be dosed metals blood test groups (construction workers) and control by methodology of inductively coupled plasma source mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Also, will be used genetic and epigenetic biomarkers and analysis technologies in large scale in order to better elucidate the molecular mechanisms that govern normal functioning of cell and the impact of exposure to environmental carcinogens. Courses and lectures will contribute to the prevention of cancer in the community participant. (AU)