Laboratório de Toxicologia (LATOX), Departamento de Análises, Faculdade de Farmácia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil; Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Farmacêuticas, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil.
Unidade Regional de Saúde do Trabalhador, Ametista do Sul, RS, Brazil.
Clin Chim Acta. 2018 Sep;484:305-313. doi: 10.1016/j.cca.2018.05.045. Epub 2018 Jun 1.
Workers involved in mining activities are exposed to crystalline silica, which leads to constant pulmonary inflammatory reactions and severe oxidative damage, resulting in silicosis. In this work, we aimed to evaluate inflammatory and oxidative stress parameters as potential early biomarkers of effect to assess crystalline silica toxicity in workers who had occupational exposure during mining. We enrolled 38 workers exposed to crystalline silica (WECS), 24 individuals with silicosis (IWS), and 30 occupationally unexposed workers (OUW), a total of 92 participants. The WECS were divided into 2 groups, according to the time of exposure: 19 workers with 1-15 years of occupational exposure (WECS I) and 19 workers with >16 years of occupational exposure (WECS II). The inflammatory parameters assessed were L-selectin, β-2 integrin, and intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) surface protein expression in lymphocytes and monocytes, complement C3 and C4, high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), and adenosine deaminase (ADA) in serum. Plasma levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) and serum levels of vitamin C were determined as biomarkers of oxidative stress. Biochemical and hematological parameters were also investigated. L-selectin surface protein expression was significantly decreased in the WECS II group (p < 0.05), indicating the importance of this immune system component as a potential marker of crystalline-silica-induced toxicity. The MDA levels were significantly increased in the WECS I, WECS II, and IWS groups compared to the OUW group (p < 0.05). Vitamin C levels were decreased, while C3, hsCRP, ADA, and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels were increased in the IWS group compared to the OUW group (p < 0.05). Glucose and urea levels were significantly higher in the WECS I, II, and IWS groups compared to the OUW group (p < 0.05). Negative partial association was found between L-selectin and time of exposure (p < 0.001), supporting the relevance of this biomarker evaluation in long-term exposure to crystalline silica. Significant associations were also observed among inflammatory and oxidative stress biomarkers. Therefore, our results demonstrated the relevance of L-selectin as a potential peripheral biomarker for monitoring crystalline silica-induced toxicity in miners after chronic exposure, before silicosis has developed. However, more studies are necessary for better understanding of the use L-selectin as an early biomarker in exposed workers.
参与采矿活动的工人会接触到结晶二氧化硅，这会导致持续的肺部炎症反应和严重的氧化损伤，从而导致矽肺。在这项工作中，我们旨在评估炎症和氧化应激参数作为潜在的早期效应生物标志物，以评估接触结晶二氧化硅的矿工的毒性。我们招募了 38 名接触结晶二氧化硅的工人（WECS）、24 名矽肺患者（IWS）和 30 名未接触职业的工人（OUW），共有 92 名参与者。根据暴露时间，WECS 分为两组：19 名接触 1-15 年的工人（WECS I）和 19 名接触>16 年的工人（WECS II）。评估的炎症参数包括淋巴细胞和单核细胞表面蛋白表达的 L-选择素、β-2 整合素和细胞间黏附分子-1（ICAM-1）、补体 C3 和 C4、高敏 C 反应蛋白（hsCRP）和血清中的腺苷脱氨酶（ADA）。血浆丙二醛（MDA）和血清维生素 C 水平作为氧化应激的生物标志物进行测定。还研究了生化和血液学参数。WECS II 组的 L-选择素表面蛋白表达显著降低（p<0.05），表明该免疫系统成分作为结晶硅诱导毒性的潜在标志物的重要性。与 OUW 组相比，WECS I、WECS II 和 IWS 组的 MDA 水平显著升高（p<0.05）。与 OUW 组相比，IWS 组的维生素 C 水平降低，而 C3、hsCRP、ADA 和天冬氨酸氨基转移酶（AST）水平升高（p<0.05）。与 OUW 组相比，WECS I、II 和 IWS 组的血糖和尿素水平显著升高（p<0.05）。L-选择素与暴露时间呈负相关（p<0.001），这支持了在长期接触结晶二氧化硅时评估这种生物标志物的相关性。炎症和氧化应激生物标志物之间也存在显著相关性。因此，我们的研究结果表明，L-选择素作为监测矿工慢性暴露后结晶二氧化硅诱导毒性的潜在外周生物标志物的相关性，在矽肺发生之前。然而，为了更好地理解将 L-选择素作为暴露工人的早期生物标志物的使用，还需要进行更多的研究。
