Tag: Andrzej Starek

Benzene in General Environment

Andrzej Starek

Benzene is a primary industrial chemical and a ubiquitous environmental pollutant. Benzene occurs naturally as a component of petroleum and natural gas and also as a gas emissions from volcanoes and forest fires. There are number of petroleum products that contain benzene and are used in several industrial and household applications. For example, benzene is present in gasoline. Its the maximum content in gasoline was limited in 1998 to 1% v/v.

The general population is commonly exposed to benzene via respiratory tract. The main sources are traffic exhausts and cigarette smoke. Benzene exposures to the general population have been reduced by lowering its contents in gasoline and prohibiting smoking in public places. To improve air quality in the European Union set a limit value of 5 µg/m3 for benzene in 2008. The knowledge on the metabolism of benzene is basis for investigation of biomarkers of exposure to benzene.

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Health effects of exposure to low concentrations of benzene

Andrzej Starek

Benzene is a volatile organic compound and a ubiquitous environmental pollutant. Human exposure to low levels of benzene has been associated with hematological alterations in peripheral blood, depression of immunological system, genotoxic and epigenetic changes, and maybe with malignances in hematopoietic system. At the benzene concentration of below 3 mg/m3 a reduction in the number of erythrocytes (anemia) and leukocytes (leukopenia) were observed.

Benzene has been shown to have adverse immunological effects expessed in humoral and cellular immunological suppression. A LOAEL for immunological effects was assessed at 1.85±0,81 mg/m3.

There is evidence that benzene induces micronucleus formation, chromosomal aberrations, aneuploidy, sister chromatid exchange, and DNA strand breaks in humans. A LOAEL of 1.3 mg/m3 for chromosomal aberration and aneuploidy was derived for Asian workers. Environmental exposure to benzene can produce epigenetic changes in form of abnormal DNA methylation, post-translational histone modification and miRNA patterns expression. Benzene may cause some lymphoid malignancies in humans.

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Benzene in General Environment

Andrzej Starek

Benzene is a primary industrial chemical and a ubiquitous environmental pollutant. Benzene occurs naturally as a component of petroleum and natural gas and also as a gas emissions from volcanoes and forest fires. There are number of petroleum products that contain benzene and are used in several industrial and household applications. For example, benzene is present in gasoline. Its the maximum content in gasoline was limited in 1998 to 1% v/v.

The general population is commonly exposed to benzene via respiratory tract. The main sources are traffic exhausts and cigarette smoke. Benzene exposures to the general population have been reduced by lowering its contents in gasoline and prohibiting smoking in public places. To improve air quality in the European Union set a limit value of 5 µg/m3 for benzene in 2008. The knowledge on the metabolism of benzene is basis for investigation of biomarkers of exposure to benzene.

Continue reading