Effects of Residual PAH Exposure from Firefighters’ Turnout Gear on Plasma microRNA Expression

Details

• Personal Author:
  Hwang J
• Description:
  The overall goal of this project is to assess the residual levels of selected compounds on firefighters' skin and on turnout gear, using exposure variables derived from work practices, and to investigate exposure-associated epigenetic assessment on skin and in the blood of firefighters. During this study, we collected a wide range of biological samples from firefighters and assessed their exposures to fire smoke. Based on this investigation, we explored the association of dermal and plasma polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH)-associated multiomics including miRNAs with PAH on turnout gear and on the skin of firefighters, as well as determine the occupational risk factors from pre- and post-fire-related activities. B.2. What was accomplished under these goals? The major activities accomplished were the laboratory and data analyses, the participant recruitment, and the environmental and biospecimen sample collection in the field. For this study, 74 firefighters - 68 male and 6 female - have participated from 12 fire departments in Oklahoma and Texas. As this study relies on emergency live fire calls, which are unpredictable, the sampling campaigns at some of the departments have been initiated with baseline measurements. The specific goals were to examine the laboratory and data analyses. For Aim 1 (Assess the associations between residual levels of PAH on firefighters' turnout gear and on skin with exposure variables derived from work practices), the environmental and biochemical contaminants on gear from pilot samples were tested and the analytical method validated using a Varian 450 Gas Chromatography equipped with a 200 Mass Spectrometry detector. The collected samples from the participants were analyzed using EPA Method 8310. For Aim 2 (Assess the PAH levels on skin and the PAH-associated miRNA expression on skin and in blood), while we developed an innovative analytical method for deriving miRNA expression from the skin samples, we have been also preparing the serum samples to process miRNA as well as multi-omics studies including epigenetic, transcriptomic, proteomic, metabolomic, and microbiome. While analyzing this specific aim with miRNA, we successfully identified and quantified 1,325 unique proteins through the proteomic platform. The significant results of prep multi-omics in collected biospecimens showed 45 proteins differential expressions in abundance in response to fire-smoke exposure compared to the baseline. From pathway analysis, we found proteins associated with epithelium development (e.g., RHCG, HEG1, ADAMTSL2) and Alzheimer's disease (SORL1) were significantly increased in response to smoke exposure samples. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Firefighters Genetics Hydrocarbons Occupational Health Personal Protective Equipment Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons Safety Skin
• Keywords:
  Dermal Exposures Fire Fighters Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons Protective Equipment Skin Exposure
• Series:
  Grant Final Reports
• Publisher:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Final Grant Report
• Place as Subject:
  Oklahoma ; OSHA Region 6 ; Texas
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  OEP - Office of Extramural Programs
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-9
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20069970
• Citation:
  Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, K01-OH-012688, 2024 Jun; :1-9
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2024
• Performing Organization:
  University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20230101
• Source Full Name:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• End Date:
  20231231
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:75e437f968a5e4220413e331f16727fc6cfe4c3e722f80acdcd4fb42226751f34f8ff0831776464dd7fe66f8a62a8494be150c992efc2bbaad3298f34a181395
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/219268/cdc_219268_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 268.27 KB ]