[Use of comet assay for the risk assessment of oil- and chemical-industry workers].

Introduction: The comet assay is a fluorescent microscopic method that is able to detect DNA strand-breaks even in non-proliferative cells in samples with low cell counts.

Aim: The aim of the authors was to measure genotoxic DNA damage and assess oxidative DNA damage caused by occupational exposure in groups exposed to benzene, polycyclic aromatic carbohydrates and styrene at the workplace in order to clarify whether the comet assay can be used as an effect marker tool in genotoxicology monitoring.

Method: In addition to the basic steps of the comet assay, one sample was treated with formamido-pirimidine-DNA-glycolase restriction-enzyme that measures oxidative DNA damage.

Results: An increase was observed in tail moments in each group of untreated and Fpg-treated samples compared to the control.

Conclusions: It can be concluded that occupational exposure can be detected with the method. The comet assay may prove to be an excellent effect marker and a supplementary technique for monitoring the presence or absence of genotoxic effects.