DNA damage in gasoline station workers caused by occupational exposure to petrol vapour in Turkey

The refueling of vehicles is a major source of volatile organic compounds generated by used and evaporated fuel. Gasoline workers are directly exposed to various fuel products via many routes in the ambient air. The aim of this study is to determine the potential DNA damage in the peripheral blood samples of the gasoline station workers in Istanbul, Turkey by using the alkaline comet assay. Blood samples were collected from exposed workers (n= 25) and healthy controls (n= 14) with no history of occupational exposure. Significant difference in the mean total comet scores (TCS) of gasoline station workers (89.24 ± 30.83) were observed as compared with the control group (15.64 ± 16.17) (p < 0.001). Results from our study indicate that exposure to petrol vapour induce genotoxic effects, confirming that the gasoline station workers have a high risk of cancer due to their daily occupational exposure.