RALEIGH, NC - A team of scientists from the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Office of Research and Development at Research Triangle Park may have discovered a direct link to DNA damage caused by arsenic compounds.
The research demonstrates that a human cell's own metabolic responses to arsenic exposure produces compounds that cause genetic damage, according to the scientific research into the effects of methylated trivalent arsenic on human lymphocytes in culture and on isolated DNA.
The research shows arsenic can induce an interaction of arsenic compounds with DNA, causing genetic alterations. An article on the research, "Trivalent methylated arsenic species are genotoxic," was published in the 16 April of Chemical Research in Toxicology.
The study found that methylated trivalent arsenic derivatives, which can be produced by the body in an attempt to detoxify arsenic, result in reactive compounds that cause DNA to break.
The findings have the potential to be used to quantify genetic damage in human populations exposed to arsenic, according to EPA officials.
An EPA toxicologist and colleagues from the agency's National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory conducted the recent study, with associates at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill, NC, and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada.
The National Academy of Sciences will be reviewing the findings of this study when it makes its assessment about arsenic levels in drinking water, due out early next year.
A study released in March indicated that while arsenic may not cause cancer on its own, it can precipitate the disease when other carcinogens are present. The study found arsenic at levels equivalent to 25-50 parts per billion (ppb) reduced the ability of genes in rat liver cells to recognize hormones called glucocorticoids, which help prevent tumor formation.
Previous studies linked malfunction of the cell receptors for glucocorticoids with cancer in lung and skin tissue. The researchers said the same process could throw off blood glucose regulation, affecting diabetics, and contribute to vascular disease.
Every month in Water Technology Magazine, "Professor POU/POE" answers reader questions about point-of-use/point-of-entry water treatment.
If you have a question for the Professor (also known as David Bauman, Technical Editor), send an e-mail to rdipaolo@ntpmedia.com and we'll pass it along. With your question, please indicate your general location (region, state, province, etc.). Not all questions will be chosen for publication.
Write for WT
Water Technology welcomes and encourages editorial contributions from the world of residential water conditioning, bottled water delivery, and treatment for commercial or light industrial applications.
To place a classified ad online, e-mail your ad text to pharrington@ntpmedia.com or call Pat Harrington at 518-640-9173.
Bookstore
WaterTechBooks.com is an online bookseller for the water treatment industry. It has dozens of titles in stock, in a variety of categories. A simple e-commerce platform allows you to complete your transaction online and have your books shipped directly to your home or business.
Every month in 
