CYTOGENETIC ASSESSMENT IN PERIPHERAL BLOOD LYMPHOCYTES AFTER IN VIVO METHYL ISOCYANATE EXPOSURE ON BHOPAL

The purpose of this study was to assess the extent of chromosomal aberrations (CAs), sister chromatid exchanges (SCEs) and cell cycle kinetics in peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) cultured in the presence of BrdUrd, in Vivo Methyl isocyanate (MIC) exposure from an overheated storage tank in Union Carbide, an agricultural chemical plant in Bhopal.

Though a slight increase in CA was observed but neither elevated SCE frequencies nor inhibition of cell cycling were evident in Phytohaemagglutinin (PHA)-stimulated peripheral blood lymphocytes cultured from MIC-exposed survivors in Bhopal.Despite its apparent cellular toxicity and the capacity to affect chromosome structure, MIC is not much genotoxic as seen in PBLS examined in this study.