Genetic Mutations

Genetic Mutations

        The annotated bibliography will focus on articles that focus on the themes of air pollution, radiation, virus and gene mutations, arsenic exposure, and food mutagens as environmental forces that initiate genetic mutations in living things. In all the articles, the authors provide evidence that each theme discussed cause abnormal genetic modifications that result in various diseases such as cancer, obesity, and diabetes. The selected subjects are discussed using two well-researched articles. The articles form a significant part of the literature review about the environment and its influence on gene mutations.

Somers, C. M., Yauk, C. L., White, P. A., Parfett, C. L., & Quinn, J. S. (2002). Air pollution induces heritable DNA mutations. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 99(25), pp.15904-15907.

        In this article, Somers, Yauk, White, Parfett, and Quinn (2002) discuss the dangers of residing near steel mills. The authors argue that integrated steel mills produce chemical mutagens that end up polluting natural and aquatic environments. The pollution in these environments is hazardous to the lives of human beings as well as other surrounding living things. Herring gulls that nested near steel mills on Great Lakes were found with higher germline mutation rates than those living in rural areas. The increased mutation rate among the birds was due to inhalation of air pollutants from steel mills. Polycyclic aromatic compounds were found to be responsible for mutation induction. Somers, Yauk, White, Parfeett, and Quinn (2002) conducted an investigation by exposing laboratory mice in situ to ambient air in a polluted area near steel mills. The mice were placed near the steel mills, and the other was situated in a rural area. The mice were allowed to breed, and genomic DNA was extracted from tail tissue. The mice in the rural area produced a healthy litter than the ones near the steel mill. The researchers also found that paternal and maternal mutation rate of the steel mice was significantly higher than that of the rural mice. The effects detected on the mice could affect human beings. The findings from this study are crucial because it provides heritable mutation induction from chemical pollution. The authors argue that industrial areas that pollute the air could cause significant health damages to the people in the surrounding area. The authors have requested further research to be conducted on the genetic consequences of inhaling industrial air.

        The information provided in this source is reliable and discusses a critical issue about the effects of air pollution and genetic mutations. The ideas presented in the study are objective; hence, making the source a credible one for my research.

Aoki, Y. (2017). Evaluation of in vivo mutagenesis for assessing the health risk of air pollutants. Genes and Environment, 39(1), pp.1-12.

        In this article, the Japanese pollutant release and transfer register (PRTR) indicated that ninety percent of the chemicals released by industries was emitted into the air. Benzene and 1, 3-butadiene (1, 3-BD) were some of the chemicals released into the air and were categorized as human carcinogens. The author of the study continues to argue that epidemiological studies in the U.S. and Japan show a relationship between the incidence of diseases such as lung cancer and long-term exposure to air pollution containing SPM. Aoki (2017) conducted in vivo mutagenesis on mice exposed on suspended particulate matter (SPM). The focus of the study was to identify the effects of inhaled air on gene mutation and its likelihood to cause cancer. The researcher investigated mice that were exposed to diesel exhaust. Following the inhalation of the diesel, the mice showed an increased mutation in the testis. The mutation rate also increased in the lungs of the transgenic rodents. The results indicated that the polluted air caused the germline mutation, which according to the findings the mutation rate was found to be 17-fold higher than that of the controlled mice. The transgenic assay system enabled the researcher to identify mutations induced on genomic DNA. The system involved the evaluation of in vivo mutagenicity caused by inhalation of a mixture of air pollutants. Aoki (2017) was able to identify the type of mutation caused by the different air pollutants. The data suggested that air pollutants such as diesel exhaust cased mutation in germ cells and somatic cells.

        The research by Aoki (2017) is relevant from my study because it assesses the effects of air pollution on germline mutations and its likelihood to cause cancer among humans. The study provides concrete information about the harm that polluted air can cause to the lives of human beings as well as animals. Overall, it is a useful source.

Han, W., & Yu, K. N. (2010). Ionizing radiation, DNA double strand break and mutation. Advances in Genetics Research, 4, pp.197-210.

        Han and Yu (2010) discuss how ionizing radiation can induce carcinogenesis. The ionizing radiation targets nuclear DNA, and the result is many types of DNA damages. According to the authors, ionizing radiation can interact with the structures of the target and cause ionization, which initiates a change of ionizing events that lead to biological changes. Emissions with higher linear energy transfer (LET) are said to cause direct radiation. Han and Yu (2010) continue to argue that the ionizing radiation can interact with the cell molecules and produce free radicals, which diffuse over distance to communicate with essential biological targets and result in damage. Such a process is called the indirect action of radiation. The authors continue to postulate that radiation targets DNA thus producing a broad spectrum of DNA lesions, which damage the nucleotide bases, double-strand breaks (BSBs), and DNA single-strand breaks (SSBs) (Han & Yu, 2010).

        The authors also found out that ionizing radiation induces a wide spectrum of mutation, from point mutations in single genes to absence of several genes (Han & Yu, 2010). Ionizing radiation causes DNA deletion; thus, leading to mutagenic effects. Equally important, the authors found that more than one α particle would affect ninety-six percent of bronchial cells of an average uranium miner annually. Radiation-induced bystander effect (RIBE) on mammalian cells caused chromosome breakages and cytogenetic abnormalities in human bone marrow (Han & Yu, 2010).