Factors related to Glycophorin A mutation frequency of workers exposed to benzene.

Objective To analyze related factors which affect GPA mutation frequency of workers ex- posed to benzene,with the Glycophorin A(GPA)mutation assay and explore the possibility of GPA mutation frequency as an index of predicting the risk of benzene poisoning.Methods The erythrocytes were bound with fluorescent-labeled monoclonal antibody after isolated and fixed from the peripheral blood,and then the GPA mutation assay was performed using the flow cytometry(FCM).The related factors of GPA mutation fre- quency were analyzed by statistical methods.Results The GPA mutation frequency of chronic benzene poi- sonings was significantly higher than that of their controls(P0.05).Significant direct correlation was found be- tween age,length of service,accumulative exposure score and the GPA mutation frequency of workers exposed to benzene(P0.01).However,there was significantly inverse correlation between the 3AB index and the GPA mutation frequeney(GPAN0:r_s=-0.589,P0.01;GPANN:r_s=-0.615,P0.01).In the multiple factor regression analysis on GPA mutation frequency,benzene exposure and individual susceptibility both entered model of muhiple factors analysis,the coefficient of determination of benzene-exposed workers was 0.819.Conclusion Exposure to benzene and individual susceptibility are the most important factors that affect GPA mutation fre- quency.GPA mutation frequency increases with the benzene exposure and individual susceptibility.