Peluso, Marco Bollati, Valentina Munnia, Armelle Srivatanakul, Petcharin Jedpiyawongse, Adisorn Sangrajrang, Suleeporn Piro, Sara Ceppi, Marcello Bertazzi, Pier Alberto Boffetta, Paolo Baccarelli, Andrea A eng Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't England 2012/10/16 06:00 Int J Epidemiol. 2012 Dec;41(6):1753-60; discussion 1761-3. doi: 10.1093/ije/dys129. Epub 2012 Oct 13. ; International audience ; BACKGROUND: Adverse biological effects from airborne pollutants are a primary environmental concern in highly industrialized areas. Recent studies linked air pollution exposures with altered blood Deoxyribo-nucleic acid (DNA) methylation, but effects from industrial sources and underlying biological mechanisms are still largely unexplored. METHODS: The Ma Ta Phut industrial estate (MIE) in Rayong, Thailand hosts one of the largest steel, oil refinery and petrochemical complexes in south-eastern Asia. We measured a panel of blood DNA methylation markers previously associated with air pollution exposures, including repeated elements [long interspersed nuclear element-1 (LINE-1) and Alu] and genes [p53, hypermethylated-in-cancer-1 (HIC1), p16 and interleukin-6 (IL-6)], in 67 MIE workers, 65 Ma Ta Phut residents and 45 rural controls. To evaluate the role of DNA damage and oxidation, we correlated DNA methylation measures with bulky DNA and 3-(2-deoxy-beta-D-erythro-pentafuranosyl)pyrimido[1,2-alpha]purin-10(3H)-one deoxyguanosine (M(1)dG) adducts. RESULTS: In covariate-adjusted models, MIE workers, compared with rural residents, showed lower LINE-1 (74.8% vs 78.0%; P