Evaluation of some biological parameters of gasoline station attendants in Damascus, Syria

INTRODUCTION: Gasoline is a blend of organic compounds used in internal combustion engines. gasoline station attendants (GSA) are exposed to gasoline vapours, which promotes oxidative stress through the production of ROS, which can damage biological structures with the formation of new metabolites which can be used as markers of oxidant/antioxidant imbalance. This is a comparative cross-sectional study. This study aims to evaluate some biological parameters as indicators of toxicity as a result of exposure to gasoline in workers at gas stations in Damascus. METHODS: Blood samples were collected from GSA (n = 30) and non-exposed (NE) (n = 30) with no history of occupational exposure, and the following markers of oxidative stress were analysed: malondialdehyde (MDA), advanced oxidation protein products (AOPP), catalase activity (CAT), CBC, ALT and AST. RESULTS: We have found that the levels of MDA, AOPP, CAT, RBC and Hgb in GSA were significantly higher than NE (p = 0.000, p = 0.02, p = 0.002, p = 0.018 and p = 0.015 respectively). On the other hand, there were no statistically significant (p > 0.05) in HCT, MCV, WBC, PLT, ALT and AST between the two groups. In the GSA group, there was no effect of the smoking habit and the number of years of work on biological parameters, but alcohol consumption habit had a clear effect on increasing both levels of MDA and CAT (P = 0.021 and P = 0.036 respectively), in comparison to the non-consumers of the alcohol group. The results from our study showed that chronic gasoline exposure may result in long-lasting oxidative stress, as demonstrated by the presence of statistically significant correlations between gasoline exposure and levels of biomarkers (MDA, AOPPs, Catalase activity). CONCLUSIONS: the early identification of these biomarkers can be very useful to promote programs on health protection and prevention for those populations more susceptible to the adverse effects of gasoline exposure.