Cancer-causing compounds in third-hand smoke
DNA damaging third-hand smoke more deadly than one might think
You can step away from smokers and second-hand smoke, but “third-hand” smoke is a lot more insidious and potentially cancer-causing too. Researchers from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) in California, US, have found that leftover cigarette smoke sticking to walls and furniture may contain DNA-damaging compounds.
They say that compounds in second-hand smoke can be retained indoors for a long period of time after a cigarette has been stubbed out. The compounds can then react with indoor pollutants such as ozone to form new and possibly carcinogenic ones. One compound the researchers looked into was a tobacco-specific nitrosamine called NNA which locked onto and damaged DNA in lab tests. Such damage can be a precursor to the abnormal cell growth that characterises cancer tumour formation.
We still have a long way to go before we can confirm the relationship and mechanism between third-hand smoke compounds and cancer, but the research into NNA’s effects on DNA is being carried out in the hope that they can be used as biomarkers to identify people at risk. This group is likely to include babies and young children, who can easily come into contact with compounds from third-hand smoke through the things they tend to grab and chew on.
The research was presented at the 247th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS) held in Dallas, Texas in March.
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