EFFECT OF CIGARETTE SMOKING ON HAEMATOLOGICAL PARAMETERS: INFLUENCE OF NQO1 GENE POLYMORPHISM

Abstract

Cigarette smoking carries higher risks for most of the chronic diseases. It also has chronic and acuteeffects on the haematologic system.NQO1 catalyzes highly toxic quinones derived from tobacco smoking to less toxic hydroquinone analogues, thus protects the cell from unwanted oxidative damage.This study aimed to determine the effect of cigarette smoking on haematological indices among Sudanese smokers with different NQO1 genotypes. The study included 75 smokers (consuming minimum of 5 cigarettes per day for at least one year) that were selected randomly,there blood cell count (determined by Sysmex KX-21N) and NQO1 genotypes (detected by PCR-RFLP) were determined and compared with 75non-smokers as controls. Mean TWBC was significantly higher, with higher lymphocytes count, among smokers than non-smokers (P value=0.029 and 0.000 respectively).NQO1C609T genotype frequencies of cigarette smokers were as follows: Homozygous wild types(C/C) 85% (n 64/75) and heterozygous mutant type(C/T) 15% (n 11/75). No homozygous mutant (T/T) genotype was detected among the study group. No significant differences were observed in the haematological parameters between smokers with mutant type (NQO1609 C/T and those with wild type (NQO1609C/C). In conclusion, we found a significant increase in the TWBC count and lymphocyte count among cigarettes smokers group than the non-smokers group, with no modifying interaction by the different NQO1 genotypes. Key words: Cigarette smoking, Haematologicalvalues, NQO1, Sudan.