• Halina Milnerowicz, Anna Bizoń, Katarzyna Witt, Jolanta Antonowicz-Juchniewicz, and Ryszard Andrzejak.
• Zakład Biomedycznych Analiz Srodowiskowych, Akademia Medyczna we Wrocławiu.
• Prz. Lek. 2008 Jan 1; 65 (10): 518-21.

AbstractThe kidneys are the critical organs in the case of a long-term occupational or environmental exposure to heavy metals and tobacco smoke. In diagnostics of renal damage useful are the methods which determine the activity of renal enzymes, quantify in urine (e.g. beta-glucuronidase, N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase). N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase (NAG) is one of the most often determined factors of tubular damage, since its activity increases in early stages of renal injury, ahead of appearance of excretory dysfunction. The aim of this research was to assess the influence of occupational exposure of copper-foundry workers to heavy metals (arsenic, cadmium, lead) on total activity of N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase and its molecular forms in urine. The investigated group was made up of 95 founders (smokers n = 51, non-smokers n = 44) and 43 people in control group (smokers n = 16, non-smokers n = 27). The concentrations of arsenic (As) and cadmium (Cd) were determined in urine, whilst the level of lead (Pb) was determined in whole blood. The activities of NAG and its isoforms were determined in urine. Smoking and non-smoking founders' urine demonstrated 14 times higher concentrations of arsenic levels in comparison with smoking and nonsmoking control group. Cadmium concentrations were 3.5 times higher in urine of smoking founders in comparison with smoking control group and about 3 times higher in case of nonsmoking founders in comparison with non-smoking control group. 7 times increase of lead concentration was observed in the whole blood within the smoking founders group in comparison with the smoking control group. In the blood of non-smoking founders was demonstrated about 10 times increase of lead concentration in comparison with the non-smoking control group. About 3-times increase of total NAG's activity was observed in urine of smoking founders and 4-times increase of non-smoking founders in comparison with smoking and non-smoking control group. The highest activity of NAG-B was observed in urine of smoking founders (11.35 +/- 7.85 U/g creatinine), then non-smoking founders (9.7 +/- 8.75 U/ g creatinine). It was confirmed, that the activity of N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase is a good factor in the assessment of occupational exposure to heavy metals like arsenic, cadmium and lead.

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