Hannah Eddens

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons  and human biological effects 

Pollution has created significant impacts in human life in the past. It has devastated life greatly in all aspects. Pollutant materials are found across the globe in the water we drink, the air we breath, and land we walk on. One of the biggest concerns within the topic of pollution discusses the harmful particles we are constantly exposed to through the air we breath and the everyday products we use. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are derivatives of partial combustion of fossil fuels, biomass and overheating of organic material.[8] Exposure to this particulate matter has been researched and linked to the synthesis of DNA adducts and tumorigenesis. There are a number of pathways that operate the metabolic activation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons,   

  • formation of dihydrodiol epoxides requiring 2 CYP-catalyzed oxidations and epoxide hydrolase 
  • formation of phenols via radical cations by 1-electron oxidation  
  • formation of o-quinones via catechols by involvement of aldo-keto reductases with formation of ROS 

BIOL 499, Capstone 

Paul Allee 

P114 

1 – 1:30 PM 

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