Abstract
Background
Obesity has been linked to DNA damage. The modifiable risk factors may modulate the impact of obesity on DNA damage.
Objective
This study aimed to assess DNA damage and its association with dietary nutrient, serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH)D) and concentration of hair heavy metals of obese and non-obese women.
Method
A case–control study was conducted involving 134 women aged between 20 and 50 years. Serum 25(OH)D, fasting glucose, and lipid profile were assessed. Indicators of DNA damage such as percentage of tail DNA, tail moment, tail olive moment, tail intensity and tail length were measured using an alkaline-comet assay. Concentrations of hair heavy metals were quantified using inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (ICP–MS). Participants' daily energy, macro, and micronutrient intake were collected using the Food Frequency Questionnaire.
Results
Mean values of serum 25(OH)D was 31.8 ± 0.9 nmol/L. 96.3% of participants were vitamin D deficiency (< 50 nmol/L). The mean BMI was 26.3 ± 0.5 kg/m2. Half of the participants (50.7%) have a high frequency of DNA strand breaks. Mean concentration of hair heavy metals (mg/kg) were 0.1 ± 0.03 (arsenic), 0.2 ± 0.1 (cadmium), 1.0 ± 0.4 (mercury), 2.8 ± 0.8 (lead),and 6.2 ± 0.4 (chromium). There was no significant difference for the mean of serum 25(OH)D, indicators of DNA damage, concentrations of hair heavy metals and dietary nutrients between obese and non-obese groups (p > 0.05). Obese women with serum 25(OH)D level of ≥ 31 nmol/L had a significantly lower tail moment (p = 0.029) and tail olive moment (p = 0.031); thus, indicating less DNA damage. Additionally, obese women with hair chromium concentration of ≥ 5.88 mg/kg had a significantly higher tail moment (p = 0.047), indicating more DNA damage.
Conclusion
DNA damage among obese women correlated with serum 25(OH)D and hair chromium.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS/1/2020/SKK06/UCSI/02/3) and Research Excellence & Innovation Grant (REIG) (REIG-FMS-2020/044, REIG-FMS-2020/045 and REIG-FMS-2020/010). Funders had no role in the design, analysis, or writing of this article.
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NCY, FA, NAB and ETSS contributed to the research's conception and design. NCY contributed to the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of the data. NCY, FA, PYT and SR contributed analysis and interpretation of the data. NCY, PYT, FA drafted the manuscript. All authors critically revised the manuscript, agreed to be fully accountable for ensuring the work's integrity and accuracy, and read and approved the final manuscript.
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All authors, Ng Chiat Yin, Farahnaz Amini, Normina Ahmad Bustami, Eugenie Tan Sin Sing, Pui Yee Tan and Soma Roy Mitra, confirm that they have no conflicts of interest to disclose.
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Ethics approval was obtained from the Medical Research and Ethics Committee (MREC), Malaysia (NMRR-17-224-34092). Informed consent was collected prior to recruitment and sample collection. The research methodology was conducted in accordance with the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki.
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Ng, C.Y., Amini, F., Ahmad Bustami, N. et al. Association of DNA damage with vitamin D and hair heavy metals of obese women. Mol. Cell. Toxicol. 17, 429–438 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13273-021-00149-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13273-021-00149-2