Scientists discover smoking causes hundreds of DNA changes

11.11.2016

Scientists from Los Alamos National Laboratory conducted studies, examining the DNA status of 1063 people who do not use tobacco, and 2490 smokers.

Their goal was to discover the presence or absence of certain mutations.

It turned out that after every 50 cigarettes smoked, changes occurred in the macromolecules in lung DNA cells, which are responsible for storing and transmitting genetic information.

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In this way, an average smoker who smokes a pack of cigarettes a day is guaranteed to acquire 150 additional lung DNA mutations, 97 in the larynx, 23 in the oral cavity, 18 in the bladder, and 6 in the liver.

The changes themselves do not pose a danger, but can contribute to the development of cancer tumors. `Smoking is like Russian roulette: the more you smoke, the greater the chance of damaging cells and getting cancer`, - note the researchers. According to them, there are also people who can smoke until the end of their lives without consequences.

The cause of the mutations is chemical compounds contained in tobacco smoke. Their number reaches about 7 thousand, 70 of them can cause cancer. Scientists plan to continue their research.