Clay-induced DNA breaks as a path for genetic diversity, antibiotic resistance, and asbestos carcinogenesis
Date
2018Journal
Scientific ReportsPublisher
Nature Publishing GroupType
Article
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
Natural clays and synthetic nanofibres can have a severe impact on human health. After several decades of research, the molecular mechanism of how asbestos induces cancer is not well understood. Different fibres, including asbestos, can penetrate cell membranes and introduce foreign DNA in bacterial and eukaryotic cells. Incubating Escherichia coli under friction forces with sepiolite, a clayey material, or with asbestos, causes double-strand DNA breaks. Antibiotics and clays are used together in animal husbandry, the mutagenic effect of these fibres could be a pathway to antibiotic resistance due to the friction provided by peristalsis of the gut from farm animals in addition to horizontal gene transfer. Moreover, we raise the possibility that the same mechanism could generate bacteria diversity in natural scenarios, playing a role in the evolution of species. Finally, we provide a new model on how asbestos may promote mutagenesis and cancer based on the observed mechanical genotoxicity. Copyright 2018 The Author(s).Sponsors
We thank Jens Rolff and Sophie Armitage from Freie Universitat Berlin for valuable comments on the manuscript. ARR is supported SFB 973 (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, project C5). We are also greateful to the Plan Nacional de I+D+i and Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Subdirección General de Redes y Centros de Investigación Cooperativa, Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Spanish Network for Research in Infectious Diseases (REIPI RD12/0015) – co-financed by European Development Regional Fund ‘A way to achieve Europe’ ERDF and SAF2015-72793-EXP and BFU2016-78250-P from Spanish Ministry of Science and Competitiveness (MINECO)-FEDER), funding to JB.Identifier to cite or link to this item
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85047989739&doi=10.1038%2fs41598-018-26958-5&partnerID=40&md5=a96fbdc6b7eaef60f54d990aa9e817e7; http://hdl.handle.net/10713/9049ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1038/s41598-018-26958-5