Cancer leaves “fingerprints” on DNA that could help scientists nail the environmental culprits behind mysterious tumors.
Doctors are building a state-of-the-art genetic library of “mutation” markers — with tobacco smoke, sunlight and air pollution identified as triggers with telltale signs.
Each chemical triggers a specific change in the DNA’s structure.
Scientists at Cambridge University and King’s College London exposed stem cells to dozens of known carcinogens before recording how each one altered DNA code.
They hope the results could turn tumors into “black boxes” packed with information about what caused the disease.
“Mutational signatures are the fingerprints that carcinogens leave behind on our DNA, and just like fingerprints, each one is unique,” research leader Dr. Serena Nik-Zainal said.
“They allow us to treat tumors as a crime scene and, like forensic scientists, allow us to identify the culprit, and their accomplices, responsible for the tumor.”
Of the 79 different known carcinogens the researchers exposed to human stem cells, 41 of them produced distinct genetic changes. Among them were chemotherapy drugs, dietary chemicals and diesel.
“Our reference library will allow doctors in future to identify those culprits responsible for causing cancer. Such information could be invaluable in helping inform measures to reduce people’s exposure to potentially dangerous carcinogens,” Nik-Zainal added.