Water-soluble and organic extracts of ambient PM2.5 in Tehran air: assessment of genotoxic effects on human lung epithelial cells (A549) by the Comet assay

The main aim of the present study is to investigate the physicochemical characterization of water-soluble extract (WS) and organic extract (OE) of PM2.5 ambient in Tehran city air in order to evaluate the genotoxicity effects and the potential attribution to these effects. The lung epithelial cells (A549) were exposed to WS and OE, while Comet assays were conducted to analyze the genotoxicity. The results show that the amount of DNA damage in WS fraction and solvent-extractable organic samples is significantly higher than the control group and the increase in concentration significantly contributes to increase in the amount of DNA damage.