Umwelt- und analytische Toxikologie

Glycidyl Methacrylate as Probably Carcinogenic to Humans

Abstract

Bruno Jose Dumêt Fernandes, Silvana Trinchão Costa, Nadielle Silva Bidu and Ricardo David Couto

Glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) is a monomer widely used in the production of dyes, paper, beverages, epoxy polymers, and others. It is a genotoxic substance with occupational exposure that can reach the general population by inhalation and skin contact. This agent may produce a large spectrum of DNA damage, evidenced by various carcinogenicity studies conducted on animals, and strong evidence of being carcinogenic in primary human cells. There is a deficit/absence of studies related to and no threshold limit value for GMA, however, due to the principles of similarity and precaution, it should be classified as a human carcinogen, and collective and personal control measures should be implemented or reviewed. This study provides an alert of GMA human exposure and its genotoxic and carcinogenic potential.