[Cytogenetic biomarkers and health status]

Cytogenetic aberrations are a biomarker for early effect that indicate the cell or the organism has undergone chromosomal damage as a result of his exposure to an external mutagenic/carcinogenic agent. The story begins with the description of the cytogenetic effects of ionizing radiation in 1927, but was not until 1956, with the description of the cytogenetic technique in humans, when genotoxic effects induced by mutagenic or carcinogenic chemical and physical agents are known. Induced chromosomal damage in humans by genotoxic agents is analyzed in human cells in vitro to check the genotoxicity of a suspected agent or in vivo in lymphocytes of individuals exposed to a genotoxic agent. The biomarker may be chromosomal breakage, sister chromatids exchanges, or micronucleus when the exposure has been recent, or chromosomal translocations for delayed or continuing exposures. The above, has allowed establishing that genotoxic damage accumulates with age and lifestyles such as smoking or occupational exposures. Recently, after checking the health status and survival of several European cohorts of normal individuals who years earlier were analyzed their cytogenetics biomarkers, has been established the cancer predictive value of the biomarker chromosome aberrations.