Folate cycle genome and change in the homocysteine level in children after forest fires in the Chernobyl exclusion zone

Fires that often occur in the forests of the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone are one of the most powerful sources of secondary air contamination with combustion products and various radionuclides that have a negative effect on the health of children and adults. Aim. Aim was to explore the relationship between forest fires and the change in blood homocysteine levels in children living in Polessky district of Ukraine bordering the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. Methods. Immunochemical, mathematical and statistical. Results. Increased blood levels of homocysteine, irrespective of the state of genome of folate cicle, were found in more than 70.0 % of cases in the group of children living near the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone during the period from 02/04/2015 to 18/12/2015. Given the forest fires with an area of 10.127 ha and 130 ha officially registered in the Chernobyl exclusion zone in the spring and summer of 2015, it can reasonably be argued that the increase in the level of homocysteine in the blood of children living in the border region associatared with wood burning particles, including black carbon and radioactive elements, that enter the body with air and food. Conclusions. Forest fires in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone are the cause of abnormal methionine metabolism and an increase in blood homocysteine levels in children from the adjacent districts. Keywords: homocysteine, folate metabolism, genetic polymorphisms, association, forest fires, Chernobyl Exclusion Zone.