Figure 3
From: Arsenic, asbestos and radon: emerging players in lung tumorigenesis
Mechanisms of asbestos-induced carcinogenesis. Inhaled asbestos fibers can either be cleared by mucociliary movements and translocations, or undergo phagocytosis[44, 82, 83]. Fibers not efficiently eliminated by phagocytosis can generate reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (ROS and RNS, respectively) which can lead to generation of DNA single-strand breaks (SSBs) and cell signalling alterations, among other effects. Epigenetic changes, such as alterations in miRNA expression and DNA methylation are also a consequence of incomplete clearance of asbestos fibers. Alternately, fully phagocytized fibers can physically interfere with the mitotic process by interacting directly with microtubules or anchoring to mitotic structures.