Deciphering of the morphology of buccal epithelial cell from smoker and non-smoker group

The environmental and the occupational exposure can cause cytogenetic damage in exfoliated buccal epithelial cells, this damage is frequently tracked using liquid-based cytology (LBC) preparations in the micronucleus (MN) assay. It is possible to study aging markers (predictors) in the oral cavity. Research materials such as oral fluid, gingival fluid, saliva, buccal cells, dental plaque, etc. can be obtained noninvasively. Buccal epithelial cell is the term for the mucous membrane that borders the structures inside the mouth cavity. Oral exfoliative cytology is an easy, painless, and non-invasive technique that uses microscopic examination of cells taken from the surface of oral mucosa.  Certain data suggest that biological age and lifestyle can be inferred indirectly from the morphological characteristics of the nuclei of buccal cells. This study aims to elaborate on the morphology of buccal epithelial cells in the smoker and non-smoker group. This prospective study was conducted from July to August 2023. Buccal swab samples were taken from each participant with informed consent. Clean cotton buds were used to create smears from the inner linings of cheek cells in 50 participants, consisting of 28 smokers and 22 non-smokers. Our results show that the apoptosis index in the smoker group is higher than in the non-smokers group. The cytogenetic index shows 7 and 1 between smokers and non-smokers, respectively. The proliferative index shows 57 and 39. The apoptosis index shows 86 and 49. The index of cytogenetic disorder accumulation shows 4.63 and 0.79. The repetitive index shows 26 and 19. This result shows that the abnormality of buccal epithelial cell/cytogenetic damage in the smoker’s group was higher than in the non-smokers group.