Xinguo Wang and Cheng Zhang were responsible for measuring the concentration of sevoflurane. prior studies, there is not sound evidence that trace concentrations of anesthetic gases exert harmful effects [7]. Only high concentration levels of anesthetic agents and long-time exposure have been proven to result in significant histotoxicity [7]. Byhahn believe, under modern air conditioning, personnels occupational exposure is low, and inhalational anesthesia is safe from the standpoint of modern workplace laws and health care regulations [18]. Our study further supports the TAS4464 hydrochloride conclusions mentioned above by analyzing the actual effects of sevoflurane on apoptosis and cell cycle of peripheral blood lymphocytes, and immunologic function em in vivo /em ; and it was revealed that exposure to low level of sevoflurane has no significant FIGF harmful effects on peripheral blood lymphocytes of OR staff. Nevertheless, there are some limitations in this study. First of all, all the subjects were limited to one hospital, and this environment may not be generalizable to other institutions. Secondly, there is a lack of long-term observation of TAS4464 hydrochloride the dynamic changes of the variables in the subjects. Multicenter and long-term follow-up studies with large samples are warranted to further confirm our results. Research about the effect of exposure to WAGs on cognitive function in addition to immune function is also worth investigation in the future. Conclusions In the modern laminar-flow OR, medical personnels occupational exposure to sevoflurane does not exceed standard limits. Chronic occupational exposure to sevoflurane (less than limit of exposure) was found to have no significant harmful effect on the peripheral lymphocytes of OR staff. Acknowledgements I would like to thank my colleagues from the Department of Anesthesiology and Internal Medicine of Puren Hospital for their support to this study. Code availability flowjo TAS4464 hydrochloride software, ModFit LT software, SPSS software TAS4464 hydrochloride Authors contributions Zhimin Ji and Li Li designed the whole study, performed all experiments and wrote the manuscript. Xinguo Wang and Cheng Zhang were responsible for measuring the concentration of sevoflurane. Wanjun Wu collected and organized data, and made statistical analysis and modified the manuscript. Qiuping Xu and Xueyong Peng were responsible for subject recruitment and information registration. Fan Zhou and Weibin Yang were responsible for apoptosis and cycle experiments. Wanjun Wu and Junfang Hu were responsible for analysis of lymphocyte subsets and immunoglobulin assay. The author(s) read and approved the final manuscript. Funding This study was financially supported by Hubei Province Key Laboratory of Occupational Hazard Identification and Control, Wuhan University of Science and Technology, 2018 Annual Open Fund (OHIC2018K02). Availability of data and materials The datasets used and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request. Declarations Ethics approval and consent to TAS4464 hydrochloride participateThis study was approved by the Human Medical Research Ethics Review Board, Puren Hospital (prll2018001) prior to its initiation. All of the procedures were performed in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki and relevant policies in China. All subjects who participated in this study provided written informed consent. Consent for publicationNot applicable. Competing interestsThe authors declare that they have no competing interests. Footnotes Publishers Note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Zhimin Ji first author. Contributor Information Zhimin Ji, Email: moc.621@0091omot. Wanjun Wu, Email: moc.621@jwwydolem. Fan Zhou, Email: moc.qq@36610343. Junfang Hu, Email: moc.qq@546923596. Qiuping Xu, Email: moc.361@pqxyyrp. Weibin Yang, Email: moc.361@917-nibiewgnaY. Xueyong Peng, Email: moc.qq@287234698. Xinguo Wang, Email: moc.qq@666861348. Cheng Zhang, Email: moc.qq@960051954. Li Li, Email: nc.ude.tsuw@1001ilil..