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. 1973 May;70(5):1461–1463. doi: 10.1073/pnas.70.5.1461

Carcinogen-Induced Chromosomal Breakage Decreased by Antioxidants

Raymond J Shamberger *, Frances F Baughman †, Shelley L Kalchert †, Charles E Willis *, George C Hoffman †
PMCID: PMC433519  PMID: 4514315

Abstract

Blood leukocyte cultures were incubated with antioxidants and the carcinogens sodium cyclamate and 7,12-dimethylbenz(α)anthracene in different combinations. There were 17.4% more chromosomal breaks in the group of cells treated with dimethylbenzanthracene only than in the untreated controls. The reductions in chromosomal breaks by the antioxidants were as follows: ascorbic acid, 31.7%; butylated hydroxytoluene, 63.8%; Na2SeO3, 42.0%; and dl-α-tocopherol, 63.2%. Multiple chromosomal breaks were distributed equally throughout the experimental groups. Sodium cyclamate had only slightly more chromosomal breaks than the controls (11.6 compared to 10.9%). In the cyclamate groups treated with Na2SeO3, 11.2% of chromosomes were broken. More acrocentric-type chromosomal breaks (21.7%) were seen in the untreated cells than the cells treated with cyclamate (3.4%) or dimethylbenzanthracene alone (4.8%). The carcinogen-treated groups had a higher percentage of meta breaks than the untreated controls.

Keywords: sodium cyclamate; 7,12-dimethylbenz(α)anthracene; peroxidation; aging

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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