Lakhan Kma and Rajeshwar Nath Sharan
Keywords: Aqueous extract of betel nut (AEBN), Poly-ADP-ribosylation (PAR), carcinogenesis, histone H1 protein, immunoprobe assay of PAR, mice.
Abstract: Molecular events involved in carcinogenesis are greatly influenced by poly-ADP-ribosylation (PAR) of chromosomal protein as the modification alters chromosomal superstructure and, consequently, its functional status. In this investigation we have attempted to find the correlation between exposure to aqueous extract of betel nuts (AEBN) and the PAR of total cellular and histone H1 proteins vis-à-vis initiation stage of AEBN induced carcinogenesis in a mouse model. Progressive inhibition of PAR of total cellular and histone H1 proteins were observed in bone marrow cells (BMC), spleen cells (SC) and peripheral blood lymphocytes (BL) of mice exposed to chronic, low-dose AEBN. Among the three tissues used in the investigation, BMC exhibited maximum inhibition of PAR, followed by SC and BL. However, the inhibition of PAR was statistically significant even in BL after 3 weeks of exposure to AEBN. The results suggest that PAR could be a promising candidate as a reliable biomarker for early detection of cancer. The slot blot immunoprobe assay of PAR using polyclonal antibody employed in the investigation can be potentially used for early cancer detection and in cancer screening programs.
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