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Eight pregnant rats were exposed, on the 17th day of gestation, for 95 min to a microcondensation aerosol of benzo[a]pyrene at five different atmospheric concentrations between 200 and 800 mg m-3 in a 'head-only' inhalation chamber. Five rats were killed immediately following the exposure and three were killed at 6 h post-dosing. Concentrations of the radiolabel and 'free' benzo[a]pyrene were measured in the individual fetuses and in the maternal blood, fat, kidney, liver and lung. Distribution to the fetus did not appear to be related to its position on the uterine horn and the uptake of benzo[a]pyrene was non-linear with increasing exposure concentrations, which was similar to the observations previously reported for pyrene. The levels of benzo[a]pyrene were much higher in the fetus and, especially, the lung than those observed in the pyrene study; so also were the levels of total metabolites in these tissues, which might, in part, account for the carcinogenic potency of benzo[a] pyrene.

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Concentrations of pyrene and total metabolites were determined for individual fetuses and selected maternal organs and tissues immediately and 6 h following a 95-min head-only exposure of pregnant Wistar rats, on gestation day 17, to five levels of pyrene over the range 200-800 mg m-3 as a microcondensation aerosol. The influence of uterine horn, side and position, on distribution to the fetus was assessed. The concentration of both pyrene and its metabolites increased more over the exposure range (eightfold) than did those in the fetus. Concentrations of pyrene or its metabolites in fetal tissues were not found to be related to its position on the uterine horn. There was an unexplained and significant (P less than 0.01) higher concentration of pyrene in fetuses on the right side relative to the left side of the uterine horn for the animals killed immediately following exposure. A comparison of the levels in maternal tissues measured immediately following the exposure and 6 h later showed that there was some redistribution of pyrene and its metabolites to the fat tissues, i.e. levels in the fat increased over the 6 h period following the exposure. Levels in the other tissues diminished during this period. In general, concentrations of pyrene and its metabolites were lowest in the fetal tissues relative to those in the sampled maternal organs and tissues.

There is growing evidence that dietary antioxidants may have favourable effects in reducing cancer risk. In a case-control study we investigated the association of dietary total antioxidant capacity (TAC) and risk of breast cancer. Sociodemographic data, medical history and anthropometric measurements were collected from 275 women (100 breast cancer cases & 175 controls). Participants' usual dietary intake was measured using a validated semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire and their dietary TAC was estimated. An inverse, but non-significant, association was observed between dietary TAC and breast cancer risk. Multiple logistic regression models based on TAC of individual food groups showed that consumption of fruits and vegetables with higher TAC (μmolTE/100 g) was associated with a significantly decreased risk of breast cancer. Our study supports a protective effect of dietary antioxidants in relation to breast cancer risk. Food selection based on TAC of foods may be an effective strategy to modify the risk of cancer. ‫وشواهد‬