In vivo evaluation of the antimutagenic and antigenotoxic effects of β-glucan extracted from Saccharomyces cerevisiae in acute treatment with multiple doses

Abstract

Ample evidence suggests that cancer is triggered by mutagenic damage and diets or supplements capable of reducing such incidences can be related to the prevention of neoplasy development or to an improvement in life quality of patients who undergo chemotherapy. This research aimed to evaluate the antimutagenic and antigenotoxic activity of β-glucan. We set up 8 experimental groups: control (Group 1), cyclophosphamide (Group 2), Groups 3–5 to assess the effect of β-glucan administration, and Groups 6–8 to evaluate the association between cyclophosphamide and β-glucan. The intraperitonial concentrations of β-glucan used were 100, 150 and 200 mg/kg. Micronucleus and comet assays showed that within the first week of treatment β-glucan presented a damage reduction rate between 100–62.04% and 94.34–59.52% for mutagenic and genotoxic damages, respectively. This activity decreased as the treatment was extended. During the sixth week of treatment antimutagenicity rates were reduced to 59.51–39.83% and antigenotoxicity was not effective. This leads to the conclusion that the efficacy of β-glucan in preventing DNA damage is limited when treatment is extended, and that its use as a chemotherapeutic adjuvant need to be better clarified.

Resistant starch: a functional food that prevents DNA damage and chemical carcinogenesis

“…Whereas the results in the simultaneous treatment group indicated both desmutagenic and bio-antimutagenic activities, those in the pretreatment and posttreatment protocols indicated activity that could be inferred as bio-antimutagenic (Ferguson, 1994;Flagg et al, 1995;De Flora and Ferguson, 2005;Oliveira et al, 2009Oliveira et al, , 2013. The results of the comet and micronucleus tests suggest that the tested food compound acted through both bio-antimutagenic and desmutagenic actions.…”

Effects of Moquiniastrum polymorphum ssp floccosum ethnolic extract on colorectal carcinogenesis induced by 1,2-dimethylhydrazine

“…Comet assays were performed according to the procedure described by Oliveira et al (2013) as follows. Peripheral blood (20 µL) was collected (24 h after the last dose of EDTA or DMH) into heparinized cryotubes, homogenized with 120 µL 1.5% low-melting-point agarose at 37°C, and placed onto slides coated with standard 5% agarose.…”

Evaluation of the antimutagenic activity and mode of action of the fructooligosaccharide inulin in the meristematic cells of Allium cepa culture

“…Inulin is widely studied for its nutritional characteristics; it is classified as a prebiotic fiber and functional food like wheat and β-glucan (Oliveira et al, 2013a). Both classes stand out because they present different chemoprotective degrees and anticancer activities (Ferguson, 1994).…”