Carcinogenicity of antioxidants BHA, caffeic acid, sesamol, 4-methoxyphenol and catechol at low doses, either alone or in combination, and modulation of their effects in a rat medium-term multi-organ carcinogenesis model.

The carcinogenicity of low dietary levels of the antioxidants butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), caffeic acid, sesamol, 4-methoxyphenol (4-MP) and catechol, known to target the forestomach or glandular stomach, were examined alone or in combination in a 2-year long-term experiment and their modifying effects assessed in a medium-term multiorgan model. In the carcinogenicity study, groups of 30-31 male F344 rats were treated with 0.4% BHA, 0.4% caffeic acid, 0.4% sesamol, 0.4% 4-MP and 0.16% catechol either alone or in combination for up to 104 weeks and then killed. In the medium-term multi-organ model, groups of 10 to 15 male F344 rats were given diethylnitrosamine (DEN), N-methylnitrosourea (MNU), 1,2-dimethylhydrazine (DMH), N-butyl-N-(4-hydroxybutyl)nitrosamine (BBN) and 2,2'-dihydroxy-di-n-propylnitrosamine (DHPN) for a total multiple initiation period of 4 weeks (DMBDD treatment). BHA, caffeic acid, sesamol and 4-MP, each at doses of 0.4% or 0.08%, and catechol at doses of 0.16% or 0.032% were administered in the diet either alone or in combination after completion of the initiation regimen. All surviving animals were killed at the end of week 28, and major organs were examined histopathologically. In the carcinogenicity study, slightly increased incidences of forestomach papillomas were found in the sesamol- (15.8%), caffeic acid- (14.8%), catechol- (3%) and 4-MP- (11.5%) treated groups as compared with basal diet (0%), and a significant increase was observed with the five antioxidants in combination (42.9%, P < 0.001). In a medium-term multiorgan carcinogenesis model, incidences of forestomach papillomas and/or carcinomas were increased in each high dose group, but additive or synergistic effects were not found in the combination group. In the low dose case, the incidence of forestomach papillomas was significantly increased only in the combination group. With regard to other organs, the incidence of colon tumors was significantly decreased only in the high dose combination group. The results indicate that even at low dose levels phenolic compounds can exert additive/synergistic effect on carcinogenesis.