title: Promoting action of cashew nut shell oil in DMBA-initiated mouse skin tumour model system.
abstract: The commercially available oil derived from the shell of cashew nut (Anacardium occidentale) was tested for its potency in promoting the DMBA-initiated cells into papillomas in a murine two-stage skin tumorigenesis model system. Male Swiss albino mice (9-10-weeks-old) were assorted into different groups and treated topically with single sub-carcinogenic doses of DMBA (50 micrograms in 0.1 ml acetone) followed by application of 1% and 2% shell oil in acetone three times a week. Animals were sacrificed after 20 weeks from the commencement of the experiment. The results imply a weak tumour promoting effect of cashew nut shell oil as the mean tumour incidences were found to be 1.1 and 2.5 in 1% and 2% oil treatment groups, respectively, while the corresponding figure vas 6.6 in the positive control group (DMBA and 1% croton oil in acetone). Few speculative mechanisms for the observed effect of cashew nut shell oil on initiated skin are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Cancer Biology Laboratory, School of Life Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Banerjee
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Rao
mesh_terms: D015127:9,10-Dimethyl-1,2-benzanthracene; D000818:Animals; D015197:Carcinogenicity Tests; D003436:Croton Oil; D051379:Mice; D009754:Nuts / Q000737:chemistry*; D010212:Papilloma / Q000139:chemically induced*; D010938:Plant Oils / Q000633:toxicity*; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced*
chemical_list: D010938:Plant Oils; D015127:9,10-Dimethyl-1,2-benzanthracene; D003436:Croton Oil