title: Roussin red methyl ester, a tumor promoter isolated from pickled vegetables.
abstract: Roussin red methyl ester [RRME; Fe2(SMe)2(NO)4], has recently been isolated from pickled vegetables consumed in Linxian, China. In the present studies, the tumor-promoting effect of RRME was found in rats treated first with nitrosodiethylamine. A two-stage experiment was also carried out by application of RRME on BALB/c mouse skin subsequent to 7,12-dimethylbenz[a]anthracene treatment, and induction of ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) activity was observed in epidermal cells. After 37-week treatments with 150, 300 or 450 nmol of RRME, the skin developed precancerous lesions and squamous cell carcinomas. The epidermal ODC activity was increased rapidly following a single application of RRME, and the level of its activation was in proportion to the doses used, although the promoting effect of RRME was weaker than that of 12-O-tetradecanoyl-phorbol-13-acetate. Since pickled vegetables are staple food in high-risk areas for esophageal cancer, RRME, as a tumor promoter, may therefore play a role in the development of this malignant disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Etiology and Carcinogenesis, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: J G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D015127:9,10-Dimethyl-1,2-benzanthracene; D000818:Animals; D002273:Carcinogens / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D004938:Esophageal Neoplasms / Q000209:etiology; D009603:Nitroso Compounds / Q000633:toxicity*; D009955:Ornithine Decarboxylase / Q000096:biosynthesis; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced; D013755:Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate; D014675:Vegetables / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D002273:Carcinogens; D009603:Nitroso Compounds; C028357:Roussin red methyl ester; D015127:9,10-Dimethyl-1,2-benzanthracene; D009955:Ornithine Decarboxylase; D013755:Tetradecanoylphorbol Acetate