title: Significance of differential metal loads in normal versus cancerous cadaver tissues - biomed 2010.
abstract: The bodys elemental/ metal loads are known to exert essential influence in maintaining normal and abnormal metabolism leading to eventual pathology of some forms of cancer phenotypes. Accumulation of potentially toxic or nonessential trace metals has been observed but not highly noted as an active factor in toxicogenesis and in the development of many diseases including cancers. The compositional balance and distribution of trace metals in various body tissues are essential key players in homeostasis in life. To this end the etiology of diseases including cancer has been linked with the accumulation of potentially toxic or nonessential trace metals. However, scarce literature / experimental evidence exist as a scientific proof that metal concentrations play important role in the etiology and development of cancer phenotypes. The aim of this study was to investigate the differential relationship of metal concentrations and profiles in cancer and normal tissues from cadavers of humans. The originated hypothesis was that elemental / metal concentrations and profiles seen in post mortem will show significant differences between normal and cancer-derived tissues as well as between various tissue types in humans. This study also establishes critical elemental /metal profiles that may be relevant in providing correlations with the development of three major cancers. Normal human and tumor tissues of cadaverous lung, breast and liver tissues used in this study were obtained from US Biomax Company. Tissue samples were prepared using standardized digestion procedures necessary for use with the Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectrometry (ICP-AES). This equipment was utilized to determine the concentrations and profiles of 21 elements including Ag, Al, As, Ba, Ca, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Na, Ni, Pb, Sb, Se, Sr, Tl, V, and Zn. Twelve major elements of Al, Ba, Ca, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mg, Na, Pb, Se, Sr, and Zn were found to be significantly different in term of their concentrations / profiles in normal and tumor tissues of human lung, breast and liver. These critical elements appeared to be respectively five to ten times more abundant in human lung and breast tumor than in their respective normal tissues. In contrast Ba, Cr, Cu, Fe, Zn, concentrations were shown to be lower in liver tumors than in normal liver tissues, and that Ca and Na appeared to be higher in human liver tumors than in normal liver tissues. Data analysis showed significant variations in elemental concentrations and profiles consistent with the hypothesis. It is concluded that metal / elemental homeostasis is essential for normal tissue function and that elemental variations and distributions are tissue specific as well as carcinoma specific. These results are promising and warrant further studies to confirm / exploit the possibility of manipulating elemental distribution and content as means for diagnosing / utility as therapeutic modalities in chronic human disease as well as cancer management.
authors.affiliation: University of Mississippi Medical Center, MS.
authors.forename: Ibrahim O
authors.initials: IO
authors.lastname: Farah
authors.forename: Quannesha
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Trimble
authors.forename: Kenneth
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ndebele
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mawson
references.citation: Acta Biomed. 2008;79 Suppl 1:43-51
references.pmid: 18924309
references.citation: Occup Environ Med. 1998 Apr;55(4):236-42
references.pmid: 9624277
references.citation: Indian J Med Res. 2008 Oct;128(4):533-44
references.pmid: 19106445
references.citation: Endocrinology. 2003 Jun;144(6):2425-36
references.pmid: 12746304
references.citation: Apoptosis. 2005 Jan;10(1):111-21
references.pmid: 15711927
references.citation: J Toxicol Environ Health. 1997 Jan;50(1):67-95
references.pmid: 9015133
references.citation: Am J Ind Med. 2000 Sep;38(3):255-70
references.pmid: 10940963
references.citation: Environ Health Perspect. 2002 Oct;110 Suppl 5:797-9
references.pmid: 12426134
references.citation: Pflugers Arch. 2004 Feb;447(5):744-51
references.pmid: 12748859
references.citation: Am J Ind Med. 1997 Feb;31(2):129-39
references.pmid: 9028428
references.citation: J Inorg Biochem. 1998 Jul;70(3-4):239-44
references.pmid: 9720310
references.citation: Carcinogenesis. 1991 Jan;12(1):111-4
references.pmid: 1988169
references.citation: Neuro Endocrinol Lett. 2006 Dec;27 Suppl 1:36-9
references.pmid: 16804515
references.citation: Biometals. 2009 Dec;22(6):863-75
references.pmid: 19340589
references.citation: Nat Med. 2003 Aug;9(8):1081-4
references.pmid: 12858169
references.citation: Phys Med Biol. 2009 Jul 7;54(13):4213-23
references.pmid: 19521003
references.citation: Ann Emerg Med. 1991 Oct;20(10):1138-42
references.pmid: 1928890
references.citation: Cancer. 1983 Sep 1;52(5):868-72
references.pmid: 6871828
references.citation: Phys Med Biol. 2007 Jul 7;52(13):3895-911
references.pmid: 17664584
references.citation: Environ Int. 2006 Jul;32(5):630-7
references.pmid: 16580070
references.citation: Biol Trace Elem Res. 2008 Oct;125(1):30-40
references.pmid: 18496653
references.citation: Int J Cancer. 2009 Sep 1;125(5):1110-7
references.pmid: 19444907
references.citation: Phys Med Biol. 2002 Jul 7;47(13):2327-39
references.pmid: 12164590
references.citation: Biol Trace Elem Res. 2001 Aug;81(2):177-83
references.pmid: 11554398
references.citation: Mol Cell Biochem. 2004 Jan;255(1-2):3-10
references.pmid: 14971640
references.citation: Mutat Res. 2003 Dec 10;533(1-2):201-9
references.pmid: 14643421
references.citation: Biol Trace Elem Res. 2004 Winter;102(1-3):19-25
references.pmid: 15621924
references.citation: Talanta. 2009 Feb 15;77(4):1490-6
references.pmid: 19084669