title: Anticarcinogenic activity of alpha-difluoromethylornithine, ginseng, eleutherococcus, and leuzea on radiation-induced carcinogenesis in female rats.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To carry out a comparative study of inhibition of radiation carcinogenesis using alpha-difluoromethylornithine (DFMO), tinctures of ginseng, eleutherococcus and leuzea in female rats.
  
  
  METHODS
  Locally bred female LIO-strain rats were subjected to a single whole body γ-irradiation dose of 4 Gy at 12 weeks of age. Modifying drugs were given with drinking water from the 10th day after irradiation until the end of the experiment (for 16 months).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Irradiated rats developed tumors 70.0-79.6% (malignant tumors: 43.7-45.0%) with a multiplicity of 1.48-1.75 (malignant: 0.5-0.58), while in unirradiated animals the incidence of all/malignant tumors was 21.9%/7.7% with multiplicity of 0.22/0.08. In exposed rats tumors most often developed in the mammary gland - 57.3%, reproductive and endocrine organs - 27.2%, and other localizations - 29.1%. All drugs, except leuzea, significantly reduced incidence and multiplicity of tumors, overall or at some localizations in irradiated rats. Highest, and practically equal inhibition, was shown by ginseng and DFMO, while eleutherococcus was clearly inferior. Ginseng reduced overall tumor incidence and multiplicity by 1.5 and 2.4 times, malignant tumor incidence and multiplicity - by 2.5 and 2.9 times, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The ginseng extract is the most promising radiation carcinogenesis inhibitor tested.
authors.affiliation: N.N. Petrov Research Institute of Oncology of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation , St. Petersburg , Russia.
authors.forename: Vladimir G
authors.initials: VG
authors.lastname: Bespalov
authors.forename: Valery A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Alexandrov
authors.forename: Alexandr L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Semenov
authors.forename: Elena G
authors.initials: EG
authors.lastname: Kovan'Ko
authors.forename: Sergey D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Ivanov
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016588:Anticarcinogenic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D063646:Carcinogenesis / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000528:radiation effects*; D000518:Eflornithine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D028001:Eleutherococcus / Q000737:chemistry*; D005260:Female; D005720:Gamma Rays / Q000009:adverse effects; D043843:Leuzea / Q000737:chemistry*; D005894:Panax / Q000737:chemistry*; D051381:Rats; D016019:Survival Analysis; D014916:Whole-Body Irradiation / Q000009:adverse effects
chemical_list: D016588:Anticarcinogenic Agents; D000518:Eflornithine
keywords: Radiation carcinogenesis; alpha-difluoromethylornithine; cancer chemoprevention; eleutherococcus; ginseng; leuzea